Just as the policies were gradually being relaxed, Li Qingqing and Xie Mingzhu started from a small stall, selling their handmade bibs, clothes and various trinkets, just as they had originally planned.
Xie Mingzhu made the most of the sewing machine that Shu Ying gave her. In the early stages, she not only made small items, but also took on jobs such as hemming trousers, changing zippers, and sewing old clothes for customers.
Although the earnings were small, he thought that every little bit counted and that little bit added up, so he accepted all offers.
Both of them have ingenious ideas and are quite skilled.
Sometimes, when helping to mend old clothes, I would add my own ideas.
For example, when using different colored fabrics to mend holes in a coat, you can add your own ingenuity by cleverly combining the colors of the coat and the patchwork fabric, and then embroidering it to give the whole garment a completely different look.
It doesn't look like a patch; it looks like a perfectly nice outfit that was specially bought.
Many customers discovered their talent and suggested that they try making some clothes to sell.
Xie Mingzhu immediately thought of the toasting outfit she had made for her neighbor's daughter in the compound.
Even when they set up their stall, people in the courtyard were still asking them to make toasting dresses according to that style.
Xie Mingzhu and Li Qingqing have to work overtime every night when they get home.
Seeing how much everyone liked it, the two of them decided to design a few different styles of slightly more casual clothes and put them out to try selling.
Unexpectedly, sales were really good. Many girls took a liking to it at first glance, paid for it on the spot, measured it, and waited for it to be shipped.
With more clothes made, Li Qingqing and her partner had more ideas and set their sights on a wider variety of clothing styles.
They wanted to try on all kinds of shirts, pants, collars, and styles.
However, neither of them were professionals, and there were some things they could think of but couldn't do, and they didn't know who to ask for advice.
While she was worrying, Shu Ying accidentally learned about this while chatting with Xie Mingzhu.
She immediately thought of the magazines she had read when she was still in Shanghai.
She tried searching and unexpectedly found several rare magazines related to women's fashion, such as "Shanghai Fashion" and "Contemporary Women".
As for fashion-related magazines, there were relatively few published in China at that time.
Shu Ying then thought of the foreign magazines and books she encountered in her work.
In her spare time, Shu Ying contacted many friends abroad and found a lot of relevant professional magazines and books.
Most of these books didn't have a Chinese version, so Shu Ying translated them all herself and showed them to Xie Mingzhu and Li Qingqing.
Li Qingqing and her partner already had many ideas, but they lacked a way to turn those ideas into ready-made garments.
With Shu Ying's books and magazines, plus the experience the two had gained before, they continued to research and experiment.
Combining the most popular contemporary clothing styles from "Shanghai Clothing" with their own ideas, the two made improvements and created several unique "Dacron" shirts that young women would like.
They combined the lotus leaf collar and swallow collar, which had never been seen in China before, with "Dacron" shirts, and changed the cuffs accordingly.
The finished clothes had an unexpected sense of elegance and charm.
In addition, Xie Mingzhu also noticed a "small pleated collar" commonly used in medieval Western aristocratic shirts from the books given to her by Shu Ying.
She immediately fell in love with this collar style and, with her own ideas, tried to modify it, changing the collar to a small stand-up collar that was 1.5 centimeters wide, and making relatively soft, few pleats along the edge of the collar, with each pleat adorned with tiny seed beads.
The pleats extend downwards around the neckline, with the seed beads becoming larger towards the bottom, creating a gradient.
Under sunlight, the seed beads themselves gleam with a rich variety of luster and sizes, creating a dazzling display of depth and variation.
As soon as this garment was put on display, the number of orders skyrocketed that day, filling the entire month's schedule.
Soon, their stall became well-known in the area, and many people came to buy from them.
Over time, their ready-made clothes sold out every time they were displayed, creating a small sensation in a limited area.
The military wives, who had originally intended to support them, were dumbfounded when they found that they couldn't even grab the clothes. Without saying a word, they joined the fray.
Gradually, the two of them no longer had time to make small items like bibs and began to focus on women's clothing.
As policies are gradually relaxed, "manufacturer" counters have begun to appear in department stores.
Li Qingqing and Xie Mingzhu had accumulated a considerable amount of capital and clearly sensed that this was an opportunity. They made a decisive move, taking out most of their money to rent a small counter in a department store and hiring a sewing worker to help them.
Initially, their counters displayed woolen women's clothing, Zhongshan suits, cotton-padded jackets with delicate Chinese knot buttons, and various styles of clothing designed by themselves.
In the past, they set up their own stalls and rarely encountered other vendors, so they had no access to certain products or services.
Now that the mall has brought together all the other shops selling clothes, fabrics, buttons, and threads, the two gradually realized that there were so many more advanced and exquisite materials available.
For example, wool fabrics, polyester-wool blends, silk...
The buttons and threads were even more varied and dazzling.
After reading these, Xie Mingzhu and Li Qingqing's thinking was broadened, and they had many different ideas.
Xie Mingzhu used to design many novel clothes, but she always felt that something was still missing.
Upon closer reflection, I realized it was actually a problem with the fabric and decorations.
Common fabrics rarely achieve the luster and drape she desires.
But the new materials you encounter in department stores are acceptable.
She tried replacing many styles of fabric with silk and polyester, and the effect was indeed several times better.
Even sales have visibly skyrocketed, like they're on a rocket.
From then on, Xie Mingzhu's inspiration exploded and became unstoppable.
The neighbors and friends in the family compound, plus the customers accumulated from the previous stall and now the department store.
The two counters were never short of customers; word of mouth spread among the customers, and with the daily influx of customers from the department store, the number of visitors kept increasing.
Xie Mingzhu and Li Qingqing were truly busy.
Both of them are hardworking and strategic, and they quickly realized that they needed to divide the work well in order to cooperate better.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
