01 The Curse of the “Master’s Favor”

Property management has long been an industry bound to the “master’s favor”—it comes as part of the package when you buy a house. Homeowners typically have no choice, and as long as no major accidents occur, property management companies remain in place. This stable, built-in audience and the predictable “Four Guarantees” (security, cleaning, maintenance, and landscaping) have left many property management companies stuck in the “Master’s Favor Curse”, struggling for commercial growth.

While avoiding challenges is instinctual, overcoming them takes skill.

One company that faced challenges head-on is Jinmao Services. By leveraging service design, it achieved exceptional customer service and significant commercial growth. Jinmao elevated property management to urban operations services, positioning itself as a pioneer in the industry. In 2022, it became the first property management company to go public that year.

02 Servitude or Premium Service?

You’ve likely heard of Jinmao Tower, a landmark in Shanghai, but not everyone knows about Jinmao Mansions, ultra-luxury properties in major cities. Here, property management services are premium, and fees can be ten times those of average communities in the same city.But what defines value for high-end property owners?

  • Is it servitude, bending over backward to meet every demand?
  • Is it luxury for luxury’s sake, charging exorbitant fees for exclusivity?

Surprisingly, fulfilling every demand does not guarantee recognition or maximize business returns.

Challenge 1:

How are the needs of high-end property owners different from those of average customers? How can high-end property services truly resonate with them?

Challenge 2:

How can Jinmao turn isolated service highlights into sustainable overall performance, ensuring long-term growth?

In early 2020, Jinmao Services brought these challenges to CBi China Bridge, focusing on Jinmao Mansions, its flagship luxury property, to find answers.

Through interviews with Jinmao homeowners, competitors’ customers, and stakeholders, as well as site visits to properties like Daning Jinmao Mansions in Shanghai, CBi unearthed key insights:

For high-end users, professional services and high-quality amenities are baseline expectations. What truly impressed homeowners were personalized touches, like a concierge who could help select home decor or a security guard who recognized every family member.

When property services shift from process-driven transactions to emotional connections, customer experience peaks, and brand loyalty flourishes.

Jinmao began reimagining the relationship between service providers and homeowners—not as one of servitude, but as friends and partners. Only by fundamentally changing this relationship could additional services and premium offerings become viable.

03 From Service Highlights to a Service Ecosystem

“Many believe high-end service means doing the basics well and adding a few surprises. However, we found that isolated highlights lack growth potential. How do we design a system where highlights continuously emerge?”
— Li Yulong, Vice President, Jinmao ServicesBuilding a strong service brand is a journey, not an overnight task. The first step is making services tangible to customers.

Key Service Highlights:

  1. Secret Garden:
    Jinmao’s concierges planted flowers in often-overlooked building courtyards. What was once barren became vibrant with blooms. Residents now wake up to fragrant breezes, starting their day on a positive note.
  2. Four Seasons Museum:
    Themed activities tied to each season allow residents to experience and celebrate the changing cycles of nature. By creating moments of beauty and reflection, Jinmao turns the community into a living museum of cherished memories.
  3. “Four-Color” Concierge:
    • Blue: Efficiency experts handling daily errands and tasks.
    • Red: Passionate concierges offering support in parenting and mental wellness.
    • Green: Health-focused professionals guiding wellness and lifestyle management.
    • Gold: Aesthetics advisors supporting home design and artistic endeavors.
  4. 4S Home Services:
    Modeled after automotive 4S stores, Jinmao offers seamless, one-stop home management services. From maintenance and repair to extended care for unoccupied homes, this system covers the entire lifecycle of homeownership.
 
While these highlights delighted customers, isolated moments only create temporary impact. The goal was to design a comprehensive system to make the service experience cohesive, emotionally resonant, and commercially valuable.
CBi and Jinmao co-developed the MOCO Service System (Moments of Connection) to integrate and sustain these highlights.Key Features of MOCO:

  • 21 service scenarios: Each broken down into smaller journeys with identified pain points and opportunities.
  • 12 highlight directions: Including personalized services, pet care, cultural initiatives, and community-building.
  • Customizable and scalable: Individual properties can tailor and iterate on MOCO based on their unique circumstances, maximizing value across the chain.

To ensure implementation, CBi and Jinmao created service blueprints, defining departmental roles and resource allocations. This framework standardized processes while remaining flexible for customer-facing teams, ensuring clarity and practicality for employees and customers alike.

After implementing the MOCO system in 2021, Jinmao hosted 100+ events, reaching over 30,000 residents. Customer satisfaction rose significantly, exceeding industry averages.

04 From Residential to Commercial: Expanding Horizons

Jinmao Services didn’t stop at residential properties. Recognizing its strength in commercial property management, the team extended its high-end service model to office buildings like Jinmao Tower, a flagship asset.The GOLDEN Service System focuses on:

  1. Asset Value Protection:
    • Intelligent property management.
    • Sustainable, eco-friendly buildings.
    • High-standard equipment maintenance.
  2. Brand Service Excellence:
    • VIP privileges.
    • Comprehensive amenities.
    • Thoughtful community activities for tenants.

This approach combines asset protection with service quality, creating long-term competitive advantages and brand value in a market of increasingly commoditized products.

05 From Business to Organizational Transformation

By embedding service design into its DNA, Jinmao Services has achieved remarkable growth:

  • Contracted property management ratio: 1.97 (34% above industry average).
  • Compound annual growth rate (CAGR): 28%.
  • Customer satisfaction: Maintained at 90+.

The company has also built a dedicated Innovation and Customer Research Team, integrating expertise from customer insights, management consulting, property operations, and data analysis. In 2022, Jinmao invested further in building a customer-experience-driven organization, embedding “experience management” into its core.

This transformation has positioned Jinmao to lead not only in residential and commercial properties but also in broader public services, with ambitions to revolutionize urban living experiences.

06 Design-Driven Growth: The First Property IPO of 2022

Despite a volatile capital market and declining industry valuations, Jinmao Services successfully went public in March 2022, becoming the year’s first property management IPO.Key Achievements:

  • Revenue growth: +60%.
  • Net profit growth: +100%.

Jinmao’s premium market share and pricing power underscore its success, driven not by chance but by two years of deliberate, design-led transformation.

Research by DMI and McKinsey has shown that design-driven companies consistently outperform, with faster revenue growth (+32%) and shareholder returns (+56%). Jinmao’s story is no exception, proving the enormous potential of design to unlock commercial growth.

 

07 The Future of Property Management: A Trillion-Yuan Opportunity

Property management is no longer confined to basic services. With the right approach, the industry holds trillion-yuan potential in value-added services like elderly care, pet services, education, home renovation, travel, and more.In 2021, Jinmao’s value-added service revenue grew by 85.9%, demonstrating the vast opportunities ahead.

“True wealth lies not in your brand or property but in the people living in your communities. If they trust your services, your future opportunities far outweigh your current scale.”
— Project Director, CBi

 

08 The Property Industry Takes Action—What About You?

Jinmao Services’ transformation reflects its proactive embrace of change and innovation. As property management companies rethink their models, it’s worth asking:

“How can my industry begin its service design journey?”