The Channel Magazine's Exclusive Interview with EPWK Founder Huang Guohua

A compelling in-depth interview featured prominently in the 5th issue of The Channel Magazine (www.taihaizazhi.com) in 2025. This issue's interview focuses on Huang Guohua, the founder and CEO of EPWK. After EPWK's IPO, he powerfully declared, "IPO is not a graduation ceremony, it's a rallying call!" This statement encapsulates his profound insights and firm conviction regarding enterprise development, industry prospects, and the journey ahead. Below is a detailed report on this exclusive interview:

"Successful entrepreneurship is a low-probability event; it's the ultimate test of one's perseverance and resilience." The entrepreneurial journey of Huang Guohua, the founder and CEO of EPWK, has been filled with persistence and resilience. If he were to write a letter to his 2010 self, Huang Guohua says he would thank himself for never giving up. It was precisely that dedication and steadfastness that forged today's achievements.

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Photo: Report on the Channel Magazine

At 12:00 PM EST on February 6, 2025, the Nasdaq bell resonated across the Pacific, reaching EPWK in Xiamen Software Park. As the stock ticker "EPWK" began to flash on the screen, Huang Guohua's clenched fist finally relaxed. Due to visa issues, the executive team, stranded in China, could only witness this historic moment online. "At that moment, I suddenly felt my body filled with energy," Huang Guohua, founder and CEO of EPWK, later recalled.

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At 12:00 PM EST on February 6, 2025 , EPWK, also recognized as a National Cross-Strait Youth Entrepreneurship Base , officially listed on Nasdaq Stock Market in the United States, becoming Xiamen's first overseas-listed company in 2025.

This "rebirth" almost perished before dawn. As one of the first Chinese concept stocks to list on US exchanges using a VIE structure, EPWK's filing endured over 200 days. Finally, the China Securities Regulatory Commission's filing entered its final 23-hour countdown. If the bell wasn't rung that day, the company faced the uncertainty of re-filing, and may miss the IPO opportunity as the market only gave one chance. Fortunately, EPWK exerted every effort to complete the final stretch before dawn. As China's first digital and intelligent creative design transaction service e-commerce platform to list in the U.S., EPWK's IPO marks a significant step forward for China's creative crowdsourcing industry on its path to globalization.

Dreams and Choices

Huang Guohua, neither an economics nor a technology major, carved out a path in the internet entrepreneurship wave. A quick glance at his resume-from a township government to the media industry, then to internet entrepreneurship, and finally ringing the bell at Nasdaq-reveals an adventurer whose every cross-industry step was guided by an intuition for trends. When entering new fields and seeking new opportunities, he adopted a humble stance, learned diligently, worked hard, and seized opportunities. When a fertile ground bearing such distinct personality and internal drive forms, opportunities are boundless.

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The founder and CEO of EPWK, Huang Guohua , has a diverse background, having served as a township civil servant and then a journalist. In 2007, he resigned to co-found a mobile animation company with his cousin. During this venture, he identified the business opportunity in crowdsourcing services, leading him to pivot and establish EPWK.

After graduating from technical secondary school at 19, Huang Guohua was assigned to work for the township government, securing the "iron rice bowl" (i.e. a stable job) that everyone envied back then. Although Huang Guohua studied engineering, specializing in mechanical manufacturing, he loved literature and enjoyed writing. By day, he wrote documents and speeches for leaders; by night, he scoured books and newspapers, unearthing many newsworthy articles. In less than two years, Huang Guohua sharpened his writing skills, and his articles were frequently published in newspapers like Fujian Daily and Minnan Daily .

The turning point in his destiny arrived, both unexpectedly and inevitably. Minnan Daily was expanding and needed talent. In addition to campus recruits, they brought in young people with work experience and strong writing skills from grassroots levels, and Huang Guohua was one of them. Afterwards, Huang Guohua worked at Minnan Daily for about ten years before joining Strait Metropolis Daily , becoming the head of its Minnan station. At that time, Huang Guohua was full of vigor, earning an annual salary of over 100,000 yuan. With China's rapid economic development, the idea of venturing into the broader market had become Huang Guohua's dream. In 2007, he resolutely resigned to start his own business, first establishing a media company, and later moving to Xiamen Software Park to pursue entrepreneurship.

In Xiamen, he initially ventured into the mobile animation industry. "At that time, we made animation, earning one to two million yuan annually, but the market capacity wasn't significant," Huang Guohua recalled. He began to consider a career change. Having experienced the convenience of a crowdsourcing website when he used it to solicit a logo, he saw immense opportunity. Crowdsourcing was more than just a bidding platform, it was a marketplace that brought together creative talents. Most designers lived and worked in major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and other open coastal cities, while companies with demands, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, were located in third and fourth-tier cities, central and western regions, or remote counties... The distribution of demand and talent was imbalanced.

As a journalist, Huang Guohua was astute, and this keenness continued after he became a businessman. He acutely felt that the internet would remain a rapidly developing industry for a long time, and creative design transaction platforms would profoundly change people's lives. He set his sights on the crowdsourcing industry, deciding to transition from a user to a service provider.

Traditional crowdsourcing websites had always followed a "full-reward bidding" model. For one task, 100 designers would bid, and the employer would choose one; 99 people would work for free, one would win, the website would take a 20% commission, and the winning designer would get 80%. As a new company, it had to be different to stand out. In November 2010, EPWK platform launched a differentiated competition strategy-a fully free crowdsourcing website model, becoming the first in the industry to abolish the "rule" of a 20% commission from reward tasks.

"At that time, everyone in the industry charged commissions. Why would people come to us? If we wanted to acquire a large number of quality service providers, we had to differentiate ourselves," said Huang Guohua. In his words, when they started this venture, others had been doing it for seven or eight years, so they definitely had to take a different path to survive. Faced with the industry's prevailing 20% commission rule, he did the opposite: give first, then take; serve designers wholeheartedly, free of charge. While others charged commissions, EPWK did not; while others ignored cheating, EPWK handled it promptly and justly... thus the reputation would grow. EPWK rapidly attracted a large number of designers and service providers to join the platform, forming a strong user base. This differentiated competition strategy not only helped EPWK to establish a firm foothold in the market but also laid a solid foundation for its subsequent development.

The 160,000 Yuan "Tuition Fee"

As a vertical portal that abolished the 20% commission, it was initially very difficult for EPWK to make money. The company incurred daily operating expenses with only input but no output. For a period, even employees wondered: "We're not charging buyers, we're not charging sellers, how do we make money?"

Though he had a clear profit model and path in mind, Huang Guohua wasn't entirely sure when his dream would truly materialize. He just had to go for it, using the minimum amount of money to create the best possible brand effect and reputation, aiming to gather users. This unwavering confidence, however, came at the cost of painful lessons. Early in his mobile animation venture in Xiamen, in his eagerness to achieve results, a salesperson lured him with the promise of a big deal, causing the company to continuously pay "public relations fees," totaling 160,000 yuan. The team also recruited over 30 people, working tirelessly for several months, only to discover the orders were fake. For a start-up, this was an almost fatal blow. The initial 500,000 yuan for the venture was a loan from his uncle, and 200,000 yuan had already been spent on initial renovations and equipment. With this additional scam, Huang Guohua lay in his apartment in the software park, the bitter cold outside chilling him to the bone. Fortunately, upon hearing the news, his uncle encouraged him not to give up, but to persevere to the end.

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EPWK , rooted in Xiamen and deeply committed to online creative design transaction services , focuses on supporting the growth and success of small and medium-sized enterprises, and has evolved into a National Mass Entrepreneurship and Innovation Demonstration Base and a National Science and Culture Integration Demonstration Base .

Huang Guohua had hoped to get the project rolling with 500,000 yuan, but it eventually took 5 million yuan, spent gradually, before investment finally came through. In the early stages of the venture, Huang Guohua steadfastly adhered to the uniqueness of his business model, which directly led to three years' loss. Every month, salaries for employees were transferred from his family's factory. One night, his cousin suggested withdrawing to Zhangzhou, but Huang Guohua vaguely felt that they were just one step away from capital recognition or a profit inflection point and he wanted to hold on a little longer. A heartfelt conversation eventually convinced his cousin.

Entrepreneurship is a challenging, make-or-break journey, and investment is its catalyst. Many hurdles are either cleared to smooth sailing or lead to an abyss. Huang Guohua was fortunate. A few months later, Huayi Fund reached out, secured a 5 million yuan angel investment in exchange for 25% equity. Even more encouragingly, the company's project also received the Xiamen Municipal Government's "Double Hundred Plan" award. The company's development began to accelerate, widely sought after by various media outlets and investors, carrying limitless hope.

Entrepreneurship, investment, angel rounds, A-round financing, A+ round financing, B-round financing, and listing on Nasdaq in U.S.-the journey has been filled with many triumphs and even more hardships, with a cumulative investment of 200 million yuan. Yet, even so, Huang Guohua frankly stated that such investment is "actually not that much" in the development of a platform-based company.

"Believe in belief, believe in the power of belief, believe in the direction of belief." Today, EPWK platform boasts over 25.66 million registered users, covering 2,800 counties (cities/districts), and has provided online creative crowdsourcing channels for 8.74 million institutions, enterprises, and individuals. This sparkling set of data is strong proof of EPWK's development.

In the early hours of February 7, 2025, Huang Guohua wrote on his WeChat Moments: "IPO is not a graduation ceremony, it's a rallying call for a global battle! I appreciate my comrades who fight alongside me for the past decade, and I look forward to the next decade where we continue to optimize industry models and rules with code. Reshape "Made in China" with design!" It's fair to say that these 10 years have been a decade of astonishing growth for EPWK, a decade of upgrading and transformation for Huang Guohua as an entrepreneur, and a golden decade for the group of people who have walked alongside EPWK.

Pushing Forward, Controlling the Speed

In the main hall of Huang Guohua's house, a calligraphy piece gifted by a former senior newspaper leader stands out, bearing the four characters "Gao Huai Yuan Lu" (High Aspirations, Far-reaching Vision). The old leader's gift was meant to convey a message to Huang Guohua: possess lofty ambitions and grand strategic plans, while always remaining grounded, taking one step at a time, and steadily putting ideals into practice.

Like many first-generation entrepreneurs, work consumes almost all of Huang Guohua's time. He wakes up at 6:50 AM daily, attends an executive breakfast meeting at the company at 7:30 AM, and by 8:30 AM before employees arrive, his entire day's work is already planned. EPWK, a company that the public may not fully perceive, makes progress passionately and swiftly every day. Huang Guohua emphasizes the importance of self-drive. He stresses, finding what one truly loves, and consistently pursuing it; try to avoid waste, especially waste of time and resources. Only by cherishing every minute and second, and rationally utilizing every resource, can one more likely achieve success and realize entrepreneurial dreams in fierce market competition.

When he first started his business, Huang Guohua's mother told him: "You went from an iron rice bowl, to a clay rice bowl, to no rice bowl." After he started the company, his former senior leader joked: "You're creating your own rice bowl, and even creating rice bowls for hundreds people." Today, speaking of "rice bowl," he muses: "To some extent, it's users who actually provide us with our rice bowls. Based on what we do that are valuable to users, users recognize us and give us opportunities to survive and develop. Therefore, we should always remain reverent and grateful, continuously improve ourselves, and consistently provide quality services to users." Huang Guohua's father was an elementary school teacher, while his mother a simple rural woman. Throughout his upbringing, his parents always taught him to be kind, simple, and friendly to others. These unadorned values are deeply rooted in his heart and influence Huang Guohua's philosophy and actions in managing his company.

EPWK team has always been proud of making a better life for users: it helped a disabled individual entrepreneur in a mountainous area of Yunnan, who, for 50 yuan, acquired a general store sign design from a Shanghai designer.It enabled university students majoring in design to secure orders online and become self-reliant. It helped people who had resigned from large internet companies in big cities to innovate and start businesses at low cost online. With the mission of "empowering enterprise with technology and promoting the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises," EPWK is committed to building a global creative industry ecosystem, becoming a connector, integrator, and value creator of industry resources, and transforming into a platform-based, innovative and digitally intelligent internet company.

"Charge forward!" This is Huang Guohua's keyword for 2025. He deeply understands that the platform's success depends not only on the number of providers but also on user trust and satisfaction. Therefore, he consistently emphasizes reverence for the market and users. "We hope that by leveraging our experience, capital, and resource advantages, we empower companies in our ecosystem to go public." "We must continue to deeply cultivate our existing business, increase market share, improve user experience, and optimize our business model."

It's worth mentioning that EPWK Maker Space, an entrepreneurial incubation service brand under EPWK, focuses on innovation and entrepreneurship services for youth across the Taiwan Strait. It actively explores and practices cross-Strait cultural integration and development, earning the honor of being a National-level "Cross-Strait Youth Entrepreneurship Base." It has incubation bases in Jimei District and Haicang District in Xiamen. EPWK Maker Space primarily provides entrepreneurial services that combine innovation with entrepreneurship, online service with offline service, and incubation with investment. It facilitates cultural exchange, information sharing, and resource sharing among cross-Strait entrepreneurial teams through activities such as "EPWK Friends Club," "EPWK Storm Room," "EPWK Academy," "EPWK Creation Festival," and "Entrepreneurs' Night." EPWK Maker Space has also successfully incubated many outstanding Taiwanese youth projects, including "He Bu He," which has completed an angel round financing of 1.2 million yuan.

"We are just ordinary entrepreneurs, and our current achievements are entirely due to the excellent innovation, entrepreneurship, and business environment in Xiamen City and Jimei District. In such an environment, it is entirely possible to batch-produce a large number of companies like EPWK if properly organized. EPWK is also very willing to play an accelerating role in this process," Huang Guogua stated frankly. He feels that Xiamen is truly ideal for entrepreneurship. On this land full of opportunities and vitality, having received support from all sides and overcome numerous challenges, he is profoundly grateful.

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R ecently , EPWK announced its integration of DeepSeek intelligent solutions to further enhance its platform's intelligent service capabilities .

The success of an enterprise is inseparable from the support of its era. Today, EPWK has purchased a building in District F, the third phase of Xiamen Software Park, which is not only a milestone in the company's development but also a solid starting point for a brand new journey.
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