Chapter 586 I am considering changing careers
When Xiao Peng found out what Zhao Shanhe did, he was completely stunned: "What did you say? Making knock-off shoes is more profitable than drug trafficking?"
Zhao Shanhe nodded. "It sounds a bit exaggerated, but it's true. The average profit is 300% to 500%, and sometimes it can reach 1000%! To be honest, I bought a Lamborghini in my second year in this business."
Xiao Peng was dumbfounded: "So exaggerated?"
Zhao Shanhe said, "That's not an exaggeration at all. You know the 'Putian School,' right?"
Xiao Peng nodded: "I've heard of it. But I don't know the details."
Zhao Shanhe said: "In the 1980s and 1990s, brands like Nike and Adidas set up production lines in Putian as OEM factories to cut costs. At that time, we mastered the entire process. Now there are thousands of shoe factories of all sizes in Putian, most of which have real technology and good equipment. The current description of product quality as 'indistinguishable from the real thing' is a bit self-deprecating. In fact, the quality of many counterfeit shoes is better than the real thing. Several major domestic sports shoe manufacturers actually started out as counterfeit shoes."
Xiao Peng coughed dryly twice: "And then? You're just selling fake goods to cheat people out of money, right?"
Zhao Shanhe countered, "Xiao Peng, do you really think those people don't know I'm selling fakes? Mr. Xiao, you probably can't imagine how big the global market for fake sneakers is right now."
"How much?" Xiao Peng asked in confusion, holding up the wine glass.
"The scale is over trillions!" Zhao Shanhe answered: "I'm talking about US dollars!"
Xiao Peng spat out the wine he had just taken a sip of. What does "over a trillion dollars" mean? The US's annual arms sales are only a little over 360 billion!
Isn’t this market too big?
Zhao Shanhe continued, "And this is a global industry. I'm just a tiny piece of the pie. You know what's going on with sneaker collecting these days, right?"
Xiao Peng hummed a sound and said, "Of course, a pair of shoes is incredibly expensive. I used to wonder: Can I fly in a pair of sneakers like this? Later I realized it was because many people were collecting them and inflating the prices."
Zhao Shanhe made a startling statement: "In fact, those promoting sneaker collections and those selling fake shoes are the same people. Only when sneakers become popular will fake shoes have a bigger market. And Xiao Peng, let me be honest, I really don't want to sell sneakers in China."
Xiao Peng was stunned: "Shanhe, please don't say that you are selling patriotism by selling fake goods."
Zhao Shanhe smiled and shook his head. "What patriotism? How easy is it to make money with foreigners? Selling abroad is both profitable and worry-free. Right now, 90% of the knockoff sneakers sold in the US are imported from China. The situation in Europe is similar. Interestingly, foreigners prefer knockoffs. They're more pragmatic, and if they can spend less money on better products, they'll definitely choose them. Selling to domestic customers, on the other hand, is less profitable and more troublesome. You may not believe it, but in the domestic market, they're the ones begging us to sell, not us begging them to buy. After all, I have sales channels overseas, so why would I want to sell to domestic customers? It's very hard to get into trouble if they find out. In our eyes, only those low-quality fake shoe factories with no sales would set their sights on domestic markets."
"Are there a lot of knock-off European shoes?" Xiao Peng asked.
Zhao Shanhe pointed at Khedira and said, "The shoes he's wearing are fake!"
Khedira saw Zhao Shanhe pointing at him and saying he didn't understand what was going on. Xiao Peng explained, "Shanhe said the shoes you're wearing are fake."
"This is impossible!" Khedira shouted.
For a man, being told his shoes are fake is definitely one of the biggest hurts! Especially on the court, if someone is publicly pointed out that his shoes are fake, he won’t even be able to walk after playing basketball!
"I bought my shoes at a Nike counter!" Khedira said, "They can't be fake."
Zhao Shanhe said, "Just because a store has a big Adidas or Nike logo doesn't mean it's real. Think about it, does the store you buy shoes from have a so-called 'clearance sale'? And does it have almost all the hottest styles on the market?"
Khedira was silent.
Zhao Shanhe continued to talk to Xiao Peng, "The people who are happiest about the current 'sneaker speculation craze' are those of us who make fake shoes, because it means we have a bigger market. Also, pay attention to those so-called authentication apps. Their so-called 'authentication' has no scientific basis. They simply invite some so-called 'sneaker industry experts' to act as authenticators. Furthermore, there's no binding force between the authenticators and the platforms. Whether something is genuine or fake is just a fixed price. It's possible that one app may say it's authentic, while another may say it's fake. Xiao Peng, do you know why this is the case?"
Xiao Peng pondered for a moment and said, "Don't tell me these authentication apps are all made by fake shoe dealers."
Zhao Shanhe snapped his fingers. "BINGO! Nine and a half out of ten authentication apps are created by fake shoe dealers. The remaining half are created by genuine sneaker enthusiasts, but they ultimately fail due to lack of funding and publicity."
Xiao Peng whistled. "So damn shady... But, Shanhe, I appreciate your sincerity, but I don't understand why you're telling me all this. You don't want me to sell fake shoes with you, do you?"
Zhao Shanhe shook his head and said, "How is that possible? I don't even want to sell fake shoes anymore, so why would I ask you to sell them to me? I'm just thinking about changing my business now."
Xiao Peng rested his chin on his hand and thought for a moment. "Shanhe, please don't think I'm being harsh. If you tell me you're not selling fake shoes for 'consumer interests' or 'patriotism', I don't believe you. You've been doing fake shoes for so long, and you're suddenly willing to give up such high profits and want to change? There must be some compelling reason, right?"
Zhao Shanhe smiled bitterly. "Yes, there are other reasons. You know about the investment agreement between China and Europe, right?"
Xiao Peng nodded. "Of course. I have to make money here anyway, and I can't do that without understanding these policies. The clause in this agreement regarding industrial chain complementarity is particularly crucial to me. My partner is currently discussing a related point in the Netherlands. Overall, this is a good thing that benefits both the country and the people. Any questions?"
Zhao Shanhe nodded and said, "That's a problem for us, because this agreement is particularly strict on intellectual property rights. Look at all those counterfeit luxury goods companies, they're starting to have bad luck! Do you really think that Xiao Si, who made his fortune by plagiarizing, apologized because he felt guilty? Didn't you see that ZARA is also starting to close stores on a large scale? At this critical juncture, you dare not make any trouble. Whoever steps on the trigger will be killed. So I also want to create my own national brand like those predecessors who have made the transition!"
Xiao Peng's first reaction after hearing this was, "Isn't this the end of 'Hui X'?"
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