The Kyrgyz Province Timber Products Ordering Fair officially began at 8:30 a.m. on the 13th.
Zhou Mingyuan led several people from the Songjianghe Forestry Bureau, each wearing a work badge, and, guided by staff, entered the designated area of the conference hall.
The trade fairs of those days weren't as elaborate. Compared to the expositions and trade fairs of later generations, which featured a wide variety of exhibition halls and booths with a dazzling array of products, they were much simpler.
The products we can offer are logs of various diameters and varieties, as well as fiberboard, plywood, timber, particleboard, etc.
Of course, none of these are physical objects; they are at most enlarged photos.
Every merchant attending the trade fair had a stack of color pictures introducing the products and the seventeen provincial forestry bureaus.
Representatives from relevant departments such as the Ministry of Domestic Trade, the Ministry of Forestry, the State Timber Corporation, and the State Bureau of Materials attended the meeting, and leaders from relevant provincial departments also gave speeches.
Afterwards, representatives from seventeen forestry bureaus took the stage to introduce the situation of their respective bureaus.
Next, the participating departments and companies will submit their letters of intent for this year's orders.
Some orders are coordinated by the province and assigned to specific forestry bureaus.
The other part is selected by the customers themselves. Each forestry bureau signs timber supply contracts with customers based on last year's logging volume and this winter's logging target.
Songjianghe Forestry Bureau is one of the larger provincial forestry bureaus. At this year's order fair, it secured one-third more orders than in previous years.
Many of these are small-diameter timbers that were newly included in the catalog this year.
Sheng Xiping had already anticipated this, so he wasn't particularly surprised and simply helped Zhou Mingyuan and the others with the contract.
The trade fair will last for one and a half days, with a small banquet on the afternoon of the 14th, which will also provide an opportunity for forestry bureaus and out-of-town merchants to exchange ideas.
Sheng Xiping also seized the opportunity to chat with many customers, inquire about their demand for timber products, and obtain business opportunities from them.
At the same time, I also exchanged contact information with many people. In any case, having met them once will save me a lot of trouble in the future.
After the trade fair ended, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. That night, they returned to their hotels and inns and fell fast asleep in bed.
The next day, after a good rest, the group began to stroll around the provincial capital.
At this time of year, there's not much to see in the provincial capital. So, we spent the morning strolling around Nanhu Park, and then went to several department stores to shop in the afternoon.
When you go out, you should always buy something to take home, otherwise the trip will have been in vain.
Zhou Mingyuan and his son Sheng Xiping were no exception; they followed the group around, buying anything they found that looked good.
"Xiping, come quick, there are TVs for sale here."
Zhou Mingyuan walked to a counter, looked at the square box-like things on the counter, and said excitedly.
Sheng Xiping walked over with a smile and saw that it was a 12-inch black and white television of the Sika Deer HB1-1 model produced in Changchun.
Having seen all sorts of large-screen TVs in my past life, this twelve-inch TV looks small and exquisite.
"Dad, you've got your eye on this? You want to buy it?"
Sheng Xiping glanced at the television and sighed inwardly. "This thing is so small! With such a small screen, you have to be right up to it to watch!"
"Yes, that's the idea. Your mom mentioned it to me before we left this time."
Last year during the Spring Festival, our bureau's store received a batch of these TVs, and before anything could happen, they were all snapped up.
Your mom was quite disappointed at the time, complaining that I was just dawdling at home and didn't rush to buy a TV.
Zhou Mingyuan chuckled, looking at the television in front of him with great interest.
Wang Chunxiu said that all three of her children are away from home, leaving only the two of them, who are constantly staring at each other.
During the day it's fine, we're both at work. But after dinner in the evening, there's nothing much to do, and as an old married couple, we don't have that many intimate things to talk about.
We do have a radio at home, but it can't compare to television.
Wang Chunxiu heard that there are people on TV who can move, talk, and sing, so she really wanted to buy one.
“If my mom wants to buy it, then she can. Comrade, how much is this TV?” Sheng Xiping turned around and asked the salesperson.
The sales clerk behind the counter had an indifferent expression on her face.
"Out of stock. You'll have to wait in line. It will be at least two months before it's available again."
These days, department store sales clerks have secure jobs, and they're all incredibly arrogant and haughty.
I've also heard that in some places, sales clerks dare to beat up customers.
Therefore, some shops and supply and marketing cooperatives have put up signs that prohibit customers from being beaten without cause.
People in small towns know each other well, and they're more polite to each other since they see each other all the time.
In a large provincial capital like this, especially in such a high-end department store, it's understandable that the sales staff would be arrogant. So Sheng Xiping wasn't surprised and didn't get angry.
But this person is blatantly lying. There are clearly TVs on the counter, but he insists they're out of stock. Isn't that a bit much?
"Comrade, isn't it displayed on your counter? Why are you saying it's out of stock?" Sheng Xiping asked, pointing to the television on the counter.
"What do you know? This is the one our leader ordered. It's just sitting here as a sample for now. We'll take it away in a couple of days."
The sales clerk glanced at Sheng Xiping and said impatiently.
"Forget it, Xiping, if they don't have it in stock, let's not buy it. I'll talk to our bureau's store in advance and ask them to reserve one for me."
Fearing that Sheng Xiping might lose his temper and argue with the sales clerk again, Zhou Mingyuan quickly pulled Sheng Xiping away.
"Do you want one? If so, I'll try to reserve one for you too."
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