This part aims to explore the business potential of our Story Light project. We evaluate the overall design of the business from both the demand and supply side and conclude by addressing the long-term and ESG objectives that should be taken care of in corporate governance.
We use some consulting tools to carry out external and internal analysis, with doing a lot of primary and secondary research to support. Meanwhile, we actively discuss with stakeholders in the industry for their insights on how to commercialize Story Light.
After a lot of research, we learn that Cultural Relics Conservation and Restoration is still an industry that people know little about. Compared to others, like the consumer products industry or traditional industrial products industry, Cultural Relics Conservation and Restoration is characterized by low commercial, fragmented, incomplete and non-transparent, etc. ZJU-China Team make some efforts to dig deeper into this industry, which is not yet fully commercialized but has some potential, and present our business plan proposal.
Cultural Relics Conservation and Restoration industry is rich in content, but it does not fully fit our Story Light position. It is necessary to segment the market and find a niche for our company and products. We respect the principles of MECE(Mutually Exclusive and Collectively Exhaustive) when doing this.
Fig 1 Market segmentation and our product’s position
*Note: In our current business vision and practice, we only consider China market. However, our company vision is that Story Light, as a light of heritage restoration, can shine in every corner of the world, and after we have achieved considerable outcomes, we will consider to expand our business worldwide and look for our partners globally.
China has a large number of cultural heritages. As of 2022, China has more than 760,000 immovable cultural relics, 5,058 national key cultural relic protection units, and 36 national archaeological site parks. The country has 108 million movable cultural relics, more than 4,500 museums of all kinds, and a collection of 35.05 million relics (sets), too.
In terms of security protection, assuming that each cultural relic points to investing 100,000 yuan, the market size is up to 80 billion yuan. From the equipment market demand: the country holds more than 20,000 exhibitions each year, assuming that the equipment investment of each exhibition is 500,000 yuan, the annual demand is 10 billion yuan.
Fig 2 Estimations on Cultural Relics Conservation and Restoration market in China
Stone cultural relics is an important component of China's immovable cultural relics. At present, among the seven batches of national key cultural relics protection units ("national protection units"), there are 268 cave temples and stone carvings, accounting for 6.24% of the total number of national protection units, of which 138 belong to the cave temple category, accounting for 51.5% of the number of cultural relics in this category. From the existing preservation conditions, it is estimated that most of the stone relics are poorly preserved. Tiny cracks are countless on stone relics. In conclusion, Stone relics Conservation and Restoration is a promising market.
We tried to evaluate Stone relics Conservation and Restoration market both qualitatively and quantitatively. Therefore, we conducted PEST analysis and focused more on some non-numeral criteria.
Fig 3 PEST analysis
Based on the previous analysis, we summarize several key drivers currently driving the market growth.
Fig 4 Growing drivers
Due to the natural properties of cultural relics, they are subject to certain natural erosion (demand side, mainly immovable stone relics)
People's growing needs for materials and cultural needs, consumer upgrades, viewing needs, industrial society (demand side)
Policy support and industry regulations (supply side)
We learn about the technology explosion, and we believe that emerging technologies included in our Story Light may become a new driver to overall market growth.
Fig 5 Growing drivers plus
Story Light is an innovative, technology-based product with few existing products in the market that can compete directly with it. We use the Porter's Five Forces model to assess the possible competition. The risks are specific to indirect competition and potential substitutes, which we elaborate on in the product section.
Fig 6 Porter's five forces analysis
Due to the limitations of the relatively short time to carry out the scientific and technological protection of stone cultural relics and the relatively small investment in research and development, China still has some gaps in the field of scientific and technological protection of stone cultural relics compared with western advanced levels, such as the restoration materials and protection equipment for stone cultural relics, protection construction and monitoring of stone cultural relics, etc., which need continuous improvement.
However, when it comes to fulfill the unmet needs, it’s important to stress if we could enter this market with relatively strong guidance and strict social concern. We have conducted detailed research in this area, as described in our "An Innovative Company - Positioning the Company" section
Story Light& Co. is a research and practice team whose main field of work is microfracture restoration of stone artifacts. The team relies on the MICP restoration technology of ZJU-China iGEM Team and gathers the resource platform of Zhejiang Institute of Cultural Heritage and Zhejiang University Institute of Cultural Heritage to provide comprehensive, continuous and professional research on the Conservation and Restoration of stone artifacts.
The company gathers the entrepreneurial team, the platform of the Institute of Cultural Heritage, the practice team and experts in the field to complete one-stop resource sharing and better apply our technology to the field of cultural heritage restoration.
Fig 7 Company’s mission, vision and values
*Note: [The journey of our company positioning]
As it is difficult to obtain the qualification for cultural relics restoration (we don't have adequate resources in enterprise net assets, professional staff, qualification materials, past experience of construction companies, etc.), we decided to sell raw materials, back the platform, contact folk craftsmen, museums, cultural relics restoration contracting units, etc.
[Qualification, capital, strength] Qualification
We gathered the resources of the Zhejiang Institute of Cultural Heritage, technology empowerment, packaged into raw materials sold to downstream companies. (Here thanks to our partners)
* It’s important to mention doing a technology platform need to consider the patent application
We present the business model building of our company system in the form of a business canvas.
Fig 8 Business canvas
Fig 9 Methodology
Fig 10 Internal organizational structure
While restoring stone relics, we are also committed to carry out some special businesses - such as: digital cultural preservation. With our collaborative information technology platform, we hope to help build the Cultural Relics Conservation and Restoration industry from a digital perspective. We are developing an app for residents, which is expected to be put into use next year. We hope to share the characteristics of the Hangzhou area, with the enthusiasm of entrepreneurship and the charm of ancient culture, to build a dream town: a collision of the old and the new, and to bring cultural relics to life.
In our design, we construct a valuable solution towards stone relics restoration, which follows normal principles in cultural relics restoration globally. We attach great importance to the 6 principles and strictly act under guidance.
For more details, please read our implementation page.
Fig 12 Cultural relics restoration design
Stone cultural relics have a special historical and cultural value, and are non-renewable. Therefore, before the stone relic reinforcement protection, we should research the characteristics of protected stone carefully, understanding the physical and chemical properties of the targeting materials, and select the protection materials carefully.
Fig 13 Materials comparison
Our products are environment-friendly bionic materials that are useful in the face of different stages of heritage.
Fig 14 Solution design
Bonding strength (reinforcement role + isolation layer role to prevent secondary damage) with isolation after the mechanical strengthening of the artifacts can stabilize the structure and prevent residual lumps from breaking off and sticking again.
Story Light is mainly oriented to the restoration of immovable stone relics, but we are also working to expand the application areas of our products to the restoration of movable calcium carbonate relics, mainly in the following areas.
Trusts / Foundations
China Heritage Conservation Foundation and Charitable Trust
China has a large amount of intangible cultural heritage, but many traditional skills and regional cultures are facing loss because they are not effectively protected. The inheritance of culture and art is also one of the charitable purposes. "Charitable trust + cultural inheritance" can not only bring into play the original advantages of the trust, but also help to pass on China's traditional intangible cultural heritage and explore a sustainable development path.
Government
There exists some problems, like inadequate system of heritage restoration, lax card setting, low threshold, lack of appropriate social supervision, management and arbitration. We are trying to contact different officers in government for more information about cultural relics. You can find more details on the integrated human practice page.
Scientific research institutes and experts
We know that in the future cultural relics conservation science and technology will be included in the national research system, driven by industry science and technology innovation capacity building. We have more potential in leading in this industry under the case.
The idea of building a multimedia digital library on cultural relics conservation allows for various information on the cultural relics under conservation, especially various pictures and videos of their restoration and conservation, to be entered into this digital platform in real time, providing a reliable basis for the subsequent conservation of cultural relics.
Fig 15 Digital platform for cultural relics data collecting
Venture Creation Lab is carried out in the form of online lectures and exchange sessions, to check the basic entrepreneurial knowledge and entrepreneurial literacy of entrepreneurs, to understand the Chinese synthetic biology entrepreneurial market, to confirm the entrepreneurial direction and to write research reports.
Mentoring Program invites entrepreneurial seniors to one-on-one business coaching. At this stage we come into contact with current entrepreneurs, learn entrepreneurial experience, understand the frontiers of the industry, and polish through the assessment of business mentors.
Roadshow stage specially invite investors and media to participate together, startup teams offline appearance, showcase products and services, which ignite the spark of synthetic biology to change the world.
Fig 16 Moment from the EPIC entrepreneurship workshop
Synthetic biology is an emerging cross-cutting and convergent discipline concerned with the design and resynthesis of life. However, during our human practice, we have found that many people have little knowledge of synthetic biology. As iGEM participants, we recognize that it is our responsibility to encourage more people to understand, participate in and even shape the development of synthetic biology. Therefore, ZJU-China together with other 6 teams launched a project to build an atlas of synthetic biology, which makes up our our Storylight&Synthetic Biology Reading Material. We will hand it out to our potential customers, stakeholders and the public to get them better know synthetic biology and our company's advantages. This atlas includes overview, ideas, technologies, interdisciplinary intersections, specific applications, and perspectives of synthetic biology. More details can be found in Storylight&Synthetic Biology Reading Material
Fig 17 Storylight&Synthetic Biology Reading Material
