Chapter 813 Production Can't Keep Up After Lu Qingyang's short vacation ended, he rushed back to the capital. He left everything here to Xiangxiang and continued to complete his studies while remotely managing some of his business.
Two weeks later, Lin Xiulan's designs were put into the store.
The trendy design and beautiful fabrics have won widespread praise.
Before the shop even opened in the early morning, a long, winding queue had already formed outside, mostly composed of stylishly dressed young women. Their eyes were fixed on the refreshing pale yellow-green and crisp khaki colors displayed in the shop window, whispering among themselves, their faces filled with barely suppressed longing.
The sales staff were so busy they didn't even have time to drink water. The inventory in the warehouse was decreasing at an alarming rate, and calls to expedite deliveries were coming in one after another.
The pressure was immense, weighing heavily on the production workshop and on Ni Xiangxiang's shoulders.
Orders piled up on her desk like snowflakes, and the hum of sewing machines in the workshop went on from morning till night, almost without stopping. People worked in shifts, and their eyes were all bloodshot.
However, amidst this rush to buy, a discordant note emerged, stemming from differing definitions of "good."
During a morning meeting, the head of the marketing department, sporting dark circles under his eyes, said anxiously, "Manager, this is no good! The stores are going crazy with customers rushing us, especially for that trench coat—so many people are waiting to wear it! Shouldn't we speed things up in the workshop?"
Cheng Mei, who happened to be delivering sample garments, overheard these words.
Her brows furrowed immediately, and she couldn't help but exclaim, "Speed up? Is the work on those clothes something you can rush? Just the lining on the front, ironing it until it's smooth and even inside and out, takes a lot of work. And those buttonholes, is hand-sewing the edges the same as having them machined? If you're just rushing things, you're ruining our Jasmine brand!"
Xiangxiang rubbed her temples and patiently explained, "Master Wang, I understand what you mean. Quality is fundamental, but we're under a lot of pressure with orders right now. Could we perhaps adjust some non-critical steps in the process, or..."
"Adjust what?" Cheng Mei asked curtly, holding up a piece of women's clothing that was being returned. "Look at this. Xiao Zhao cut the waistline crooked by 0.3 centimeters to rush the order. It's not obvious, but it makes the figure look terrible when you wear it! Is this what you call good?"
She looked at Ni Xiangxiang, her eyes filled with the persistence of an old master craftsman, "I know you guys are fast, but this speed doesn't come at the cost of sacrificing the quality of the products. My daughter and I came here not to make those kinds of mass-produced goods that will collapse in one go."
This clash of ideas is ubiquitous in the workshop.
Cheng Mei and her colleagues meticulously refined every step of the process, checking everything with exceptional care, which naturally resulted in a high return rate.
Some young employees, under pressure to meet production targets, inevitably become impatient, prioritizing speed over attention to detail.
Occasionally, the two sides would argue over how to handle a piece of clothing, creating a subtle atmosphere.
That evening, while working overtime to finish a batch of shirts, a young woman in charge was inspected by Cheng Mei. The stitching at the armholes was found to be slightly crooked. Although it did not affect the wearability, it was far from "perfect".
Chengmei requested that the entire batch be demolished and returned.
The young woman, exhausted after a long day, immediately burst into tears of grievance: "Master Wang, this...this isn't a big problem. The customers won't notice it. This batch of goods is being delivered to the store tomorrow; there's simply no time to disassemble and redo it!"
Cheng Mei said sternly, "Can't you tell? You can't tell today, but after washing it twice and it changes shape, you'll see. It's a Jasmine brand garment, so this isn't a big problem."
Hearing the commotion, Ni Xiangxiang rushed over and saw the girl wiping away tears and Cheng Mei with a serious expression, as well as a pile of shirts waiting to be returned to their place. She felt a deep sense of exhaustion.
She understands Cheng Mei's dedication to craftsmanship, which is the foundation of the Jasmine brand; but she is also aware of the market's pressure and the stress faced by stores waiting for shipments.
After a moment of silence, Ni Xiangxiang comforted the young woman and told her to go and rest.
Then, she picked up the shirt that had been judged to be "defective," examined it carefully, and said to Cheng Mei, "Master Wang, your standards are the standards that our Jasmine brand should pursue, and that will never waver. But the current situation is special, so perhaps we can compromise. We can first treat this batch of shirts as Grade B products and distribute them to the next level of sales channels at a slightly lower price, and note the minor flaws on the invoices to clearly inform the customers."
Meanwhile, starting tomorrow, the key processes must be strictly supervised by you and several experienced chefs. For simpler, non-core processes, the standards can be relaxed somewhat, and skilled chefs can handle them. What do you think of this? We need to live up to our reputation, and also ensure the store has something to sell so we can get through this difficult period.”
Cheng Mei simply nodded: "That's all for now."
During her lunch break, Ni Xiangxiang made a long-distance call to Lu Qingyang in Beijing.
Over the receiver, she tried to describe as objectively as possible the quality disputes caused by rushing in the workshop, as well as the contradiction between Master Cheng Mei's stubbornness and the urgent needs of the market, her tone revealing her exhaustion.
"Sister Xiangxiang, thank you for your hard work. This is not just a management and coordination issue. The root cause is that the production capacity and response speed in Guangzhou can hardly keep up with the expansion of the Shanghai market."
He paused for a moment and gave instructions: "Here's what you'll do. In addition to keeping a close eye on production and stores, take some time to visit the area around Hai City and see if there are any garment factories that are not readily available but have decent equipment or workshops that are not doing well and are willing to take them over. The key is to take them over quickly and organize production immediately to alleviate our immediate crisis."
He further explained his ideas: "The location should ideally be not too far from the city center for convenient transportation and management. The scale doesn't need to be huge all at once, but it should be well-organized and have the potential for improvement. As for the price, as long as it's within a reasonable range, we can discuss it. This is not just about solving the current production pressure."
Haishi is our future focus; establishing our production base here is only a matter of time.
Now, it's just that we're bringing this plan forward a bit, so when you look at it, you can also take a longer-term view.
As Xiangxiang held the receiver, a sense of relief washed over her.
It turns out that Lu Qingyang had already foreseen this step.
She immediately agreed: "I understand, I'll start keeping an eye out right away, and I'll report back to you as soon as something suitable comes up."
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