Chapter 42 Exclusive from Jinjiang: A woman like this wouldn't be wanted even in a village...
Su Ruyi could almost see the money pouring into her pockets. Seizing this opportunity, she wouldn't have to be stingy if she wanted to eat and drink to her heart's content.
"Mr. Lu, your move was absolutely brilliant! My admiration for you is boundless! You are truly a role model for us all!"
Su Ruyi laughed heartily, "I was telling the truth."
"It's because I can't stand being praised."
Suppressing her overwhelming joy, Su Ruyi revealed the purpose of her phone call.
"I can't get through to the plastics factory by phone, so I have no choice but to ask you for help. Do the terms we agreed on still stand?"
"I, Lu Ting, may not say anything else, but I keep my word. There's a production line specifically for you. As long as you pick up your goods here, that production line will serve you exclusively. You don't need to worry about the vehicles either. I've already contacted a fleet of trucks. As long as it's within the province, you can ship anywhere."
Su Ruyi was surprised that Lu Ting was so considerate. No wonder he could make money; the service was simply amazing.
"I won't say thank you. I'll treat you to dinner when we go to the provincial capital."
Several thoughts had already flashed through Su Ruyi's mind. If the other party was interested, she wouldn't mind sharing.
By befriending such a person, Su Ruyi would never lose out; in fact, she might even benefit from it.
Although Su Ruyi has foresight, it doesn't mean she can make money no matter what she does. There are many people who stand at the forefront of trends and smell business opportunities, but that doesn't mean everyone will eventually become rich.
The business world is constantly changing, and you can easily fall into a trap if you're not careful.
When Su Ruyi distributed her jewelry business at the school, not everyone made money. Even though the business model could be replicated, some people still ended up losing money.
Lu Ting laughed and said, "Alright, I'll be waiting for your meal."
Su Ruyi didn't realize how long they had been chatting, but when she checked the time, it had actually been more than ten minutes.
She no longer felt the pinch when she paid.
Su Ruyi started trembling again!
The day will come when she returns to her former glory as the landlady!
Lu Ting was very efficient; three days later, another truckload of hula hoops was delivered to the furniture factory.
The hula hoops in the warehouse had already been mostly sold out, so this truckload of hula hoops arrived just in time.
This time the quantity was more than double that of the last time, completely filling the entire warehouse.
Lu Ting purchased a monthly subscription to the Life Daily, which placed the competition advertisement in the most prominent place, and printed the words "10,000 yuan reward" very eye-catchingly, immediately grabbing people's attention.
Although there are various lottery activities nowadays, there are also marketing tactics that use lottery activities. Some are even more generous than the "hula hoop competition," with the first place winner receiving a car worth tens of thousands of yuan.
But those rely too much on luck. Although most people enjoy participating, thinking that 'what if' it happens to them, they all know that winning is very difficult, unlike hula hoop competitions which require skill.
Moreover, this competition is not difficult and does not require a high level of professionalism, so anyone can participate, which gives it its own unique appeal.
The competition advertisements were actually product promotion advertisements, which pushed the popularity of hula hoops in Qing Province to its peak, even surpassing the popularity of several first-tier cities.
Liulin County was also affected, so most of the goods were quickly sold out. Uncle Wang delivered the goods by bicycle every day, pedaling so hard that the tires were almost sparking.
The storefront has already been prepared. Since it doesn't require elaborate renovations, all that's needed is to drill a hole in one wall, seal the other side, and then paint it white.
You don't need to buy bricks; you just need to move the bricks from the wall that was knocked down. Because we were very careful when we knocked it down, most of the bricks are still usable.
All that was needed was some cement and sand, not much at all, and Uncle Wang took care of it.
Uncle Wang's brother-in-law works at the cement factory. It's hard to say how many, but he only has two or three bags of cement, so he can easily get the goods out.
The contractor who renovated the storefront was also introduced by Uncle Wang; he was also a relative of his.
In small towns, connections are a very important resource; people generally turn to those around them first when trying to get anything done.
Most people are quite reliable, since they know each other and have a general idea of each other's character.
Of course, there are also those who are deceitful. Su Ruyi has seen plenty of people who deliberately cheat their own people before. However, the people Su Ruyi has been in contact with so far are all quite good. They are efficient, do not cheat or shirk their duties, and work very hard.
Therefore, Su Ruyi didn't mind giving a little extra benefit. She wouldn't add extra money, she would just give whatever amount she asked for, but if the job was done well, she would give the other party an extra basket of meat buns or something.
Alternatively, if you have children at home, you could give them a hula hoop.
The storefront was officially decorated, and Su Ruyi's business license was also obtained. She had to pay extra money to get the business license so smoothly.
This was all thanks to Li Mei finding Huang Ling, who then used her husband's connections to find someone at the Industry and Commerce Bureau; otherwise, Su Ruyi would have had nowhere to spend her money.
That's the atmosphere in small counties; personal connections are very important. Otherwise, if you follow the normal procedures, you can easily get stuck at some stage.
The situation is even more complicated now that the policies are still unclear or have just been issued, and people in small counties are still taking a wait-and-see approach.
Without connections, it's very difficult to do anything in a small county town.
The opening ceremony was not a big affair; Su Ruyi simply set off a large roll of firecrackers to officially open the business.
Su Ruyi was buying steamed buns at a steamed bun shop when Ma Lefeng pulled her aside.
Ma Lefeng rubbed her hands together, a little embarrassed, and asked:
"Xiao Su, I heard that I can wholesale hula hoops from you?"
"Yes, sis, do you also want to wholesale and resell it yourself?"
"That's what I meant, but I don't know if there are any requirements."
Ma Lefeng has stopped selling steamed buns these past two days. She only helps make the fillings in the mornings, leaving the rest to her husband and two children.
She took the hula hoops to other places to sell herself; it was just too easy to make money from them, and it was also much easier.
Not long after the opening up, Ma Lefeng dragged her husband to sell steamed buns and mantou. After making money, she immediately decided to spend a lot of money to rent a shop to sell steamed buns. This shows that she is a person with ideas.
After selling hula hoops for a few days, she knew she had to seize this business opportunity.
Steamed buns can be sold anytime, but the popularity of hula hoops can fade at any time.
So without discussing it with her husband, she came over to inquire about Su Ruyi's situation.
The commission of 50 cents per hula hoop is not small, but Ma Lefeng wants to earn more.
Su Ruyi hadn't officially opened the shop, but the signboard was already in place, reading "Hongxing Hula Hoop Zhaoguang City Marketing Branch." The main business was also stated on the promotional posters at the entrance of the steamed bun shop: retail and wholesale of hula hoops.
When Lu Ting published the competition advertisement, he emphasized the "Red Star" signboard, making people associate the hula hoop with the Red Star signboard.
This way, even if other factories try to get a piece of the pie later, they will have a deeper memory of Red Star, and the plastic factory will be better able to sell other products to the outside world in the future.
Su Ruyi continued this strategy and set up a branch in Liulin County to differentiate it from ordinary retail.
Originally, Su Ruyi didn't have such big ambitions. She just wanted to have a stable supplier so she could make a small profit.
But now that the opportunity has fallen into her lap, there's no reason for her not to take it.
"Wholesale prices are tiered; the higher the quantity, the lower the price. I have the detailed accounting records. If you're free right now, you can come with me to take a look and discuss how much to buy in bulk. I won't interfere with how you sell it after you buy it, but I will suggest that you avoid selling it at other outlets to prevent competition with other retailers."
Su Ruyi has been busy with these things these past few days, such as price lists, which all require her to think about in advance.
She needs to oversee the storefront to ensure it doesn't turn out the way she envisions.
Because the storeroom was quite spacious, it also served as a storage area.
The entrance also needs to be expanded as much as possible, and she also needs to choose the tables, chairs and benches inside.
Unlike other storefronts, this one is more like an office, but it also has a place to display merchandise.
Fortunately, she lived near the furniture factory, so buying furniture was easy for her.
Although the furniture didn't quite meet her needs, she made do with it nonetheless.
Therefore, although she wasn't selling hula hoops, she was still very busy every day.
Ma Lefeng followed Su Ruyi to the storefront, and her eyes lit up when she saw the price list.
Wholesale is much more profitable than commission. Even if you start with a minimum order of 200 pieces, you'll still earn 30 cents more than with commission.
Two hundred hula hoops can be sold out in two or three days, which is equivalent to making an extra sixty yuan!
Further down the list, the lowest price is for a minimum order of 2,000 pieces, which can earn you nearly three times more per piece. Moreover, delivery is available throughout the city, including townships and above.
Su Ruyi's price wasn't low, but it was to leave herself some room for maneuver. The price of hula hoops would definitely drop later, and the wholesale price would also drop. If she offered a low price now, there would be no room for negotiation later.
The plastic factory has already given her the lowest price; other companies can't get this price at their cost price.
Ma Lefeng originally planned not to wholesale too much at once, in case she couldn't sell it and it became stuck in her hands, and besides, her capital was limited.
Seeing the price of two thousand, I couldn't take my eyes off it.
This is such a great deal!
Hula hoops are currently very popular and are unlikely to drop in price anytime soon, making them a very profitable business.
Moreover, if their county becomes saturated, she can transport the goods to neighboring counties or rural areas to sell.
The more Ma Lefeng thought about it, the more her mind raced. This was much easier to make money than selling steamed buns.
But reality quickly brought her to her senses; taking in so much money at once meant spending several thousand yuan.
Su Ruyi does not accept credit; payment is made on the spot.
Over the years, the family has saved some money, and Ma Lefeng can still come up with several thousand yuan, but such a large sum of money still makes her a little worried.
After all, the steamed bun shop business has always been good and stable, but with a new thing like the hula hoop, nobody knows what will happen in the future.
What if we buy so much stock and can't sell it later?
Su Ruyi noticed her hesitation and said, "If you wholesale with others, you'll get the same price as long as you reach the required quantity. However, the delivery will only be to one place; we won't deliver separately."
Ma Lefeng's eyes lit up. "Okay, I'll think about it when I get back and give you an answer tomorrow. I'll approve two hundred today."
Two hundred isn't many; she can sell them all in two days by carrying them around.
This is more profitable than taking a commission. She doesn't care about the money anyway, so she might as well just go for wholesale.
After receiving the money, Su Ruyi selected two hundred hula hoops according to Ma Lefeng's needs.
"Uncle Wang, could you please deliver the goods for Sister Le Feng?"
Su Ruyi greeted Uncle Wang, who was now basically working for her regularly. She had a lot of work, and the jobs she got from her were more than the jobs she used to find everywhere. Plus, she even provided lunch.
Li Mei now has to go out to sell hula hoops every day. Before, I was worried that since she was out selling things, there was no one at home to cook.
The money in his hands was so tempting that he couldn't bear to part with it, so he gave the money directly to Tong Yunyun so she could buy food outside.
Tong Yunyun didn't take her money. She has now joined the hula hoop sales team and uses her own money to buy food.
Moreover, she practiced while selling, and she was having a blast.
Su Ruyi also gave her the agreed-upon share. She could sell about twenty a day, which would amount to ten yuan a day. Among elementary school students, she was definitely a rich girl.
Even Wang Huizhen now carries around twenty hula hoops with her every day to sell them. Although it's inconvenient to carry them around, she doesn't mind at all.
Su Ruyi gave money to Grandma Sun, asking her to cook lunch for her, Li Mei, and Uncle Wang as well when she came back to cook.
Su Ruyi has a large appetite and must have meat at every meal. She can eat a whole chicken in one sitting, plus other meats.
Although there weren't many of them, they had to cook several large pots of dishes for each meal. Su Ruyi's appetite was equivalent to that of five adults.
In this way, Grandma Sun can not only earn a little more money every day, but also share some chicken soup and fish soup with Li Xiaobao.
"They're here!"
Uncle Wang happily carried the hula hoop onto his tricycle, asked for the address, and then rode off on the tricycle.
Uncle Wang is very happy every day now. His business was never this good before. Sometimes he wouldn't get a single order in a whole day.
Moreover, he had many competitors, and they were all vying for orders. Some even deliberately lowered the price, so he didn't earn much money at the end of the day.
Now that he has a guaranteed minimum income every day, he doesn't have to worry about anything anymore.
Even if you don't get a single order all day, you can still get lunch.
Uncle Wang's smile deepened as he thought about lunch.
They were eating really well; the food was very oily and juicy, with large chunks of meat. Each meat dish contained two or three pounds of meat, and he ate until his mouth was full of oil.
In just a few days, he felt that his complexion was much better than before, and he had even gained a little weight.
It's a pity I can't bring my work lunch home, otherwise my family could enjoy it too.
However, since he had a good lunch, he could give up his portion when he got home in the evening and just eat some dry food to make do.
"Uncle Li, you sold out so early today?"
Su Ruyi turned her head and saw that Grandpa Li had returned, his back empty, with nothing on it.
Grandpa Li said with a smile, "Sold out! I tried selling in town today, and I didn't expect so many people to buy."
Grandpa Li took a bus to the nearest town, where it was market day, so he decided to try his luck.
He brought a total of one hundred hula hoops, and he sold them all shortly after getting off the bus, even though it was still early.
There are several people selling hula hoops in the county now. Although they haven't been specifically divided up, they each basically have their own territory.
Grandpa Li sold his products well in his area, but he thought he'd try other places. To his surprise, they sold even better than in the county.
“The people of Ganzhen are rich. They saw the hula hoop competition in the newspaper and got interested. Adults and children alike bought some.”
Grandpa Li was all smiles, and the worry between his brows had faded considerably.
Just as the two were about to go inside to calculate the money, Liu Xiuzhi came over and greeted them with a smile.
"Uncle Li, you're here too! I haven't seen you these past few days. Xiao Su, you're so capable for your age. Everyone in the county is talking about hula hoops now."
When Liu Xiuzhi mentioned this, her tone inevitably became sour.
When she found out that Su Ruyi had rented the storage room for Grandpa Li, she was furious. She knew that girl was no pushover and that she must have had ulterior motives for helping him for no reason.
really!
She came here specifically for Old Li's house.
Before she could come up with a solution, the hula hoop became a sensation throughout the county, and the fact that the mastermind behind it was Su Ruyi caught her completely off guard.
She hadn't expected that Su Ruyi was actually going to do legitimate business, and it seemed she was making quite a bit of money.
Su Ruyi smiled and said, "It's alright, I was just lucky."
It was still early, and Old Li didn't want to waste any time, so he urged Su Ruyi to hurry up:
"Xiao Su, could you get me another fifty? I'll go sell some more."
Old Li is now only focused on making money and no longer cares what Liu Xiuzhi is up to.
Anyway, he and his wife have already decided not to sell the house.
"Okay, come in and get the goods."
When Liu Xiuzhi saw that Old Li was completely ignoring her, her face darkened.
Old Li rushed home in a hurry, and then left again in a hurry, without Liu Xiuzhi even getting a chance to speak to him.
Liu Xiuzhi suppressed her anger and smiled at Su Ruyi, saying:
"Xiao Su, Uncle Li is helping you out now? He's so enthusiastic, he must be earning a lot a day, right?"
Liu Xiuzhi had been paying close attention to the situation here, and it was obvious that ever since Old Li started selling hula hoops, the food at home had improved, and there was meat at every meal.
Moreover, not only did Li Xiaobao have enough to eat, but the two elders were also provided for.
At first, Old Li and Grandma Sun were reluctant to part with the money; they wanted to save it for Xiao Bao's surgery later.
Su Ruyi advised them that Xiao Bao only had them to rely on, and that they had to take care of their health and eat well.
The two elders then steeled themselves and, apart from the lunch they had at Su Ruyi's house, made sure to have eggs and meat for the other two meals.
This is what gives them the confidence to earn tens of yuan every day; otherwise, even if they knew this, they wouldn't be willing to give it up.
Su Ruyi smiled and said, "Uncle Li has always been very proactive in making money. He used to be so busy every day that he never had a moment to spare."
Liu Xiuzhi pursed her lips, thinking that Su Ruyi was as slippery as an eel.
"Hula hoops are selling so well right now, you must be short-handed, right? How about me? I'm quick and efficient, and I know a lot of people, no worse than Uncle Li."
"Sure."
Upon hearing this, Liu Xiuzhi was overjoyed.
"I also do wholesale. If you want to sell hula hoops, you can buy some to resell. My minimum wholesale price is two hundred each."
Liu Xiuzhi's face fell as soon as she heard this. Currently, all the hula hoops in the county are supplied by Su Ruyi, so the price has not been lowered and remains fixed.
At most, some people might give a discount of a penny or two to someone they know, but that's unlikely.
However, most people don't haggle over prices. After all, there are too many familiar faces and acquaintances in this small county. If you give one person a low price, what about the other person?
It would be better to decide on a fixed date from the beginning to avoid trouble later.
Although Liu Xiuzhi didn't know the wholesale price, she knew that a single hula hoop was so expensive, and that buying two hundred would cost at least a thousand yuan. How could she possibly afford that?
Su Ruyi definitely wouldn't have given Old Li that much; she knew all too well what Old Li's family situation was like—he couldn't even come up with a hundred yuan, let alone a thousand.
"Oh dear, we've all known each other for a long time. Why are you being so formal with your aunt? How can you treat me differently from Uncle Li? My home is just over there on the next street, I certainly won't stay here. Just let me take some goods first, and I'll pay you back after I sell them all."
Su Ruyi smiled and said, "This is my rule, it's the same for everyone. If you don't have cash, but you have real estate, you can use it as collateral, and I can give you goods of equal value."
Only a few people around her can get goods from her and earn commissions.
With such high commissions and absolutely no risk, how could just anyone get involved?
Su Ruyi wasn't familiar with Liu Xiuzhi and didn't like her much. She must have been out of her mind to let Liu Xiuzhi join in.
She doesn't lack salespeople now, she only lacks wholesalers.
"I'm trying to help you sell your goods out of kindness, and you're trying to make money off me? You're so greedy, aren't you?" Liu Xiuzhi's face immediately darkened.
Su Ruyi actually set her sights on her house; she really doesn't know how shameless she is.
"Business is business, and that principle applies everywhere."
If her products aren't selling well, she'll try all sorts of ways to retain customers in order to sell them faster.
But now she's riding the wave of opportunity; others are coming to her for help, not the other way around.
Liu Xiuzhi left in a huff, and when she got home, she complained to her husband and son about it, expressing her dissatisfaction with Su Ruyi.
"I'm doing her a favor by helping her sell her goods, and she's acting all high and mighty!"
Zhao Zhigang asked in bewilderment, "Where would a young girl get such a lot of capital?"
"Who knows what underhanded tricks she used? She looks so seductive and alluring, she's definitely not a decent girl. With that kind of attitude, she's bound to fail in business. She must have gotten away with it because of someone else."
"But the hula hoop business is really booming. Overnight, it felt like hula hoops were everywhere. In just a few days, we've made a fortune!"
Although Zhao Zhigang didn't know the cost of a hula hoop, he was shocked by how much a plastic tube could be worth.
“If she, a young girl, can sell them, so can we! Let’s go to the plastic factory in the provincial capital and buy some to sell. Their phone number is in the newspaper; we can call them first.”
Liu Xiuzhi's second son, Zhao Yucheng, walked in from outside, wearing bell-bottoms that could sweep the floor, and leaned casually against the door.
"I've already called them, but they have too many orders right now and can't keep up with production. They're not accepting orders from individual customers."
"There's more than one plastics factory in the provincial capital, right? There are other factories too."
"Currently, this is the only company producing it, so business is booming."
Liu Xiuzhi said angrily, "How come that girl always has a supply of goods? I've been keeping an eye on it. A truck comes every other day, and it's always fully loaded."
It's frustrating to see a path to wealth right in front of you but still miss out on it.
"It's just a little bit of goods. Once I win her over, everything will belong to the Zhao family." Zhao Yucheng licked his lips and said with a smile.
Liu Xiuzhi was momentarily tempted, but thinking of Su Ruyi's arrogant demeanor today, she said unhappily, "This kind of woman can't come into our house. Who knows how many men she's been flirting with outside? She's always doing crooked things, and she'll do anything for money. Nobody in the village would want a woman like that."
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