Xiaocaiyin.com

About Xiaocaiyin.com

Foshan Qicai Xiangyun Information Technology Co., Ltd., operating under the brand name Aocai (formerly Xiaocaiyin.com), was established in 2017 with a mission to digitally transform the fragmented packaging and printing industry. The company's legal representative and CEO is Wu Jinhe. The founding team, including co-founder and COO Pi Binfeng, came from interdisciplinary fields such as computer science, artificial intelligence, and optics, rather than the traditional printing sector. They identified a significant market inefficiency: the packaging industry, a trillion-yuan market in China, was highly fragmented, with over 300,000 small, low-tech producers struggling to handle the non-standardized, small-batch orders that larger manufacturers often reject.

Aocai developed an industrial internet platform to address this gap, positioning itself as a flexible supply chain provider for small and medium-sized businesses. The business operates on a B2B model centered around its proprietary “technology black box” system. This system automates the entire process from customer order to factory production. Clients use Aocai's online platform to get an instant quote by entering dimensions, select from numerous box templates, and visualize their product with 3D soft proofing. This one-stop-shop approach simplifies procurement for non-specialist clients who require customized packaging in small quantities, with orders starting from a single unit.

The platform's core function is to intelligently process and standardize a high volume of diverse, non-standard orders. Using AI, the system bundles orders with similar characteristics (e.g., material, color, process), optimizing production runs for its network of partner factories. This集約化 (collectivization) of small orders allows for mass production efficiencies, reducing costs by over 10% and cutting delivery times in half, with many orders fulfilled within three days. Initially, Aocai collaborated with external factories, but later moved to a model of aggregating small and medium-sized enterprises into dedicated industrial parks under unified management and quality standards to ensure consistency and reliability.

The company demonstrated considerable growth, attracting significant venture capital. It completed Pre-A and A rounds totaling 60 million RMB in early 2022 from investors including K2VC, Zhengxuan Investment, and Taiya Investment. This was followed by a nearly 100 million RMB Series B round in September 2023, led by Qifu Capital, with follow-on investments from previous backers. These funds were earmarked for continued technology development and the construction of industrial parks. However, the aggressive investment in R&D and physical infrastructure, combined with a downturn in the printing and packaging market, placed severe strain on the company's finances. In July 2025, CEO Wu Jinhe announced that the company's capital chain had broken, leading to a state of severe debt distress and an inability to continue operations, marking a dramatic reversal of its promising trajectory.