At age 21, Zhang Hongchao started peddling shaved ice treats. A quarter of a century later, he and his younger brother Hongfu have made a fortune selling soft-serve ice cream, coffee drinks and its super popular bubble tea and lemonade.
The Chinese retailer, with about $16 billion in goods sold in its first full year, faces bipartisan efforts to close a U.S. trade loophole that’s been key to its rise.