Chapter 727 Tips
Qin Zhengguo guessed correctly. The reason why Sun Sixi insisted on coming to Fengtian to pick him up was that he wanted to take this opportunity to talk to him about something.
After three rounds of drinks, Sun Sixi finally got down to business.
Now their factory has carried out product restructuring, and the former Radio Factory No. 7 is about to be listed as a company. The new product assembly lines are all in place, and the next step is to officially start production.
The refrigerator production line was a good product that many factories had been looking forward to in the 1980s, and the same was true in the market. Currently, there are very few refrigerators in China, and most of them are imported.
The most famous domestic refrigerator is the Snow Flake brand. This brand has been around since the 1960s and has always been a leader in domestic refrigerator production.
In 1983, Snow Flake refrigerators introduced Philips' production line, thus completing their upgrade. Compared with imported refrigerators which were expensive and required foreign exchange coupons to purchase, domestically produced Snow Flake refrigerators could be said to be the first choice for many buyers.
Moreover, the price of today's refrigerators, even domestic ones, is not low. Even if you don't need foreign exchange coupons, you do need industrial coupons. Of course, some are bargain refrigerators that don't require industrial coupons, but the price will be more expensive.
The restructuring of Radio Factory No. 7 and the conversion to refrigerator production was a very bold move. The factory leaders made this decision with great determination. You know, an imported assembly line is expensive, and even though Qin Zhengguo helped before, it still cost a lot of foreign exchange to introduce it.
Now the factory is about to officially start production, and the next step is to sell the products produced.
However, the leaders of the factory did not have much confidence in the subsequent sales. After all, although their Radio Factory No. 7 was famous in Andong, no one in the whole country knew about it. Moreover, let alone compared with imported refrigerators, the Snow Flake brand refrigerators alone accounted for most of the domestic refrigerator market. What would they do if the sales of the refrigerators were not satisfactory after they were produced?
"That shouldn't be the case. I've seen the information about your assembly line. Your products are much more advanced than Snow Flower's current ones. And I remember that most of Snow Flower's current ones are single-door refrigerators, but your assembly line produces double-door refrigerators. There's no reason why they wouldn't sell well." Qin Zhengguo picked up a piece of blood sausage and chewed it, speaking as he chewed.
"What if?" Sun Sixi said worriedly, "You also know that our factory spent a lot of money to introduce this assembly line. If the refrigerators we produce are not accepted by the market and do not sell well, we will be finished!"
"To tell you the truth, this time our factory has made a desperate move. There is only one way out, and we must succeed no matter what. If we fail, there will be no chance to start over, and our superiors will not allocate funds to our factory anymore."
Sun Sixi said with a worried look, "Although the factory has discussed this privately and feels that refrigerator products have great potential, the risk this time is really not small. It will be terrible if they cannot be sold. Brother, I have no other intention in telling you this today. I just want you to help me with some ideas. It would be great if you can help our factory solve the sales problem..."
"Do you mean to get insurance from me?" Qin Zhengguo asked back.
Sun Sixi was stunned. There is no such thing as an insurance company in the mainland now. When he heard the word insurance, the first thing he thought of was the fuse used in electrical appliances.
But you know what, Qin Zhengguo's description is quite appropriate. Sun Sixi nodded immediately and said, "Yes, that's right. That's what I mean. We have to be prepared for both situations, right? To be honest, the factory leaders asked me to invite you to the ceremony this time with this in mind. As for me, the same is true. Brother, how about doing you a favor based on our friendship?"
As he spoke, Sun Sixi took the wine bottle beside him and poured himself a full glass. Without saying a word, he raised the glass and drank. Because he drank too quickly, he almost choked and his face turned red.
Qin Zhengguo quickly asked him to eat a bite of the food. They were childhood friends, and he felt a little embarrassed to be so formal.
Moreover, Qin Zhengguo could also guess that this task was very important to Sun Sixi. After all, Sun Sixi had just been promoted to deputy factory director, and it was a critical moment in his mind to achieve results. If this matter was done well, his position as deputy factory director would be completely secure. If it was not done well, it would be hard to say.
He can be promoted, but he can also be suppressed. Moreover, once the factory's products fail, even the survival of the factory will be in question. Then, what's the point of Sun Sixi continuing to stay in the position of deputy director?
"Tell me first, what are your plans for future sales?" Qin Zhengguo asked after thinking for a while.
Sun Sixi immediately told Qin Zhengguo about the plan for their factory. After listening to his story, Qin Zhengguo frowned and shook his head.
Judging from what Sun Sixi said, the so-called plan of their factory is still the same as before, that is, the factory is responsible for production , and after production, the products are pushed to the market through the original channels.
The so-called channels are nothing more than department stores, supply and marketing cooperatives, etc., as well as the unified sales of local commercial bureaus.
This set of methods seems to be fine, but in Qin Zhengguo's eyes it is all old-fashioned. This sales model is too backward and he is not optimistic about it at all.
"What's wrong? Is there a problem?" Sun Sixi couldn't help asking when he saw that Qin Zhengguo's expression was a little strange.
"Does your factory's supply and marketing department have any other plans?"
"This is the plan proposed by the Supply and Marketing Department!" Sun Sixi replied puzzledly.
"Is this the plan your supply and marketing department came up with?" Qin Zhengguo asked in surprise, looking at the other party.
"Is there something wrong? I don't think there is any problem." Sun Sixi twisted uncomfortably under Qin Zhengguo's gaze. He recalled the content of the plan when he attended the factory meeting, but after recalling for a while, he still wanted to confirm that there was nothing missing in what he said just now.
"Haha, if you, the supply and marketing department, from the section chief to the people below, were in my company, you would all have to get out!" Qin Zhengguo couldn't help but sneer when he saw him like this, but he felt it was inappropriate as soon as the words came out of his mouth. After all, Sun Sixi was not an outsider, but his childhood friend and good friend. These words were a bit embarrassing.
Lighting a cigarette, Qin Zhengguo shook his head and said, "But then again, it's not their fault, and it's even less your fault, the factory leaders. After all, the products and customers produced by your factory were different from those of ordinary companies. You were a semi-military electronics factory before, and your main products were for military purposes. Your usual work focus was only on production, and you only knew a little about supply and marketing, and the most you knew was about purchasing."
Having said this, Qin Zhengguo knocked off the ash from his cigarette and continued, "If the enterprise remains unchanged and is maintained as before, there will be nothing wrong with your supply and marketing department's plan. But now you have never considered that the factory is no longer the same as before."
"You originally produced radars, measuring instruments and other gadgets, which were directly supplied to professional units. But what are you producing now? Refrigerators! Who are you selling these to?"
"I kind of understand what you mean. Do you mean that the sales targets are different? The old methods can no longer be used?" Sun Sixi asked thoughtfully.
"You are quite smart!" Qin Zhengguo nodded: "Isn't this obvious? The previous products were all purchased and sold by the central government, but what about now? Now it is a market economy, facing the entire market. Your vision cannot be limited to the past, you must look at the entire big market, this whole big market is not only the Andong area, it must include the entire Liaodong, and even the whole country!"
"Can such a huge market be created by your cooperation with local department stores, supply and marketing, and the Commercial Bureau? And you also know the consumption level in Anton. Compared with cities like Yanjing and Shanghai, how much can ordinary workers in Anton earn? Not to mention compared with the developed areas in the south."
"How much does a refrigerator cost now? How much does an average worker earn in a month? Can people in Anton afford it? Your market positioning was wrong from the beginning . Refrigerators are only affordable in big cities, such as Yanjing, Shanghai, Tianjin, and Yangcheng. At least it has to be a provincial capital like Fengtian, right?"
"According to your current sales plan, I can conclude that the sales of the product will definitely not be good. It's not that it can't be sold, but the quantity sold is far less than expected. If this continues, let alone making money, it will be difficult to recover the investment!"
"This...what should we do? Old Qin! You can't just stand by and watch him die!" Sun Sixi's head suddenly became big. He was a smart man and of course he could understand what Qin Zhengguo explained to him. Although Sun Sixi had never worked in supply and marketing, he was the director of the factory office and understood the basic dialectics.
"You guys, you dare to do it without knowing anything. I have to say I admire your courage!"
"We can't help it. You don't know the previous situation of our factory. If we don't change it, we will die. The factory has finally made this decision after many discussions. Lao Qin, please stop making sarcastic remarks and talk about business. How do we deal with this matter?"
Qin Zhengguo put out the cigarette in his hand, sighed and shook his head. Looking at Sun Sixi's expectant eyes, he thought for a while before saying, "Let me tell you a story first..."
Hearing Qin Zhengguo suddenly want to tell him a story, Sun Sixi was puzzled. What kind of story was he telling? He was eager to wait for him to give him some advice.
However, Sun Sixi resisted the urge to interrupt Qin Zhengguo and listened to his story patiently.
The story Qin Zhengguo told was about Lin Jianhang, that is, the story of Lin Jianhang and his former unit.
At first, Sun Sixi just listened casually, but as Qin Zhengguo talked , Sun Sixi gradually became interested, especially when he heard Qin Zhengguo talk about how Lin Jianhang led a small Chinese patent medicine manufacturer to change from the initial packaging design, and later how it shifted from Chinese patent medicine production to health care product production, opened up the market and gradually expanded, Sun Sixi became more focused.
This story lasted for more than half an hour. When Qin Zhengguo finished speaking, Sun Sixi asked anxiously whether this story was true or not. Why did it sound like a fairy tale?
Qin Zhengguo rolled his eyes at him and said, "How can it be false? This is a true story!" He also specifically mentioned the name of the factory and the brand of the products it produces. When Sun Sixi heard what Qin Zhengguo said, he was even more surprised, because he was very familiar with Lin Jianhang's company. You know, the most popular health care products in the country in recent years are produced by them. He didn't expect that Qin Zhengguo was talking about this company in his story.
