E03. Wang Boyan: To Live Is to Exist Toward Death

🎙️ Episode Introduction

This episode, we welcome Bowen Wang, founder of BeBeBus. At the height of his company's soaring valuation, he suddenly lost his memory and was hospitalized in critical condition, unable to recognize words or people for a time. Yet this sudden "hard drive reboot" allowed him to rediscover what it means to be alive. He didn't choose to become someone else — he chose to become more truly himself.

We covered a lot: judgment calls amid entrepreneurial crisis, the boundaries of trust in team management, a product philosophy that moves from supply toward demand, and what it means that "worldview determines goals." He said: "Entrepreneurship isn't about money. It's about leaving something behind."

After listening, we hope you too can find your own faith and direction on the road called "being alive."

👤 Guest Bio

Bowen Wang

He is the founder of premium maternal-infant brand BeBeBus, a serial entrepreneur, and a product obsessive who takes "user perspective" to the extreme. Six years ago the brand was just starting out; today BeBeBus has grown into a top player in the maternal-infant industry: nearly RMB 2 billion in annual revenue, over 2 million online members.

On June 26, China's CSRC International Department issued the overseas issuance and listing filing notice for BUTONG GROUP, signaling that BeBeBus's parent company is heading for a Hong Kong IPO and a larger international stage.

He once suddenly lost his cognitive abilities as his company's valuation skyrocketed, was hospitalized in critical condition, and for a time could not recognize words or people. But this sudden "hard drive reboot" allowed him to rediscover what it means to "be alive."

🕰️ Selected Timestamps

00:00 An entrepreneur's "death debrief": talking more than doing, yet still choosing to be himself

04:13 First crisis: a Tmall link accidentally deleted, company revenue drops to zero

08:29 Building team trust: why "more action, more mistakes" still deserves acceptance

14:25 Selling "futures" during COVID: staying the course instead of chasing short-term windfalls

21:08 Behind the funding frenzy: cognitive nourishment from a thousand conversations

25:30 Memory collapse: soul-searching and practical arrangements while hospitalized in critical condition

34:04 From efficiency to correctness: redefining management and value standards

40:20 Crib redesign case: reverse-engineering product design from user behavior

46:55 Worldview as moat: competitors can't copy the product because they can't copy the thinking

50:28 What is faith? Creation is what extends the meaning of life

🎤 Production Team

Host: Jinjian Zhang

Production & Publisher: Oasis

Sound Design & Post-Production: Shengdu Studio

🎵 Music

Jordan Critz - Beau Et Rapide (Piano)

📚 References

1. Philosophy & Cognition

   • "Being-toward-death": core existentialist concept, threaded throughout
   • Buddhist "transforming consciousness into wisdom": cognitive transformation as liberation

2. Business Philosophy

   • "A company's moat is its understanding of user value": Bowen Wang's statement in a Mother & Baby Industry Observer interview, partially quoted below
   • Transition from supply-side to demand-side: product value derives from user use, not production cost
   • "Void-to-reality" worldview decision model: reverse design from vision to action

3. Entrepreneurial Practice

   • Selling "futures" during COVID: mutual understanding with users brought cash flow back positive
   • No BP roadshows: clear business logic distilled through a thousand conversations
   • Crib product redesign: tool-free assembly, non-wood materials, functional integration — all stemming from user observation

💬 Engagement

💡 Have you experienced a "being-toward-death" moment? 💭 If you were to leave tomorrow, what would you most want to achieve today? 📩 Leave a comment below and tell us about the most profound cognitive shift in your life. We'll randomly select winners to receive The Way of the Heart, a book published by Oasis.

For those interested in joining our listener community, please fill out the questionnaire and add our assistant on WeChat 👇

Disclaimer

Thank you for your interest in this podcast's original content.

If you wish to reprint or reference content from this podcast, please indicate the source and contact Oasis Capital for permission before reprinting.

View episode transcript on Xiaoyuzhou