Chapter 142: Hot Opening (First Order Request)
Chain supermarkets are just an innovation in sales model. There is no technical content for anyone to do it. Simply put, anyone can do it. Unlike many industries, there is no monopoly in shopping. On the one hand, the shopping market is too large. Not everyone needs oil, but everyone needs to eat.
The demand is so huge that there will always be people who want to get involved. Being able to occupy the largest share of shopping is enough for the emergence of giant companies. The overlords in the shopping field will always have a steady stream of challengers entering the market.
Furthermore, because the shopping market is so large, the federal government will not allow one company to control all the markets. This is very simple. The former is restricted by objective conditions, and the latter is not allowed by the state. Therefore, the dream of Sheffield's final product is not so easy to realize.
Moreover, he is not the only one in the United States who is dreaming of becoming the ultimate producer. The most obvious and also the most hidden one is Morgan. In addition to Morgan, the big families that grew up thirty years after the Civil War are more or less moving towards this dream. First, they want to expand their company, then gain an advantage in their industry, complete their dominance in their industry, and then develop across industries. There are already quite a few companies in the second and third stages.
"The United States has a powerful railway system. We can transport the most advantageous beef and grain to the North. There are three main routes. The first is through the ubiquitous railway system. The second is the river transport route mainly based on the Mississippi River. The third is to set sail from Houston and New Orleans and reach Boston and New York by sea. Different routes are selected according to the different value of the goods." Sheffield explained his plan to the managers from various departments who had gathered there.
Among them are managers of Houston shipping companies, heads of the Port of New Orleans, and operators of the Texas railway system. Not all of them serve the Sheffield family directly, but they all make money by relying on this big tree.
"As for the fruits, it depends on the shipping companies. Remember, don't let the fruits expire." Sheffield used the method of stalling time to play a trick on Keane, but he didn't expect the same trick to happen to himself.
In fact, the last time they hijacked Keane's ship, they didn't wait until the fruit rotted to achieve their goal. There is a faster way for tropical fruits to rot, that is to turn on the refrigeration system. Tropical fruits are basically afraid of cold, so they are generally not refrigerated. However, the ships that transport fruits have refrigeration systems. The combination of cold and heat quickly made those ships have a durian explosion effect.
Seeing the shipping company manager nod, Sheffield then instructed the railway system operator. The Texas railway had nothing to do with the Sheffield family. There was a small relationship, that is, this operator had been invested by the old Buddha. Some of his company's shares were held by the old Buddha, and the Sheffield family was considered a shareholder.
Halfway through the meeting, a lady hurriedly pushed the door open and apologized to everyone. Then she nodded to Sheffield and said apologetically, "Master William, I'm late because my wife and I were reporting something. I don't know if I can make it in time."
"It's not too late, Aunt Ellie, please take a seat!" Sheffield glanced at the charming young woman and smiled, motioning for her to take a seat. Ellie Baron was the real estate manager of Sheffield United Company and the representative of Galeries Lafayette.
The Sheffield family is a farmer rooted in the land, so within the joint company, the real estate branch is the most important. If there is anything different about this branch, it is that women occupy the majority.
All matters related to land purchase and related industries are all handled by Ellie Barron, and so far he is naturally directly responsible to Karl Lagerfeld and has no intention of handing it over to him as the heir.
But it didn't matter. Sheffield didn't care about it. He even stood up and came over to show his gentlemanly manners, pulling out a chair for the lady to sit down.
"Recently, our branch is acquiring land near Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston, as well as chicken farms and other facilities, to replenish agricultural and livestock products that are inconvenient to transport nearby, and to support Master William's chain supermarkets. Basically, we haven't encountered any major problems, and now everything is almost ready." After sitting down, Elly Baron smiled lightly at the polite heir, then resumed his capable style, stretched out his hand to touch his short hair and continued, "As for the supermarket, the site has been selected, and it can be opened once the goods are replenished."
"Just like Master William said, the site should be as big as possible and not far from a densely populated community with strong purchasing power. Even if we just let people hang out, we should try to retain as many people as possible. The price should be as low as possible. Everyone is greedy. Even if we make less money, we will squeeze out other competitors. Once other competitors are dead, we will have the final say on everything else."
"I admit that I am gambling, but there is a high probability that the new sales model will be popular for a while. If this happens, competitors will spring up like mushrooms after rain, and then it will be a competition of who can withstand it. It must be pointed out that the United States is so vast, but the population is still quite concentrated. We cannot take care of the vast rural towns, but we must gain a foothold in the metropolitan areas. Therefore, it is necessary for Aunt Ellie to be fully prepared." Sheffield put his hands on the table and emphasized word by word, "Geographically, the northern states are far away from Texas, but even so, I want to win."
"The economic depression is over, and the recovery of various industries this year is very obvious. Now the retail market in the United States is like a calm lake. What I mean is that if you want to throw a depth charge into the lake, whether the explosion will kill some small fish is inevitable."
With a cold smile, Sheffield said slowly and bluntly to the managers of various departments present, "Although wolves eat meat, no one can see that they are starving for a long time. In order to make money without doing anything in the future, we have to work harder now. Thank you for your hard work! Meeting adjourned..."
This meeting was not very formal, but it left a deep impression on the heads of various departments. The reason why it was not so formal was that Sheffield United was essentially a family business. And it left a deep impression because the heirs of this generation seemed to have something in their heads and were very courageous.
"The first supermarket will be opened in New York, and supermarkets in other cities will open simultaneously a week later. All the newspapers you purchase should report on the opening of the New York supermarket." Sheffield specifically kept Ellie Barron here, not because he wanted to do something pleasing to this charming young woman, but purely for work purposes. "As for me, I will personally attend the opening of the supermarket in Chicago."
New York is the symbol of the United States, just like the Magic City of the Republic, representing the face of 80 million citizens of the United States. Therefore, the emergence of a new sales model must not leave New York behind. Not only must it not be left behind, but the feelings of New York citizens must be taken care of first, so that the citizens there can enjoy the best services.
At the end of January 1896, with the support of the entire Sheffield United Company, a department store called Sheffield United opened in front of a huge crowd on Fifth Avenue, New York Square, the undisputed heartland of the United States.
The New York citizens who came here had already endured the bombardment in the newspapers and word of mouth, and came to this self-service department store with the abbreviation "Supermarket" with curiosity in their hearts to see if the things inside were as reasonably priced as rumored. Even the supermarket employees inside felt uneasy, and this uneasiness came from the fact that they had never seen such a scene before.
Of course, New York is the largest metropolis in the United States, and no one says it is not, right? But they still feel a little uncomfortable with the crowds inside and outside, and many employees don’t know that this is called trypophobia.
When the ribbons fell to the ground, the huge door was pushed open by the crowd, and the scene was captured by reporters with cameras in the distance. The opening of the supermarket was so popular that it directly made headlines in major media. More people learned about the existence of such a supermarket and the huge crowds of people rushing to buy from the reports.
"This is the largest crowd I have ever seen. The last time it happened was when the Vanderbilt family closed the railway bridge. But the difference this time is that the new supermarket has given citizens more freedom and convenience instead of causing inconvenience!"
As a newspaper media with a conscience, the uncrowned kings cannot just praise without criticizing. The actions of the Vanderbilt family boss decades ago were mentioned again, but only as a negative example.
If Sheffield knew, he would definitely not be happy. First of all, these reporters were shameless in trying to draw hatred for him. Second, the property for the supermarket was purchased from the Vanderbilt family.
Although the Vanderbilt family has been used as a negative example in the upper class society, how can you ordinary people dictate the friendship between us big capitalists? Is it your turn to flatter the powerful and bully the weak?
For several consecutive days, citizens of New York came here to buy up all the goods in stock in the supermarket. The good quality and low price have taken root in the hearts of New York citizens, and such a popular scene has attracted the attention of many people.
Will it be like a fad that disappears after a while? Or is it really a feat that subverts the traditional model? Because the time is too short, no one can say for sure. Before they can come to their senses, supermarkets in various districts of New York have entered the stage of opening soon.
(End of this chapter)
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