23 Songji Sweet Water Shop

◎Mainly focus on low price, small profits but quick turnover◎

Once you have decided on what type of store to open, the next step is to start looking for a suitable store.

Song Jinyi originally sold sweet water on Xiluohua Street in the north of Yunzhou City. There were few people there during the day, but the night market was crowded at night, which was not suitable for her to do business now.

When renting a shop, one must choose a place with the largest flow of people during the day. Song Jinyi bought a map of Yunzhou at a grocery store.

She scanned the Yunzhou landmarks and her eyes fell on the lower half of the map.

When Song Jinyi was in the teahouse, Xu Ruolan mentioned that there was a bustling street in the area further south of the city, with a constant stream of people coming and going. Except for the fact that the rental price was not cheap, it was a good place in other aspects.

The most important thing is that there is a study next to it. In ancient times, people who could afford to read books were naturally either rich or noble, so these were very wealthy customers.

She put away the map and prepared to go to the Shuchengfang rental store. She estimated the time cost, in addition to the time for opening the store, there was also the time for preparing tea and cleaning the store.

It is too inconvenient to travel back and forth, so she wants to rent a courtyard that combines commercial and residential functions and live there.

In just two or three days, she found a suitable shop with a small courtyard at the back, so food and accommodation were not a problem.

Song Jinyi negotiated with the landlord for two or three days and finally rented a shop for two taels per month.

Song Jinyi counted the silver with a distressed look on her face. She had spent the money before she could even warm it up. She handed it to the landlord reluctantly and paid a year's rent in advance, a total of twenty-four taels.

Once she signed her name on the deed, this shop of more than 20 square meters now belonged to her.

Song Jinyi was thinking about what she would spend money on next: redecorating, painting the walls, buying tables and chairs...

After a few busy days, the dilapidated old store was transformed into a brand new store.

Song Jinyi put her hands on her hips and looked up at her shop with a smile on her face. Although it had not yet opened, she was already imagining how many customers would come and how much money she would make. She couldn't help laughing as she thought about it.

Xie Wuyang stood behind her, looking up at the shops on both sides of the tea shop, all of which were plain in color. He whispered, "Sister, this is too bright." Afraid that he didn't explain it clearly, he pointed to the shop next to him.

"It has to be bright, the brighter the better!" Song Jinyi turned around and asked, "Let me ask you, if you were to come to this street for the first time, what would you see first? Which store would leave the most profound impression on you?"

Xie Wuyang thought about it and realized that there were tea shops and calligraphy and painting shops along the way, but if he was asked to name a specific shop, he really couldn't remember it.

But if he asked which store left the most impression on him... he answered honestly, "I can't remember clearly, but—" He pointed at Song Jinyi's store and said, "Ajie's store does leave a lasting impression on me."

Song Jinyi clapped her hands and said, "That's right."

She whispered to Xie Wuyang, "Do you know? The decoration style of this street is for the study next door, to show off their elegance. If I also decorate it to show the elegance of 'qin, chess, calligraphy and painting', I'm afraid I will be hidden in the crowd and no one will notice.

I want to be different from them, I want to do the opposite."

Xie Wuyang didn't understand, but that didn't stop him from praising her: "Sister, you're amazing."

Song Jinyi was very pleased with his praise. She pinched his little face and said, "When I make money, I'll take you out to play."

Xie Wuyang smiled sweetly, and Song Jinyi felt her heart suddenly beat faster. She coughed twice and thought seriously: The young masters studying in that academy are generous with their money, so their tastes are naturally quite picky.

Song Jinyi knew that she was not like Zui Liuxia and Liuxiangju who could get sources of high-quality tea, nor was she as good as the tea shop owner who had built up his connections over the years to get good tea.

She can only focus on low prices and small profits but quick turnover.

In her previous life, she knew that there was a beverage chain store that carved out a niche among the other beverage stores with its low prices, and any one of its stores could earn tens of thousands a day.

******

After picking an auspicious day, Song Jinyi lifted the red silk covering the plaque. On the brown-yellow wooden plaque was written - Song's Sweet Water Shop.

Xie Wuyang lit the firecrackers hanging on both sides at the right time. There was a crackling sound, and the red firecracker paper bounced everywhere like orange-red sparks, and finally scattered all over the ground. From a distance, it looked like rouge-colored petals.

Young and naughty children love the hustle and bustle the most. They gather together to listen to the sound of cannons. Passers-by also stop to listen to the sound, their lips moving, their necks stretched, and they say something from time to time.

Song Jinyi was far away and couldn't hear clearly, but Xie Wuyang was close to the crowd and could hear it clearly.

"Look at this shop, it's a little too fancy. The colors used are so crude. The owner must be a commoner..."

Another person pursed his lips and agreed, "Brother, you are absolutely right. This is Shuchengfang, and behind the street is the largest academy in Yunzhou - Nanling Academy.

Since its founding, Nanling Academy has produced so many top scholars and talented people that the entire street has become culturally rich, making it the most unique commercial street in Yunzhou.

Both the name and the decor have a touch of poetry and painting, but I didn't expect it to ruin the elegance of the shop. It's really a bad apple."

Xie Wuyang hesitated for a moment, but still relayed their words to Song Jinyi. Her expression remained unchanged, but that didn't mean she could turn a deaf ear to them. If she heard it too much, she would inevitably be affected by it.

She lowered her head and took a deep breath. When she looked up again, she had a smile on her face, as if nothing had happened. She calmly glanced at the crowd of people standing in front of the store. Some were watching the fun, some were curious, and some were pessimistic...

Then she looked away, waved her hand, and greeted everyone: "The shop is open today, everyone is welcome to come and taste..."

There was a group of onlookers standing in front of the store, but no one wanted to be the first diner.

After finishing her usual remarks, Song Jinyi's face almost froze with laughter. This was her first time opening a store, so she didn't have much experience. It could be said that she opened a store with "three nothings": no publicity, no regular customers, and no reputation.

Naturally, it was a bit awkward at the beginning.

Song Jinyi covered her face with a round fan, coughed twice, and then pulled out her trump card. "To celebrate the opening of our shop, we're offering a special promotion. All sweet drinks will be half price for the first three days. Come and try them..."

After hearing this, customers came into the store one after another, and Xie Wuyang asked them to take a seat first.

Song Jinyi thought that if she couldn't attract customers today, it would be even harder later. She struck while the iron was hot and continued, "My sweet soup shop has fair prices. A bowl is only seven or eight cents, so it's not a big deal. Gentlemen and ladies passing by may want to come and try it."

She inquired about the prices of food here before opening the shop.

She did nothing for three whole days and took Xie Wuyang to find several drinks with similar positioning and tried them one by one.

It didn't taste bad—she was able to finish it all because she paid for it—but it certainly wasn't great either—at least she wouldn't pay to drink it again.

The taste is pretty decent, but the price...

When Song Jinyi thought of this, she covered her chest with one hand and felt her heart bleeding. She had spent more than ten taels in just three days, which showed how expensive the drinks were. They were no less expensive than Zuiliuxialiuxiangju.

But the drinks and pastries at Zui Liuxia are indeed good, while the prices at Shuchengfang are a bit overpriced. However, even with such a low price-performance ratio, it still has business.

Song Jinyi pondered Li for a long time and came to the conclusion: It seems that these shops are mainly sold to those young masters who have never been involved in the affairs of the society.

Due to the busy schedule of Nanling Academy, students had little free time and did not want to stay in the academy all day, so they sent servants to bring them food and had to eat nearby.

The food and drinks in these shops are not that bad. The students usually read books of sages and are not involved in money. They are mainly good at cheating people.

Of course, Song Jinyi also wanted the customer base of Nanling Academy, but how could a new store like her compete with the decades-old store? So she had to take it slow and not rush. Once she had won over the ordinary customers, they would be the best advertisements.

As expected, when people heard the word "cheap", many of them hesitated.

Song Jinyi has a pretty face, a round face, and almond-shaped eyes like a deer, which makes people feel very friendly. People subconsciously think that she must not be a profiteer. Coupled with her warm greeting, many people were invited to come into the store.

Song Jinyi immediately followed the flow of customers into the store. The store was about 20 square meters. Song Jinyi decorated the store in coral colors, with orange-red walls, light pink tables and chairs, and yellow decorations.

Even the green plants Song Jinyi chose were light yellow daisies and jasmine, which create a bright, warm and impressive effect.

On the table stood a wooden stand that looked like a pen holder, with a paper tea menu hanging down. It contained common drinks, including papaya juice, agarwood water, lychee and kumquat drink, cymbopogon drink, and perilla drink.

The walls of the store are covered with advertising paper specially customized by Song Jinyi, with pictures drawn on it. The white-glazed porcelain bowls as white as jade are filled with clear tea, and brightly colored fruits are placed on the side.

She glanced at the advertisements on the wall and saw that this was the drink she really wanted to sell - fruit tea.

After the guests were seated, most of them looked at the tea menu and ordered one or two common drinks. Song Jinyi had prepared them in advance and placed them in a large porcelain basin on the kitchen counter in front.

She deftly poured the drink into a bamboo cup. She used bamboo cups for ordinary drinks because they were cheap, but looked good and had the fragrance of bamboo. She brought it to the table together with Xie Wuyang.

Her ingredients have all been improved and innovated, so of course they taste good, and everyone who has tried them has praised them highly.

Some people looked at the advertisements on the wall with curiosity, but were too conservative to order the colorful fruit teas. Others, wanting pure tea, asked, "Boss Song, doesn't your sweet shop have any tea?"

Song Jinyi immediately said: "Of course there is, but it's different from others."

The man asked, "How is it different?"

Song Jinyi immediately replied, "I have what they have, and I also have what they don't have, such as this apple black tea, lotus leaf white tea, chrysanthemum and green tangerine white tea... Have you ever heard of them or tried them?"

The guest shook his head. He had indeed never heard of it before. He asked curiously, "I've never heard of this kind of tea before, and the name sounds... Could it be that there's fruit added to it?"

Song Jinyi nodded.

People in Xia love tea. They make tea with onions, ginger, dates, dogwood, mint, etc., but they rarely pair tea with fruit.

I guess this guest usually likes to drink this pure tea, and when faced with Song Jinyi's new tea list, he almost said the word "weird".

Song Jinyi smiled and said, "These specially launched flower and fruit teas have been developed over many years to cater to the tastes of most people. I guarantee they are delicious. Besides, it's a new store opening, and this cup is only eight cents, and it also contains seasonal fresh fruits. You won't be cheated if you buy it."

The man thought it made sense and ordered a cup of lotus white tea.