Chapter 40 Beauty is a Powerful Weapon (Bug Fix): The Counter is a Symbol of Power
Wang Xiao's first thought was to set up a tent, the kind of giant inflatable tent that's the most common type of tent used for outdoor activities.
Unfortunately, I'm sorry, it's the second day of the Lunar New Year in 1991. Even if such tents existed in this era, where could she find one in such a short time?
Moreover, in early spring, when it's freezing cold, people might not be able to withstand the cold while changing clothes in an outdoor tent.
So the idea only flashed through her mind for a moment before she dismissed it without hesitation.
Her choice was to make use of the existing conditions for modification.
What are the conditions? And how should it be modified?
An unused clothing counter.
As the largest department store in the provincial capital, the People's Department Store is far more than just the clothing counters contracted to the east. One entire floor, several hundred square meters, is dedicated to selling clothes and shoes.
Since even a successful counter like Xiang Dong's is usually closed during the Spring Festival and will reopen after the Lantern Festival, the situation for other counters is probably similar.
It's such a waste to leave such a nice counter unused; we definitely need to make good use of it.
During the Lunar New Year, the department store is packed with people; how can we not do business properly?
Wang Xiao definitely couldn't wait for Xiang Dong to rush back to the provincial capital from his hometown before starting to set up the business; that would be too much of a waste of time. She had to sell all 10,000 suits before other people's counters started getting busy.
So she went directly to the department store manager and talked about renting out the counter space.
Why the department store? Because since the fall of 1989, only one individual tenant continued to rent a counter in the entire department store, while the rest of the counters were operated by the department store itself.
The leader had a good impression of Wang Xiao.
Don't be fooled by the apparent stagnation of economic reforms and the renewed emphasis on class struggle; in reality, there's no business that ignores economic efficiency. Even if a department store isn't doing well, they still won't be able to pay wages.
Comrade Wang from the Chemical Engineering Institute previously sourced Soviet goods and even hired Russians to promote the department store, which caused a huge sensation and was very successful. The entire department store's counters benefited from the publicity.
Some customers from other places even came specifically to see this novelty after hearing the news.
Therefore, when Wang Xiao asked to rent the counter for a short period until the fourteenth day of the first lunar month, the leader readily agreed.
I'm just idling around anyway, so even if I have to earn some pocket money, it'll be worth it.
Wang Xiao acted swiftly, pulling in his parents and uncle's family to help set up the scene immediately.
There's no need to worry about the shelves. After business was suspended, all the goods were put away and locked up; they couldn't just sit there collecting dust. So now they don't need to worry about other people's goods going missing.
The counters were all moved aside and grouped together as partitions to create a small world of self-service clothing supermarket.
Thanks to the much more abundant supply of goods now, and thanks to the department store for truly living up to its name, Wang Xiao was able to successfully buy a clothes hanger without even leaving the store.
As for the full-length mirror, well, she rented it first, and the rent was very cheap.
Her reasoning was that she was giving free advertising to dressing mirrors, making everyone fully aware of their necessity in the lives of the general public.
So it's already good enough that she doesn't charge advertising fees, how could they possibly ask her for a high price?
The department store counter actually accepted it.
Why?
This is related to the generally poor living conditions of urban residents.
The vast majority of families today (estimated to be over 90%) would never have a full-length mirror.
There's no room at home to put it.
The most common choice is to attach a large mirror to the wardrobe to save space.
Therefore, it's not surprising that dressing mirrors in shopping malls have fallen into a state of collecting dust.
Wang Xiao adjusted the angle of the full-length mirror to make the person in the mirror appear slightly longer. Humans generally feel they've shortened by 5 centimeters and gained 5 kilograms in weight.
Putting down the full-length mirror, while the elders and her little cousin Jingjing were busy cleaning, Wang Xiao once again called the television, newspapers, and radio stations to confirm that the advertisement could go live today.
She really went all out; when she was selling Soviet goods, she used the trick of offering free foreign models, without spending any money at all.
But this time, she had to act decisively, even if it cost her three thousand dollars to advertise in newspapers, on television, and on the radio for three consecutive days.
There is no faster way to get information from an audience than by placing ads in the media.
She wants to sell 10,000 suits before the Lantern Festival; she can't do it without investing heavily.
Dear customer, these are genuine export-quality suits, high-quality suits exported to Japan. Feel free to choose one and try it on, wear it however you like. Don't miss out!
To express our gratitude to our valued customers, both new and old, for their continued support, People's Department Store is offering a special promotion: a selection of high-quality export-grade suits are now available for sale. Quantities are limited, so please be sure to purchase on a first-come, first-served basis.
As soon as the clock struck eight in the evening, even the most popular candy and pastry counters in the People's Department Store during the Spring Festival closed down, turned off the lights, and went home.
The makeshift self-service clothing supermarket was still brightly lit.
The mall's on-duty supervisors were overwhelmed and wanted them to postpone it until tomorrow, but Wang Xiao insisted, "No, we're starting sales tomorrow. Wouldn't it be letting down the customers if we didn't set things up properly?"
The leader was utterly speechless. It was as if someone genuinely expected this. Did they even know you were selling clothes? Oh dear, I really didn't know how to phrase this. There's no reason for such a push.
However, when it comes to being patient and persistent, the leader was no match for Wang Xiao, and in the end could only agree to let them work until 10 p.m. before leaving.
I have to go. If I stay any longer, someone will cut off the power or close the door.
There are rules governing shopping mall management.
The leader frowned, picked up his teacup, and left. Wang Xiao stretched, slapped his face, and tried to cheer himself up.
Qian Xuemei felt extremely guilty. She felt that it was because of her that her niece had reluctantly accepted the order for 10,000 suits, leaving the child so exhausted.
"Xiaoxiao, you guys go home and get some sleep. We'll take care of the rest."
"It's alright," Wang Xiao smiled. "Business is coming soon."
ah?
Chen Yanqiu was surprised. Had the advertisement been misplaced? The official opening was tomorrow morning, the fourth day of the Lunar New Year.
Wang Xiao's smile deepened: "We're the only ones with our lights on at the People's Department Store, and the doors aren't closed yet. Who else would people come to if not us?"
Although the provincial capital didn't have a nightlife in 1991, people generally went to bed early.
But 8 p.m. isn't late, especially since it's Chinese New Year.
It's normal for people to go out for a stroll in groups after having dinner at their relatives' houses late at night.
Department stores are already a top choice for people in the provincial capital to go shopping, and to celebrate the Spring Festival, the mall has hung up a lot of red lanterns, which are quite eye-catching in the dark night.
As soon as she finished speaking, Chen Jingjing noticed several young ladies peeking over.
She immediately nudged her cousin's arm, bursting with excitement: "Sis, there really is someone here!"
The young women, around twenty years old, were quite curious and came over to see what was going on.
When they learned that they could go directly behind the counter and choose clothes to try on, the girls' eyes practically popped out of their sockets.
Good heavens, they can walk behind the counter and get their own clothes?
Wang Xiao was startled by their reactions and suddenly realized that the counter, which served as a temporary barrier, was actually a very good choice.
Because the counter symbolizes power, a power that only the sales clerks behind the counter possess, is transferred to the customer at this moment.
They became the owners of these clothes.
It was only then that Wang Xiao truly realized why the customers had reacted so wildly when she read in the materials that the supermarket had just opened in the 1990s.
It's not because the supermarket's wide variety of goods overwhelmed everyone.
At this point, the department store's supplies were already plentiful, and there was no situation where you couldn't buy anything even if you had money.
It's not just that supermarkets are convenient because they offer a wide variety of goods; shopping malls can also meet these needs.
It is power, the freedom that the transfer of power brings to customers, that excites them so much, even driving them to madness.
Unfortunately, all the suits on display right now are men's suits, making it a bit much to ask young ladies to try them on.
Could Wang Xiao only regretfully see them off? Of course not.
Why not take business that comes knocking on your door?
She went directly to the warehouse and took out the new spring clothes that were going to be released after the New Year. She hung them on two rows of hangers and let them try them on.
Wear whatever you like, just be careful not to get cold.
The girls were ecstatic, rummaging through the piles of clothes. Good heavens! This was the first time they'd ever experienced such treatment in a shopping mall.
Normally, even at the east-facing counter where the sales staff are generally considered to have the most pleasant expressions, if you want to buy a piece of clothing, they'll practically take down all the clothes on the counter for you to pick and choose from, turning them over and over again. Leaving aside whether they get angry or not, you'll feel guilty, as if they're deliberately picking on you and making things difficult for you.
But when girls choose clothes, they turn their entire wardrobe upside down and try on each outfit at least three times before deciding which one to wear out.
Is this still a shopping mall? This has become my own room.
Hmm, the room isn't that big, and there aren't that many clothes in the closet.
The young ladies happily tried on clothes for a good half hour. Even Chen Yanqiu felt it was a good thing that no one had to bring them each piece of clothing, otherwise she, as a saleswoman, would have rolled her eyes.
Good heavens! Even young ladies in ancient times didn't treat their maids like this. Otherwise, they would definitely be laughed at by the whole family for being unruly.
Fortunately, after all that fuss, they finally pulled out their wallets and each picked out a spring dress, then cautiously came over to ask about the price.
Wang Xiao: Oh well, I forgot, the clothes didn't even have price tags on them.
Indeed, everyone present was forced into this role.
Wang Xiao paused, then said, "I'm sorry, because we haven't officially opened yet, we haven't put the price tags on. This one is 50 yuan, this one is 60 yuan, and this one is a bit more expensive, 70 yuan..."
After quoting the price, she earnestly emphasized, "Tonight is a special case; we've given you an internal price. Don't tell anyone outside, okay? We have a separate price list when we officially put the clothes up for sale. If people know you bought them at a discount, they'll have complaints."
The young ladies born in 1991 are so kind and simple. They immediately puffed out their chests proudly and repeatedly assured each other that they would never go out and talk about it. Then they happily paid and left.
Chen Jingjing asked her cousin curiously, "How much do these clothes cost if they're hung up?"
Wang Xiao remained remarkably calm: "I don't know."
How would she know? She didn't even source the goods. Besides, this kind of pricing is inherently highly random; the profit margin on clothing these days is high, it's not just talk.
No, no, Wang Xiao thought, and went to call Xiang Dong's pager again. She managed to get a call back early on the fourth day of the Lunar New Year. She could decide on the price of the spring clothes, as long as it was no less than 50 yuan.
These days, the ex-factory price of clothes mainly depends on the materials, not the design; people have very little brand awareness. Spring shirts are thin, so the wholesale price isn't expensive.
Of course, this "not expensive" refers to the price of a large coat.
50 yuan is not enough for Qian Xuemei to buy a single garment like this even after a month of working at a clothing factory sewing machine.
But the provincial capital is the provincial capital after all; the clothes there are brighter and more vibrant than elsewhere.
Look at the clothes they've laid out; they look just as good as the celebrities in magazines when they wear them.
Sigh, she really lucked out she met a kind family. Back then, many educated youth abandoned their wives and children to return to the city. When Chen Yidong came back, she could take over her father-in-law's job, securing a stable, secure position.
As a result, he didn't want to leave, so his parents-in-law didn't force him to return to the city. They even gave their family a lot of money and told Chen Yidong that since he had decided to stay, he should live a good life and not think about other things.
Her husband's older sister and her family are also kind people. She took on such a big job for Xiaoxiao, and her husband's older sister and her husband didn't say anything and even helped with the work.
Chen Yanqiu was so busy that she was dizzy and overwhelmed.
Logically speaking, today is already the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, and the holiday should be over, so it's time to go back to work. But in reality, no company will be too busy until the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Everyone tacitly understands that at most two people will stay on duty in a department, and the rest will either be late, leave early, or simply not come at all.
All the higher-ups are the same; naturally, they wouldn't dare bring up this matter to talk about the employees during the Chinese New Year.
Therefore, Dr. Chen is currently busy going in and out of the shopping mall.
She suddenly remembered and asked, "What about the sales staff? This place is so big, we need a lot of sales staff, at least a dozen."
Speaking of this, she wanted to pull her daughter's ear again.
That brat, her temper gets worse every day. She always seems to offend people when she asks them for favors.
Wang Xiao felt wronged.
Although Xiang Dong was from out of town, the sales clerks he hired at the counter were all from the provincial capital.
If she were to set up a clothing stall now, she would definitely choose to hire familiar employees first.
When she finally managed to call and find the person, they were in a difficult position, saying they had to cook at home and couldn't leave. Even when Wang Xiao offered triple pay, the person insisted on cooking.
So Wang Xiao, who couldn't keep his mouth shut, blurted out, "You live alone?"
"Of course not, the whole family is waiting for dinner."
"So, is everyone in your family missing limbs except you, unable to even cook a meal, and indispensable?"
It's the Lunar New Year, and she's saying such unlucky things. Luckily, it's over the phone, or she would have definitely slapped him in the face.
Chen Yanqiu also wished he could slap the girl to death.
Wang Xiaocai felt wronged. Why can't people be more sincere with each other? She was telling the absolute truth.
Any salesperson with a brain would know that going to work is easier than staying home to take care of a family's every need, and besides, it pays three times the salary.
What? You're saying that what they value is family and they're willing to sacrifice themselves for their family?
Haha, she's such a spoilsport, she absolutely has to throw cold water on people who sacrifice themselves for others, especially women. Forgive her ignorance, but she's never seen one who's lived a happy life.
In the end, many people were left with nothing to say and a lot of grievances and complaints.
Please be aware that housework is not included in GDP statistics.
The amount of housework compensation a full-time housewife receives in a divorce... tsk tsk, I don't know who they're trying to humiliate.
Now, having dodged Dr. Chen's finger poking her forehead, Wang Xiao repeatedly emphasized, "There's someone here, don't worry, there's someone selling clothes."
Who is it?
To everyone's surprise, the impact was no less than that of the Soviet models, directly igniting the city's most powerful figures; she was an absolute superstar.
It's really not an exaggeration at all.
Even when Xiang Dong, the boss, rushed to the People's Department Store at dusk on the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, he was completely dumbfounded.
When did shopping malls become like this? It's more like a rural market day, where you can just grab things with your hands.
Even when selling clothes at a market, they hang the clothes high up, and only use a long fork to pry them down for people to try on. The clothes displayed on the counter are piled up in clumps, not hung up so that people can easily reach them.
However, Xiang Dong was too shocked by the redesigned counter to notice the changes; his eyes were immediately drawn to the additional sales clerks.
Is she a salesperson? Salespeople are the ones who serve customers.
But when did his counter get such salespeople?
No, when did the entire People's Department Store have salespeople of this caliber?
What level? Like the flight attendants in movies. Every single one of them is fair-skinned, beautiful, with a slender figure, elegant demeanor, and a radiant smile.
Tang Yicheng's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, and it took him a while to find his tongue: "This...this is a waiter from the Jinning Grand Hotel!"
How did they end up selling clothes at the People's Department Store?
Is this considered selling clothes?
A row of full-length mirrors stood side by side with a waitress from the Jinning Hotel next to each one. Counting them one by one, there were a total of 22 people.
They were young and beautiful, always smiling. They would take the oversized coats that customers took off to try on suits and hang them on their arms, just like the butlers or maids serving foreign tycoons in movies.
How could such a thing happen at the People's Department Store?
Even though Tang Yicheng already knew that the service staff at the Jinning Grand Hotel were excellent and extremely friendly to guests, and he had personally experienced it, that was in a grand hotel, where the guests were of very different status.
Don't spout nonsense like "everyone is equal" to fool people.
For the same price, if you had to choose between serving the wealthy and powerful or ordinary people, which would you choose?
The former is definitely the better choice.
The former implies the hope of building a higher-level network of connections and the possibility of encountering a benefactor to advance one's career. Moreover, because the former sees more smiling faces daily and is surrounded by people who treat them well, they receive sufficient emotional value and are generally less inclined to fuss over trivial matters, and are not picky most of the time.
The latter is different. Not only do they offer no extra benefits, but some people are also prone to taking advantage of others. They usually act like a subservient person while harboring resentment, and when they encounter such situations, they like to step on others to show that they have paid money and are therefore superior.
How did Wang Xiao manage to hire a waiter from the Jinning Grand Hotel?
Sigh, we were never meant to be, it's all thanks to me throwing money at it.
She hired this group of high-quality waitresses with a high salary of 50 yuan a day.
As a venue for entertaining foreign guests, the hiring standards for waitresses at the Jinning Grand Hotel are no lower than those for flight attendants. However, although their income is higher than that of ordinary people, it is still lower than that of flight attendants, amounting to around 300 yuan per month.
Why? Because the restaurant has strict management and prohibits employees from accepting tips; all they receive is a fixed salary and bonuses.
Moreover, due to the political turmoil of the past year or two, the number of foreign guests at the hotel has decreased sharply, leading to a decline in revenue. Even though the number of guests has increased in the last month or two due to local government investment promotion, it is still far from the hotel's peak, and consequently, everyone's bonuses have also dropped significantly.
That's why Wang Xiao was able to hire people to sell clothes at the People's Department Store for 50 yuan a day.
When people feel a sense of crisis, they naturally want to earn extra money to increase their sense of security.
However, the waitresses have a strong sense of decency.
When Wang Xiao asked for help, they emphasized that they could indeed use their spare time to take shifts to help sell clothes, but she could not use their company's name to solicit business, and they would never admit that they were waitresses of Jinning Hotel.
Boss Wang readily agreed.
She never intended to use the Jinning Grand Hotel as a gimmick.
She wasn't particularly farsighted, but she didn't consider herself short-sighted either. To offend the Jinning Grand Hotel, with whom she had finally established a relationship, for such a petty gain—she was insane.
In her desperation, she sought help from these young ladies, entirely because she was drawn to their exceptional service.
It's so difficult, really.
Because of differing ideologies, it's currently extremely difficult to find a waitress in the provincial capital who meets her standards.
Let's not even talk about those at the state-run counters; the word "ruthless" wouldn't be an exaggeration. Their work schedules depend entirely on their mood; if they're in a bad mood, they'll treat customers like dirt, rolling their eyes so hard you can't even see the black of their eye.
Even the waiters hired by Xiang Dong, in her opinion, lacked service awareness. The only commendable thing about them was that they didn't act like empresses dowager and were relatively friendly.
At this moment, Wang Xiao assigned them all to handle the checkout. Meanwhile, Dr. Chen and the others wandered around the coat racks, tidying up the disheveled suits.
The staff standing by the mirrors and going around helping customers find clothes in the right size are all tall and beautiful young ladies.
They even offer suggestions to guests, helping them choose suitable shirts and ties to match their suits.
Well, Wang Xiao also rummaged through the warehouse for the shirt and tie, just so customers could see how the suit would look on them. He figured he'd sell them if he could, and it wouldn't matter if customers didn't buy them.
Tang Yicheng suspected that Wang Xiao was using a honey trap this time.
Look, the customers who picked out suit jackets to wear, when such a beautiful young woman, as pretty as a flight attendant on TV, smiled so sweetly, almost no one dared to leave the jacket behind and run away; they all took the suits to pay.
In the few minutes he watched, seven or eight people had already left with their suits.
Wang Xiao didn't think there was anything wrong with using a honey trap.
Beauty is a scarce resource; no employee in a luxury store is unattractive. Beauty combined with any other advantage is a powerful weapon.
Of course, she believes even more that the customers were so willing to open their wallets because it was the first time they had experienced such thoughtful and warm service.
How to put it? It's a bit like ordinary people rarely going to a luxury store. Even if they didn't initially intend to buy anything, after receiving five-star service from the staff, if they have enough money in their pockets, they can't help but spend it.
Why? Because everyone has accepted the concept of equivalent exchange.
Most people feel embarrassed to get something for free; they subconsciously assume they will have to pay something in return for the service they receive.
Given the current average national income, a suit costing three or four hundred yuan can indeed be considered a luxury item.
During the Lunar New Year, the fact that Wang Xiao could sell suits so well is truly remarkable; anyone who sees it would have to give him a thumbs up and praise his amazing skills.
Tang Yicheng sighed, "People in the provincial capital are definitely rich."
The New Year wasn't even over yet, and the smell of sulfur in the air was still strong, but everyone was already spending lavishly on new clothes.
Xiang Dong was about to put his newfound knowledge to use and emphasize to others that not everyone shopping at the People's Department Store right now is from the provincial capital.
Wang Xiaoxian diligently mentored her younger colleagues, cultivating them with the integrity expected of a team leader: "It's very simple, two steps. The first step is to attract customers, using media advertising and other means to bring them to the counter. The second step is to retain customers, by renovating the counter structure and providing excellent service to make customers willingly pay."
Tang Yicheng blinked repeatedly as he listened, looking somewhat bewildered and childish, which was rather amusing.
Xiang Dong didn't get a chance to speak and inexplicably felt a bit superfluous.
It's really unnecessary. Wang Xiao has already set up his stall and started doing business. It seems like it doesn't matter whether he's there or not.
However, even if he were to appear here right now with the words "chicken rib" written all over his head, it would still be far more reasonable than Tang Yicheng being here.
I'm someone who has contracted a counter in the mall, so I can help coordinate the sale of clothes.
Where is Tang Yicheng? He came all this way, and it's only the fourth day of the Lunar New Year. What is he doing here?
Wang Xiao had already assigned someone a task: "Go to Beijing and go with my dad to inspect, receive, and ship the goods."
What kind of goods are you accepting? Cameras and watches.
What goods are we delivering? Television sets.
No, that's not right. Although Wang Xiao got a TV set for the Russians when the first wave of bilateral trade ended, there were no TV sets in the goods they ordered in the second and third waves.
Why do you want it again now?
Sigh, it's true that the Soviets didn't want our televisions.
Although there is a severe shortage of home appliances such as televisions and refrigerators in Moscow stores, Japanese-made televisions are currently in high demand.
Why?
The Russians suspected that Chinese-made televisions were the same as those made in the Soviet Union and were prone to exploding.
Seriously, believe it or not, on the surface, Soviet industry seemed very advanced, but their television technology was really lacking. There was even a joke in the Soviet Union: instead of sending bombs to the enemy, we'd just send color TVs; the picture quality would be much better.
According to official statistics from Moscow, more than 18,000 fires were caused by color television explosions between 1980 and 1985, resulting in more than 1,400 deaths and serious injuries.
Among the first group of Moscow university students who personally brought goods to Wang Xiao to sell, there was a young woman whose grandparents were victims of a color TV explosion.
She complained indignantly to Wang Xiao that the officials didn't care about the lives of ordinary people. They clearly didn't have the ability to produce safe and reliable color TVs, but the officials insisted on opening the production line for the sake of face and to emphasize their so-called power.
Since they all use imported color TVs, they naturally don't care about the lives of ordinary people.
Wang Xiao was speechless when he heard this.
Ahem, as for Chinese-made televisions, although the situation wasn't as extreme as in the Soviet Union, they had still exploded. She saw related news reports while reading the newspaper to learn about this era.
Therefore, Wang Xiao couldn't just make empty boasts and endorsements to fool his business partners.
After all, even in China, if conditions permit, people are happy to bring a Japanese color TV home.
But she was not convinced. She felt that even if domestically produced televisions exploded, the number was limited and the quality was not so bad.
At least in their Dachang area, we've never heard of anyone's color TV exploding.
In Moscow, domestically produced televisions can't compete with Japanese products. What about outside of Moscow?
The K3 international train line is so long, passing through dozens of stations. Before arriving in Moscow, for example, when it passes through Mongolia, do Mongolians not want televisions besides clothes and Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor)? Compared to Japanese goods, domestic goods naturally have advantages in transportation and price.
Making money can be truly addictive.
The Soviets hadn't originally intended to do this business, but after three collaborations, they earned more than Wang Xiao. So they became increasingly willing to make more money.
When she mentioned it, someone on the other end inquired and, lo and behold, it really was possible to sell the goods at a train station in Mongolia. The two sides quickly reached an agreement, and the deal was finalized.
Xiang Dong listened from the side, his feelings slightly complicated: "So urgent? Does it have to be during the New Year?"
Wang Xiao couldn't help but want to make fun of him again, but he had to silently repeat to himself, "This is a true business tycoon of the times," before turning his words back on his tongue: "It's only during the Chinese New Year, when there's no shortage of train cars, that you can smoothly ship goods."
The K3 train is incredibly popular. An official ticket from Moscow to Beijing costs less than $5, but now the price has increased tenfold. From Beijing to Moscow, you absolutely can't get a scalped ticket for less than 800 yuan.
If they don't take advantage of the off-season when the middlemen are too busy to handle the holiday rush, how will they get 10,000 television sets loaded onto a train car? This isn't like 10,000 pairs of jeans that you can just stuff into a car.
Xiang Dong blushed deeply and was too embarrassed to ask any further questions.
Although Tang Yicheng was a bit slow to understand, he was very obedient and immediately nodded in agreement: "Okay, is the baggage check-in done? When are we leaving?"
“The television is in Beijing,” Wang Xiao explained. “We’ll arrange for it to be shipped there. The steel mill and the television factory there have already made arrangements.”
Why a TV factory in Beijing? The samples were clearly provided by a TV factory in Jiangdong Province.
Wang Xiao shrugged in response.
It wasn't that she was looking for convenience; she gave the television factory an opportunity. But these days, especially during the Lunar New Year, there aren't many people willing to get involved, especially for the public good.
Wang Xiao's principle in doing things is that he never forces someone to do something they don't want to do.
Especially when she has more than one option.
Without trying to persuade anyone, she turned around and found a television factory in Beijing on the list of Yang Bailao from the steel mill. She asked Comrade Wang Tiejun to volunteer and say that he could get back a few million yuan of debt for the factory, so that he could sit more firmly in his position as workshop director.
Even the TV factories in Beijing wanted to postpone the shipment by two days; getting 10,000 TVs out of the warehouse would be quite troublesome.
But the steel mill had already acted like a landlord, even giving Yang Bailao a way to get his money back. How could they possibly tolerate him? They made a few phone calls, and the television factory obediently cooperated.
So, on this night of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Comrade Wang Tiejun and Comrade Tang Yicheng were about to board the train heading north.
"Hurry up and have dinner." Wang Xiao gave instructions directly. "It's just you and my dad. Be careful on the road. Check the goods carefully. Don't think that just because we've cooperated before, we're on the same side. Even fellow villagers might stab each other in the back."
Tang Yicheng nodded vigorously at first, but when he heard that it was just him and Wang Tiejun, he was immediately shocked: "You...you're not going?"
Wang Xiao pointed to the bustling self-service suit sales area and asked curiously, "Do I look like I can walk away?"
Tang Yicheng was trembling: "But, but what if something goes wrong?"
Wang Xiao was even more puzzled: "Can I guarantee everything will be foolproof if I go? I'm not a god. I'm not in this line of work either. I don't even know how a television works."
Seeing Tang Yicheng's flustered appearance, she comforted the poor head of the security department of the county soap factory, "It's okay, just go ahead and do it. Everyone has a first time. Don't worry, even my dad isn't afraid, so what are you afraid of?"
The worst that can happen is that they get scammed and cheated.
Which businessperson hasn't been ripped off?
So what if she got scammed? It's only three or four million; it's not like she can't afford to pay it back.
At worst, I'll just wake up back to square one and start all over again.
But if this deal goes through and a sales channel is established, then there will be a continuous stream of television sets being exported, and their business scope will expand greatly.
After all, if TVs can be sold, why can't refrigerators be sold?
The current backlog of refrigerators is quite serious.
The renowned Wanbao refrigerator reportedly incurred 800 million yuan in bad debts as a result, forcing its general manager to flee to Canada and never return.
She remembered that the refrigerator factory was also on the list of Yang Bailao from the steel mill, which was worth exploring.
The profit margins for home appliances are by no means low.
Wait a minute, did you miscalculate? A color TV is so expensive these days, it costs over 3,000 yuan, which is more than the combined price of a twin-tub washing machine, a two-door refrigerator, and a high-end tape recorder. How could 10,000 units only cost three or four million yuan?
That's thirty to forty million!
Oh my god, I'm so dizzy.
Ahem, Wang Xiao wasn't wrong, because what she was trading were black and white television sets. Considering the actual purchasing power and people's needs in Mongolia, they decided to ship black and white television sets first.
Compared to color TVs, black and white TVs are much cheaper, especially since TV manufacturers are eager to recoup their investment, so they offer discounts on top of the factory price, bringing the total price down to less than 400 yuan. That's why Wang Xiao was able to cover the cost.
With such a generous boss, the subordinates had no choice but to grit their teeth and go eat dinner first—instant noodles with sausage. Eating like this during the Chinese New Year was so pathetic.
Wang Tiejun glanced at him silently, thinking to himself, "You're the one who's miserable? I'm so old and I can't even have a peaceful year. What did I say?"
My daughter made grand promises to me, saying she would solve the factory's 50 million yuan debt and get me a deputy factory director position. What could I do but stare in disbelief?
Can I refuse?
Unless I never want to live a peaceful life again for the rest of my life.
Sigh, little bok choy, turning yellow in the field.
However, Xiang Dong felt even more desolate.
Because Wang Xiao called Tang Yicheng over so that at least someone could take the lead and handle foreign trade independently.
What about him? He rushed back to the provincial capital by changing trains seven times, his skin practically peeling off, yet he ended up as a mere decoration.
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When supermarkets entered the mainland market in the 1990s, the reaction was one of fervor because they changed the established sales model.
Soviet color TV technology was poor; information sourced from the internet.
In 1985, the Soviet newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda publicly criticized the poor quality of Soviet-made color television sets.
In 1980, a total of 2.26 million television sets were produced, and 2,126 television-related fires were recorded. Five years later, of the 4.2 million television sets produced, 5,490 fires were caused by television sets. People died and buildings were destroyed.
According to Soviet statistics, in the five years from 1980 to 1985, more than 18,000 fires were caused by exploding color television sets, resulting in more than 1,400 deaths and serious injuries. This was openly ridiculed by the Soviet public: "Soviet color television sets should be given to the enemy more than anything else."
The high price of domestically produced color TVs at the time was based on an article titled "Reflections on the Overstocking of Color Televisions and Price Policy" published in the May 1990 issue of the magazine "Price Theory and Practice." In the mid-1980s, color TVs were in short supply. To alleviate the supply-demand imbalance, streamline distribution, and increase fiscal revenue, the government levied a special consumption tax of 600 yuan and a domestic production fund of 300 yuan per color TV starting February 1, 1989. At the same time, a color TV monopoly was implemented. This resulted in the price of each color TV increasing by about one-third compared to before the tax was added. As a result, color TVs quickly became severely overstocked.
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