Chapter 172
Guan Zhibin's voice sounded a little bad, and one could tell he was in a bad mood.
Qin Xiang noticed it immediately, and her heart skipped a beat. She had a bad feeling. "Go ahead."
But the more this went on, the more difficult it became for Guan Zhibin to bring himself to speak. He thought for a moment and said, "The new factory director isn't very optimistic about our cooperation. His words imply he wants to raise the price of our products."
In the clothing industry, if you want to make money, you must control costs. No one can accept wholesalers suddenly raising prices when the purchase price is low.
Qin Xiang was the same. She frowned and asked, "How much does he plan to raise it?"
If the price goes up too much, she feels there is no need to continue. There are so many garment factories in Yangcheng, and she doesn't have to buy from this one. With Guan Zhihong's support, she can choose other suitable factories.
Guan Zhibin said, "The price of autumn and winter clothes will increase by two yuan, and the price of summer clothes will increase by one yuan."
Qin Xiang couldn't help but sneer upon hearing this. "Good calculation, but will the profit go into the company's accounts or into his own pocket?"
Now it was Guan Zhibin's turn to be stunned. After she reminded him, he quickly reacted, "You mean... he's actually asking for benefits in disguise?"
Qin Xiang responded, "That's what I think. I've already bought tickets for tomorrow morning. When we get there, we'll go meet the factory manager. If that doesn't work out, we'll have to change suppliers. Then I'll have to ask the factory manager for an introduction."
Guan Zhibin was feeling guilty about this, and upon hearing her say this, he quickly said, "Of course. My cousin also told you to come over and introduce you to a few factory managers. We absolutely cannot let your supply be cut off."
Qin Xiang felt better after hearing this. "Thank you and Director Guan in advance."
After hanging up the phone, Qin Xiang told Mi Hongjun about the matter. Mi Hongjun was also angry, "Since he wants to raise the price, then you don't have to give me the design draft at all."
Qin Xiang also planned this. She sighed and said, "I think so too."
Fortunately, she found Ningcheng as a OEM in time and signed a supply agreement with Hangzhou Second Garment Factory, otherwise her supply would have been controlled, and if she did not agree, there would really be problems.
The more Qin Xiang thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. She called Guan Zhihong again and wanted to sign two supply agreements while he was still there.
Guan Zhihong thought for a moment and said, "I'm not afraid of him, but if this happens, I'm worried that the newly appointed Director Liu will have a problem with you."
Qin Xiang smiled. "Director Guan, it's clear he was wrong in this matter. So what do I have to worry about? I'll place my order first and buy myself some time to find another supplier. With you here, why should I worry about not being able to find another one?"
She just made it clear directly, no matter what the reason, Guan Zhihong had no reason to refuse. After all, Guan Zhihong had not left his post yet, so Qin Xiang's order was reasonable.
Guan Zhihong was stunned for a moment and then burst out laughing. "You're right. Fine, just tell me how much you need."
There are still two months until autumn and winter, but the design draft has already been completed. Mi Hongjun has also communicated with them. Qin Xiang said, "I'll fax it over later."
After hanging up the phone, the two found a place with a fax machine and sent the order quantity. No matter when the products were produced, the other party had to comply with the contract.
"Let's go back and rest. We'll be busy tomorrow."
There are both advantages and disadvantages to Guan Zhihong's promotion, and we cannot generalize.
Qin Xiang felt that he had to seize this opportunity.
Qin Xiang was worried because the person had not left yet, so she called He Liping and asked her to prepare the funds and transfer them to Guan Zhihong in time.
The next morning, Qin Xiang, Mi Hongjun and Zhao Ping carried their luggage and headed straight to the train station for Guangzhou.
Fortunately, the two places are close to each other, so I got on the bus in the morning and arrived in Hangzhou early the next morning.
Although on the train, Qin Xiang slept well. The three of them went to find Guan Zhihonghong without stopping.
Guan Zhihong's promotion was a good thing, and he was in high spirits. However, he couldn't help feeling guilty when he saw Qin Xiang.
"In the final analysis, this is because of me."
Only then did Qin Xiang understand why her successor was unwilling to give Guan Zhihong face.
Because the other party had some conflicts with Guan Zhihong in the past and they were also in a competitive relationship. Unfortunately, Guan Zhihong got promoted, but Director Liu was not successful. Instead, he was transferred to succeed Guan Zhihong's position. It would be strange if he felt comfortable about it.
Perhaps because they knew about the cooperation between Guan Zhihong and Qin Xiang, they deliberately raised the price to create obstacles.
Qin Xiang frowned. This was definitely not a good idea. Even if the price was lowered this time, the other party could still find a way to trip her up in the future. So what if they'd placed the order? If they'd deliberately delayed it for ten days or half a month, what else could you do?
Ten days or half a month may not seem long, but it is a huge time for the clothing industry, especially when the seasons change, which is a good time to sell clothes.
Guan Zhihong also understood this and said ashamedly, "It's only been a few days since I left office. This batch of clothes probably can't be shipped while I'm still in office."
Seeing Qin Xiang frowning, Guan Zhihong added, "But don't worry, since I signed the contract, I will ensure that this batch of goods is delivered on time even if I leave. But as for future matters..." He spread his hands helplessly, "Even though I'm the superior, I can't interfere too much."
Qin Xiang understood his helplessness and nodded, "Director Guan, this isn't your fault. If that's the case, I'll get this batch of goods first. I'll talk to Director Liu about the rest of the follow-up issues. If that doesn't work out, we'll have to find another supplier."
Seeing that she understood, Guan Zhihong breathed a sigh of relief and agreed, "You're right. I've also selected several clothing factories with good products during this period. I'll let Zhibin take you around each one these few days."
Qin Xiang thanked him, and Guan Zhihong waved her hand, "It's what I should do."
After all, a promotion was a happy occasion, and Qin Xiang didn't want to embarrass him because of her. So she got up and followed Guan Zhihong around the factory. Just as she came out of the workshop, she saw a man in his fifties wearing a Mao suit coming out of another workshop. The two bumped into each other. The man glanced at Qin Xiang's face with surprise, then saw Guan Zhihong and his face turned a little sad.
After all, the two were once competitors, but now they are a superior and a subordinate, and no one would be in a good mood.
Director Liu strode over and said with a smile, "Director Guan."
He glanced at Qin Xiang and said, "This is..."
Guan Zhihong introduced with a smile, "This is Boss Qin Xiangqin, who works with the factory. He's here to check on a new order and get to know Director Liu."
"Oh?" Director Liu's eyes swept over Qin Xiang unscrupulously, with a look of contempt in his eyes. He said indifferently, "That's Director Guan's distinguished guest. It's not easy for me to approach him."
Guan Zhihong was helpless. "I'm leaving soon, so I'll have to coordinate with Director Liu on many matters."
"What Director Guan says is correct," Director Liu said nonchalantly. "We'll do whatever Director Guan tells us to do."
Guan Zhihong was helpless after hearing this, but she didn't want to quarrel with him. "In that case, how about we have lunch together at noon and discuss this order?"
Director Liu raised his eyes, a sneer on his face. Just as he was about to agree, he glanced at Qin Xiang and nodded, "Okay, let's have a couple of drinks together."
Qin Xiang behind him raised her eyebrows, thinking that the old man was not holding his fart well.
But it doesn't matter, it's because she is allergic to alcohol and can't drink it.
So after they went to the hotel and sat down, when Director Liu tried to pour her some wine, Qin Xiang simply said that she was allergic to alcohol.
Director Liu frowned, half-smiling, and said, "Boss Qin, are you deliberately not wanting to drink with us? It's okay if you look down on me, after all, I'm a nobody and my influence is not important, but if you look down on Director Guan, that's not good."
This sounds awkward and harsh, and if someone else were to do it, they would have agreed to it.
But Qin Xiang was not a shy youngster. She was willing to take a risk on herself for the sake of business, even though Mi Hongjun and Zhao Ping were there. She said directly, "Director Liu, it's not that I don't want to have a drink with you, but I'm seriously allergic to alcohol. Drinking too much can be fatal."
She has already said so. If Director Liu continues to persuade her, it means he has bad intentions.
Apparently, Director Liu also understood this, so he snorted and sat down, saying to Guan Zhihong, "Director Guan, I'll have to drink with you then."
At this time, Mi Hongjun stood up and poured wine for the two of them, "I will drink two glasses with the two leaders today."
Director Liu said contemptuously, "Who are you?"
Qin Xiang introduced, "He is my partner and now he is the brand manager of my store."
Although the company has not been established yet, Mi Hongjun's position is indeed the highest among her employees.
Director Liu became even more impatient and snorted, but didn't want to pay attention to Mi Hongjun.
To put it bluntly, their business was too small, and people looked down on them. They also deliberately used them as a pretext to embarrass Guan Zhihong.
Qin Xiang didn't care and looked at Mi Hongjun soothingly.
But Mi Hongjun was even more shameless. He was not affected at all by Director Liu's words. He was very diligent in pouring wine for the two of them and took the initiative to chat, leaving Director Liu speechless.
After the banquet, Qin Xiang really just sat there as a foil and only ate the dishes. After all, they were dishes from a big restaurant, and they tasted good, but there was a little less chili. And since it was her treat today, it would be a waste of her money if she didn't eat well.
As for how the three men drank and talked, Qin Xiang just listened.
After this observation, Qin Xiang's understanding of Mi Hongjun reached a new level, and Mi Hongjun grew up unknowingly.
They say love makes people stupid, but Mi Hongjun is the opposite. It turns out that the kind of person you become after falling in love depends on who you fall in love with. Hao Jingjing is ambitious and capable, and Mi Hongjun has also worked hard to catch up with Hao Jingjing.
Although Mi Hongjun is only nineteen years old, he is not at all shy when talking with these two old foxes. He handles the situation appropriately and there is no need for Qin Xiang to intervene to save the situation.
Qin Xiang felt even better.
If she trains Mi Hongjun well, she can save herself a lot of trouble in the future.
The banquet ended without reaching any conclusion. The reason for this was that Director Liu was deliberately using this matter to annoy Guan Zhihong.
Qin Xiang's interest in continuing the collaboration had faded. Either Director Liu was overly ambitious, or he was genuinely trying to use her cooperation to annoy Guan Zhihong. Regardless of the reason, future collaboration was bound to be plagued by problems.
People who get a benefit once and want it a second time can never be satisfied.
If it was to annoy Guan Zhihong, they would have certainly set up many obstacles for her, just as Guan Zhihong said, and put obstacles in her way at many points, delaying the shipment of goods to her, or passing inferior goods off as good ones. Although they could be held accountable according to the contract, the time wasted was hers, and every day of delay meant a day's money wasted.
Not worth it.
Having made this decision, Qin Xiang stopped pampering Director Liu. She wasn't a small business anymore, so there was no need to be afraid of Director Liu. She didn't believe other factories would be unwelcome. Even if a factory that was a friend of Director Liu's was unwilling to supply her, or if Director Liu ruined the deal, she wouldn't be afraid. At worst, she could design her own clothes and increase production of Xiangyanghong.
Qin Xiang has never been threatened by anyone.
After leaving the hotel, the three parties said goodbye. As the host, Qin Xiang naturally watched the two leaders get into the car before returning to the hotel to rest.
Although Mi Hongjun had drunk quite a bit of wine, he was still sober. One second he smiled as he sent Guan Zhihong to the car, and the next second he frowned and said, "Sister, we have to find a new supplier."
This eliminates the downside of production rights, which can save a lot of trouble, but are not very secure. The binding of interests can indeed help pull everyone together, but once those interests become distorted and other factors become involved, it's hard to predict what will happen.
If the factory was private, Director Liu wouldn't necessarily be against money even if he had any opinions about them.
The problem was that this factory was state-owned, so no matter how much money they made, it was just a performance achievement for the factory director. Furthermore, they had signed a contract with Guan Zhihong, whose clients had little to do with Director Liu. With such a large factory, their presence wouldn't be noticeable, and without them, it wouldn't be noticeable either.
Since making things difficult for them can make her feel better and annoy Guan Zhihong, Qin Xiang would do the same if she were in their place.
Qin Xiang figured it out in an instant and said with a smile, "Since Guan Zhihong said he would introduce us to the factory, let's wait for his news tomorrow. Let's go back and have a good rest this afternoon before we talk."
The three of them went straight to the hotel where they stayed last time, fell asleep for the whole afternoon, and when they woke up it was already dark.
Qin Xiang called the two of them out and said with a smile, "Come on, since we're here, let's go explore Guangzhou."
Cities in this era are like this. If you don't come here for a while, you will find that many changes have occurred. It hasn't been long since I last came here, but there have been significant changes in Guangzhou.
High-rise buildings are being built in many places, rising from the ground. Although they are not as tall as those in a few decades later, they are particularly conspicuous in these days.
Mi Hongjun said, "I heard that commercial housing is being built here, and there are also some in the capital."
Qin Xiang turned to look at him, "Do you want to buy a house?"
Mi Hongjun chuckled and said, "I have such a plan."
He was the first to follow Qin Xiang, so he didn't spend much on food and drink, and had basically saved up all his money. Living alone wasn't something he'd considered before, but now that he was in a relationship, he naturally had to plan for the future. Many people had been skeptical of him and Hao Jingjing to begin with, so he had to work hard and settle down in the capital.
Qin Xiang praised, "That's a good idea." She glanced at Zhao Ping and said, "But if you're going to buy, then buy a bigger one. If there's a suitable courtyard house, you can go for it. I have a feeling that housing prices will rise sharply in the future."
They both believed what she said.
Zhao Ping's thoughts also moved.
Mi Hongjun then asked, "Now that the economy is developing well, are everyone's conditions better?"
Qin Xiang nodded. "Of course, as people's financial situation improves, the first thing they want to improve is housing. In the capital, you've probably seen dozens of people squeezed into one room. It's not that people don't want to buy, it's that there are no houses to buy, or that the houses are too big and too expensive for everyone to afford."
Everyone's salary is still around 30 to 50 yuan, but housing prices are not cheap. In the capital, a tube-shaped building of more than ten square meters may cost 700 to 800 yuan, and the price of some small courtyards is even higher.
Qin Xiang was also lucky enough to be able to buy two small courtyards. Some self-employed individuals have difficulty buying a house even if they have money.
Qin Xiang advised, "Siheyuan-style courtyards are becoming increasingly rare. Will they be hyped up?"
She said this and didn't say any more. They had to figure out the rest themselves.
Of course, buying a building is also a good idea. As long as it's in the capital's urban area, it's worth a lot of money. Even if you buy a small attic, you can get rich after a decade of demolition.
But she also has other ideas. When she has enough money, she will buy land and build family housing for her employees. Will she be afraid that her employees will have second thoughts by then?
"Let's go to the night market."
The three of them went out and went straight to the night market. Mi Hongjun and Zhao Ping looked at each other and saw a different light in each other's eyes.
The night market in Guangzhou is very large. Many self-employed individuals from other places cannot get goods from clothing factories. Apart from going to Shisanhang, they can only come to these night markets to get goods.
It’s just that the quality of clothes at the night market varies. Of course, some people are willing to buy clothes at a low price as long as the style is acceptable, even if the quality is a little worse.
Just now, someone on the street was shouting, "Shirts and trousers for five dollars a pair."
Since Qin Xiang came to shop, she naturally looked carefully. No matter whether the price was high or low, she would check it carefully. If she could find good quality clothes, she would take a look at the manufacturer on the tag, as they were all potential partners.
After wandering around for a while, I finally saw a few vendors hanging clothes among the stalls.
After taking a look, she found that the style and quality were pretty good. However, she also looked at the manufacturers, and found that Qin Xiang had never heard of them.
The boss was entertaining customers when a girl in her twenties, wearing heavy makeup, came over and asked, "Boss, just tell me what clothes you like. Although our clothes are not produced in a big factory, the styles and quality are all very good."
Qin Xiang laughed. "It's really good. How about the price?"
"How much do you want?" The woman took a rubber band and bit one end of her hair, then fanned it with her hand. "Our prices are good too. This skirt is 12.5 yuan. I bet there's nothing like it in this night market at this price."
After all, he is a middleman, so even if he is doing wholesale here, he will definitely make a profit.
Twelve dollars and fifty cents is really not expensive. She gets the goods from Guan Zhihong for about the same price.
If middlemen can offer this price, wouldn’t it be cheaper to buy directly from the factory?
Perhaps seeing her thoughts, the woman whispered, "To be honest, the boss who's entertaining the customers over there is the factory director."
Qin Xiang was surprised. The owner of the clothing factory came out to set up a stall in person?
The woman said embarrassedly, "There's nothing we can do. Our factory is small, with limited staff and not many customers. We have to find a way out on our own. You're lucky to have come across us directly. We offer factory prices."
Qin Xiang understood as soon as she heard this.
Nowadays, any larger business that wants to source goods tends to go to large state-owned factories. Meanwhile, smaller businesses, often with limited capital, are hesitant to buy expensive clothing, often sourcing their products from night markets and the Thirteenth Trade Center. Therefore, the smaller the factory, the harder it is to grow. Developing a clientele is a challenge.
Even if the product is good, if it is not famous, large companies will not be willing to choose it.
There is no other choice but to come to the night market and try my luck to find customers.
Qin Xiang felt that she was a little lucky, otherwise why would a pillow appear as soon as she fell asleep?
Qin Xiang said nothing as she carefully examined the rows of clothes. She was quite astonished. There were quite a few types of clothing. Since she studied design, she could tell at a glance whether a piece of clothing was suitable for her. Qin Xiang casually picked up a seersucker skirt and twirled it gently. The hem fluttered beautifully.
"Boss, if you are interested, we can have a good chat."
As she spoke, the woman was afraid that she would not agree, so she hurriedly said, "We designed them all ourselves, they are not high-end imitations, so they will definitely sell well."
At this time, the boss who was serving customers also came over. When they saw Qin Xiang, they were both stunned.
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