An interview with Mr. Tony Wu,
Founder of ChingHo Group and Shanghai ChingHo Clinic
In Shanghai, there is a place where cutting-edge medical services are interweaved with artistic and humanistic ambience. The Founder aims to break the mold of the traditional clinic and create a comprehensive platform for a better life. Based on Chinese traditional wisdom which emphasizes harmony, balance and a holistic way of healing, Shanghai ChingHo Clinic debuted at Central Plaza in Shanghai in 2019.
The Founder of Shanghai ChingHo Clinic is a veteran entrepreneur and investor in the medical industry – Tony Wu. After obtaining his MBA degree at Massey University, Tony returned to China and started his own business. He founded ChingHo Group and began to invest in upstream and downstream companies relevant to medical services, health, art, culture and lifestyle. Meanwhile, he actively makes contributions to society by paying close attention to and sponsoring public welfare programs including the BlueRibbon Ocean Conservation Association, Teach For China rural area education support program, and more.
Seven years ago, when witnessing how his family members failed to get timely treatment at public hospitals, how his friends were deceived by immoral medical clinics and how his colleagues suffered from sub-health conditions, Tony decided to establish a comprehensive health platform to help those truly in need. Three years ago, ChinHo Group carried out a deep integration with Zeta Villa Group of Hong Kong. Since then, Tony officially started his preparation for a unique clinic aiming at “better life”. Afterwards, he began work on selecting the location, recruiting people and working together with them. Finally, Shanghai ChingHo Clinic opened its doors half a year ago. Though named as a clinic, it offers much more. SpaChina interviewed Tony.
“She embodies all my expectation and pursuit to medical service, big health and a beautiful life. She is surely a part of my life.” This is what Tony says about ChingHo.
Please introduce ChingHo Medical to us. What services do you provide? Why did you found ChingHo Medical?
ChingHo Medical is an advanced medical brand that gathers together leading medical experts, cutting-edge techniques and equipment. It is not only about health, but also life, art and culture. ChingHo is where technology and humanities meet.
Shanghai ChingHo Clinic has set up different departments including Dermatology, Medical Aesthetics, Dentistry, Traditional Chinese Medicine, General Practice, Surgery, Pediatrics, Imaging, Rehabilitation Medicine, etc. We also offer psychological counseling, customized body check and wellness programs. The clinic is equipped with a CT room, a B-Ultrasound room, two operating rooms and a Laboratory. In the near future, we will launch telemedicine services, vaccine injection services and more. To serve our guests better, we will establish direct insurance cooperation with mainstream insurance companies, and offer multi-language services including Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, etc.
I founded ChingHo because I want to help people embrace a better life. Many medical clinics nowadays just focus on a single aspect of health and don’t have a holistic concept. Traditional Chinese Medicine regards people as an integrative unit and encourages us to pursue a dynamic equilibrium or Yin-Yang balance. The quantum mechanics from the west advocates the similar ideas. When we talk about health, we should never ignore a unity of body, heart and spirit. That’s what I want to deliver at ChingHo.
Another reason is because I want to help people avoid being deceived on the way of seeking health. In the past, I was introduced to several programs. They had good concepts such as stem cell usage, mindfulness, traditional culture and more. However, driven by the greed for money, these programs finally became only a tool to make money.
What services are provided at the Medical Aesthetics Department?
At our Medical Aesthetics Department, there are mainly three sectors: skin management, facial rejuvenation, and body shaping. The first two are especially popular among the guests nowadays. With a deep understanding of the skin and facial structures, we adopt photoelectricity technology, minimally invasive injection, TCM treatments and surgery, combined with the “beauty of harmony” concept of ChingHo, to create results-proven solutions for the guests and help them restore ideal skin and facial conditions step by step.
Why do people choose ChingHo Clinic instead of public hospitals? What medical beauty trends do you see as a result?
Medical service is a science, and it is also a philosophy and art. The reasons why people choose us is because, on one hand, they trust our expertise, and on the other, they are attracted by the soothing environment, humanistic care, and the holistic health approach we provide them. Unlike traditional medical clinics, ChingHo offers not just treatments, but comprehensive life management that addresses the body, heart and spirit. As appearance plays an increasingly important role in today’s society, people’s acceptance of and requirement for medical aesthetics treatments are on a continual rise. More and more people are willing to pay for such treatments. Apart from the final effects, what customers are concerned about also includes the service quality, the comfort level, and safety, which become key factors for medical clinics to improve their competitiveness. In addition, medical institutes also shoulder the responsibility to guide people to pursue beauty in a rational way and help them select proper beauty solutions. This will help promote a healthy development of the whole industry.
What challenges have you met while establishing and operating a private medical clinic in China? How do you overcome them?
Currently, the medical industry is witnessing fierce competition. Most of the private clinics in China face the following problems: immature management mechanisms, lack of talent, profit-driven attitudes, and lack of preparation for long-term endeavors, which result in chaotic price systems, information asymmetry and inefficient evaluation systems, etc. Facing such a situation, it is of great importance for medical institutes to build a personalized service system, actively explore potential customers and conduct value management, and build a professional medical team. Since its foundation, ChingHo has adopted a unique business strategy different from those which only focus on “sales” and “market share”. Our goal is to deliver life-cycle management and realize the greatest customer satisfaction. Based on this goal, we have built a personalized service system, formed market-oriented organization structures, and tried to activate the enthusiasm of team members in the long-run, teaching them to pay attention to details and never forget our original vision.
When it comes to medical and medical aesthetics treatments, people will naturally associate them with cold equipment, pain, long recovery periods, etc. How do you address this issue? Please share in detail.
The satisfaction of customers is the priority for ChingHo. And their comfort level during the service plays a significant role. In a soothing environment, our genial medical staff will deliver the best experience to guests from every aspect. Before the treatment, we will have a sufficient communication with the guests and tell them the whole treatment process and expected effect. During the treatment, we carry out professional and precise manipulations, deliver pain management approaches, and explain the aim of every step and how the guests may feel. After the treatment, we provide postoperative care, give guests reminders on what to do and not to do, and pay return visits to them. Everything we do is to give guests a joyful experience in our soothing, private and cordial environment.
There are many cases of medical negligence due to insufficient understanding of individual conditions or improper use of equipment. How does ChingHo avoid such problems? Who composes the medical team here?
Our medical team is composed of dermatology professionals with over 20 years of clinical experience. Experts from Japan, Korea and Taiwan give us cutting-edge aesthetic and technology support as well. Furthermore, we have a range of advanced beauty and medical equipment. All these enable us to carry out systematic and delicate management in every aspect from skin tests and therapeutic scheduling to treatment procedures.
How do you see the relationship between SPA and medical aesthetics? Does ChingHo also provide spa services?
Medical and SPA are supplementary to each other. Medical services are more results-driven while SPA is more of a lifestyle. Combined together, they help guests restore health, beauty and confidence. We do provide spa services at our ChingHo Island, a complex space aiming at holistic healing and life aesthetics. Stretching over 1,000 square meters, ChingHo Island is divided into different sectors, offering spa treatments, TCM therapies, yoga, pilates, meditation, healthy cuisine and more. There is also an art gallery, a tea house, a salon for reading, video watching, lectures, etc. It is surely a haven for modern elites who pursue a quality, healthy, cultivated and self-disciplined lifestyle.
In recent years, overseas medical tourism has become very popular. In your opinion, what are the reasons for this? What are the development prospects?
The medical resources in China are still in a deficient situation and there is a problem of unbalanced distribution. The service awareness and environment at medical institutes including public hospitals and private clinics still have large room for improvement. Meanwhile, many foreign countries offer truly attractive programs that meet the needs of Chinese people such as test tube baby programs and cell therapy. Many overseas medical destinations boast appealing cultural elements and beautiful scenery. Now, after several years’ development, the overseas medical tourism industry has become more and more mature. They provide more reasonable and transparent prices. So, as people’s living standard keep improving, increasing number of people are considering going on an overseas medical tour.
I think in the future, overseas medical tourism will continue to be a crucial supplement to the domestic medical and health industry with its unique characteristics.
