Volume 1: Reborn in the 1980s, selling lunch boxes with my mother Chapter 166: The Turn of Times
When she heard that Grandma Hu took people to collect the debt and scared her aunt's mother so much that she packed up her bags and ran away overnight, Jiang Tian spit out a mouthful of soda and had a new understanding of her grandma's fighting ability.
Jiang's mother had no idea that, in fact, as long as she held on for a few more days, until Granny Hu cleared out those "stubborn households" who liked to default on their debts, and the rice dumpling workshop implemented the new regulations, there would be no more troubles now.
This is also the cost that must be paid in the early stages of starting a business.
The principle is actually the same as that of the taxi-hailing and food delivery apps of later generations. First, spend money on promotion and give out all kinds of discount coupons crazily. Once all the customers are attracted and everyone is used to using this software, all kinds of preferential policies can no longer be used for free.
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Two months before the workshop opened, Jiang Tian and Grandma Hu used the method of "get the dumplings first and pay later" to make those "distributors" feel that selling their dumplings was a zero-cost business. After all, if they couldn't sell them, they could return them to the workshop, and they didn't have to pay for the goods themselves. There was no risk at all, so they felt much more at ease when getting the goods.
Jiang's mother felt that Grandma Hu was biased because Jiang Tian, a girl, got 40% of the shares in the workshop.
However, they didn't know that when the workshop was initially spending money to attract customers, half of the several thousand yuan in costs was paid by Jiang Tian.
This approach seems very risky, but subsequent events have proved that there are still more good people in this era.
It was agreed that the accounts would be settled at the end of the month. However , the distributors found that Grandma Hu’s meat dumplings were selling well and they could make money. Some of the more flexible and courageous distributors asked Hu Jianjun to double or even several times the delivery volume after just a few days of sales.
Hu Jianjun was possessed by a sense of drama and immediately said in embarrassment: their family is now making a loss to gain publicity. The payment for the rice dumplings sold previously will not be settled until the end of the month. They have no money in their pockets. The grain and oil store and the slaughterhouse will not give them credit. They have no money to purchase large quantities of glutinous rice and pork, and therefore cannot make so many rice dumplings.
There is no other way. In order to make more money, distributors simply pay the money in advance.
Anyway, the money will have to be paid sooner or later . It won't produce any harm if you just keep it at home.
It would be better to give it to the workshop in advance. With the money, you can always send me more goods, right?
This is the second step that Jiang Tian talked about with her grandpa and his family:
Through the performance in the first two months of opening, we screened out some distributors who are capable of business, bold and relatively honest. Once their purchase volume increases, the workshop will cut off those distributors who are in arrears with payments!
Then, we gradually developed these large distributors into “Grandma Hu’s Big Meat Zongzi” specialty stores.
Facts have proved that those who had the courage to start their own business on the provincial road in the early 1980s were all tough people of that era.
It was discovered that Grandma Hu's meat dumplings were of high quality and low price, and all the travelers liked them. They were also easier to sell than boxed lunches. After being cooked, they were placed in an insulated wooden barrel. When customers came, the barrel was opened and the customers could take as many as they wanted without even having to peel the dumplings - now customers like to peel them themselves, because after peeling them, the glutinous rice stuck to the dumpling leaves can be eaten cleanly.
In this age when every grain of rice is precious, no one wants to let the store owner take advantage of them.
Besides, after eating the rice dumplings, you can take the rice dumpling leaves home, wash them and reuse them.
The sellers find it convenient, and the buyers also find it convenient.
In the past, when you went out, you had to buy a lunch box and bring your own. Now, you can just buy two rice dumplings, take them and go, peel them open and eat them slowly in the car. There is no need to rush, and not only can you eat enough, but it is also cheaper than a lunch box.
For a time, Grandma Hu’s big meat dumplings became popular on Provincial Highway 336.
Selling rice dumplings makes a lot of money and is convenient, so only a fool would be so stupid as to deliberately delay paying the workshop.
Besides, people of this era generally have a very high moral bottom line. Grandma Hu gave them money out of her own pocket to make them rich, but they still deliberately delayed paying for the goods. Are they still human?
After the two-month "customer acquisition period", 80% of the distributors who purchased goods from the rice dumpling workshop settled their payments on time at the end of the month.
Among these 80%, one-third of the distributors settled the payment in advance in order to get more goods and make more money.
As for the rest who liked to delay payment of goods, Hu Jianjun listened to his niece and didn't get polite with them.
The payment for the goods was in arrears in the first month, and I finally got it back with great difficulty, but now it is in arrears again in the second month?
I'm sorry, but we won't be delivering goods in the third month.
Don't ask, the answer is that their rice dumplings are in short supply now. In order to get their rice dumplings, some suppliers now choose to settle accounts once a week. Only a fool would give up such a high-quality customer and come to you again and again to urge payment just to make a little money from you.
Now, the shop owners who owed money for goods became anxious.
Hu Jianjun ignored them, so they followed the address and found the workshop.
As soon as I came in, I saw Grandma Hu who had gone to the store to collect debts.
It was immediately awkward.
Speaking of which, it does seem quite unfair to let an old lady go to their store time and time again to collect debts, right?
But Grandma Hu ’s big rice dumpling is selling so well.
Not to mention the ones that sell well, even a small shop like theirs sells dozens or even hundreds of dumplings a day, and in a month, they can make at least 50 or 60 yuan.
These days, people who work in state-owned factories only earn this much in a month. They can just sit at home and worry about nothing. They only need to cook the rice dumplings delivered by the workshop and sell them. They can make so much money in a month. Having tasted the sweetness, who would be willing to give up this business?
They had no choice but to put aside their pride and beg Grandma Hu to continue delivering goods to them.
This time, they don’t dare to say “pay at the end of the month”, they are even willing to pay for cash on delivery!
Grandma Hu politely invited them in and poured them tea, with a very warm attitude.
But the words that came out were very cruel—
I saw her like a movie queen. She took out the order form from the drawer and flipped through it for a long time.
Then he said helplessly: The workshop's orders are scheduled for half a month later. Even if they come with money to place an order now, they will have to wait half a month to get the goods.
"What? How could it be..." The shop owners who came over were all stunned.
How could so many rice dumplings be sold on such a short route like Provincial Highway 336?
Grandma Hu continued to laugh.
My granddaughter said that customer information is a commercial secret. She would not tell these people that in addition to the shops along the provincial highway, some gas stations and small restaurants have also started to purchase goods from them.
Who can blame them for making their rice dumplings so good, cheap and easy to sell?
Things are changing. Now it’s not them that are begging the distributors, but the distributors are begging them.
