Yan’s Nine Dragons Paper has revolutionized the Chinese packing board industry since its founding in 1995, growing into the world’s largest recycled-paper manufacturer and earning its CEO a spot among the world’s richest self-made women. (She has an estimated net worth of $1.6 billion.) Nine Dragons has an annual production capacity of over 13 million metric tons with nine manufacturing hubs across China and Vietnam. In June 2018, it expanded into the United States for the first time by acquiring two paper mills in Maine and Wisconsin for a combined $175 million in an effort to diversify its manufacturing base.