The Transformation Path of Traditional Cigarette Pack Printing Giants
The strategic transformation of this long-established packaging and printing company has entered a new phase.
1. Forty-two Years of Trials and Triumphs
The predecessor of Dongfeng Group dates back to 1983, when the collective enterprise "Shantou Anping District Dongfeng Packaging and Printing Factory" was established. After years of development, the company emerged in the field of cigarette packaging printing, once becoming a leading player in the domestic cigarette packaging printing industry.
In 2012, Dongfeng Group was listed on the stock market, marking an important milestone in its development history.
With changes in the market environment, the company began seeking business diversification, gradually expanding into a broader packaging sector.
In 2019, the company focused on developing Class I pharmaceutical packaging materials, initiating its first major strategic transformation.
In 2022, the company ventured into the new energy materials sector, achieving cross-industry development.
In 2023, the company completed its strategic transformation and changed its name from "Shantou Dongfeng Printing Co., Ltd." to "Guangdong Dongfeng New Materials Group Co., Ltd.", reflecting the shift in its business focus.
2,Quzhou State-Owned Assets Take Control
In June 2025, Dongfeng Group announced that its former controlling shareholder, Hong Kong Dongfeng Investment Group Co., Ltd., had completed the registration procedures for the transfer of 29.90% of Dongfeng Group's shares under the share transfer agreements signed with the transferees Quzhou Zhishang Enterprise Management Partnership (Limited Partnership) and Quzhou Zhiwei Enterprise Management Partnership (Limited Partnership).
The transaction value reached as high as 1.869 billion yuan. Quzhou Zhishang and Quzhou Zhiwei together hold 29.90% of Dongfeng Group's shares, making Quzhou Zhishang the controlling shareholder and the actual controller being changed to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of Quzhou Municipal People's Government.
This is not the first time Quzhou state-owned assets have entered the capital market.
In recent years, Quzhou state-owned assets have launched a series of acquisition-oriented investment initiatives, demonstrating their active presence in the capital market. Previously, Quzhou state-owned assets also acquired part of the equity of the listed real estate company Xinhu Zhongbao (renamed "Quzhou Development").
3. Strategic Adjustment and Business Restructuring
Facing changes in the market environment, Dongfeng Group has actively promoted strategic transformation in recent years, gradually expanding from traditional printing and packaging to the new energy, new materials, and Class I pharmaceutical packaging sectors.
3.1. Orderly Divestment of Traditional Businesses
The company has been orderly divesting its printing and packaging segment, with a compression of traditional business space. In 2024, the companies primarily removed from the consolidated financial statements were subsidiaries in the printing and packaging sector, including Hunan Furui Printing Co., Ltd., Yanbian Changbai Mountain Print Co., Ltd., and Guizhou Xiniu Wang Printing Co., Ltd.
This business restructuring affected short-term performance. In 2024, the company's revenue was 1.424 billion yuan, and it recorded a net loss attributable to the parent company for the first time, amounting to -489 million yuan.
In the first half of 2025, the company's revenue was 604 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 12.37%, with a net loss attributable to the parent company of -61 million yuan.
3.2. Accelerating Layout in New Markets
While reducing traditional business operations, the company has accelerated its expansion into new materials and Class I pharmaceutical packaging.
In the pharmaceutical packaging sector, through acquisitions of four specialized Class I pharmaceutical packaging companies-Qianye Yaobao, Shoujian Yaobao, Huajian Yaobao, and Fuxin Huakang-as well as investment in the newly established Dongfeng Shoujian, the company has achieved comprehensive coverage of various pharmaceutical packaging materials.
The company has unified the equity of its pharmaceutical packaging subsidiaries under its wholly-owned subsidiary Shantou Dongfeng Pharmaceutical Packaging Co., Ltd., making it the core industrial integration platform for the pharmaceutical packaging sector.
4. Pharmaceutical Packaging Division: Keel and Engine
In Dongfeng Group's strategic plan, the pharmaceutical packaging division is positioned as the "keel" and the "engine for future development." In July 2025, Dongfeng Group held a mid-year general managers' meeting for the pharmaceutical packaging division, marking the first key meeting for this segment since Quzhou Industrial Group officially took control.
Despite facing multiple pressures, including changes in international conditions, the normalization of domestic centralized pharmaceutical procurement policies, GMP implementation for pharmaceutical packaging materials, and the enforcement of the 2025 edition of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, the overall operational performance of the group's pharmaceutical packaging division in 2025 did not experience a significant decline, maintaining a solid foundation.
Over the past three years, the group has increased investments in the pharmaceutical packaging segment, and the new factory buildings of each company have been successfully completed and entered the comprehensive acceptance stage.
These investments lay a foundation for the next stage of growth.
5. New Journey, New Starting Point
With Quzhou state-owned assets taking control and the company's renaming and relocation completed, Dongfeng Group has embarked on a new development journey. In September 2024, the company proposed a share repurchase plan with an initial upper limit of 3.93 yuan per share.
In August 2025, the company raised the upper limit of the repurchase price to 6.28 yuan per share. As of August 2025, the company had repurchased 9.9861 million shares, accounting for 0.53% of the total share capital, with a total payment of 37.3667 million yuan.
This move demonstrates the company's confidence in future development.
At the fifth meeting of the sixth board of directors held on October 18, 2025, the company also reviewed and approved several important proposals, including changing the company name, securities abbreviation, and registered address.
It also decided to terminate the "Dongfeng Shoujian Annual Production of 6.5 Billion Medicinal Glass Bottles Base Project," change the accounting firm, and purchase directors' and officers' liability insurance.
These measures demonstrate the new management's determination to drive the company's transformation.
The image above is from the official WeChat account: Dongfeng Pharmaceutical Packaging makes a grand debut at the 93rd API China.
Dongfeng Group Chairman Su Kai stated at the mid-2025 pharmaceutical packaging segment meeting: "The pharmaceutical packaging segment is the cornerstone of Dongfeng Group and the engine for future development, impacting the entire group. There is no retreat, only a path to victory."
With the company now based in Quzhou, the strategic goal of "rebuilding a new Dongfeng in five years" is guiding this long-standing enterprise to advance relentlessly in the fields of new materials and pharmaceutical packaging.