Testing period it is then, as long as the store can open normally. Chen Lishu quietly put away her newly issued business license and turned to leave.
When she reached the doorway, Chen Lishu suddenly remembered that the person from before seemed to be Sun Ling's father; he had taken Sun Ling to her dormitory when school started.
Thinking of Sun father's attitude just now, Chen Lishu felt that the daughter was indeed like the father, and both of them had equally terrible attitudes.
A few days after the business license was approved, the entire store was also renovated. Chen Lishu went to take a look. The materials were limited and couldn't compare to later renovations, but compared to the shops next door, it was much more spacious and brighter.
Everyone was very happy to see Chen Lishu arrive, especially Liu Dashan, Zhao Qi, and Zhang Tie Zhu. With the work completed, it meant it was time to get paid.
As expected, Chen Lishu soon took out a wad of cash and handed it to Gu Xingye, "Fourth brother, this is one hundred and ninety-two yuan in total. You can distribute it to everyone later."
"Sister Chen, you asked me to contact if any shops needed renovation. There were indeed three, and they also came to our store to take a look. In the end, only one was finalized due to pricing issues," Lin Qi reported.
"Third sister-in-law, we can still have work?" Having earned over thirty yuan in half a month, if she worked for a whole month, it would be sixty to seventy yuan.
"Yes," Chen Lishu nodded, looking at Gu Xingguo and the others with a hint of apology. "Elder brothers, my store will be opening in a couple of days, so you definitely can't stay here anymore. However, I can subsidize ten yuan per person per day for food and lodging."
Chen Lishu had Lin Qi negotiate on a contract labor and materials basis, so she was essentially paying them wages.
A subsidy of one yuan per day?
When the few people heard this, they were all very happy and didn't disagree.
A large room in a guesthouse cost two yuan a night. With the six of them squeezing in, it would definitely be enough. This meant lodging cost only thirty fen per person. A steamed bun cost three fen, and a dish wouldn't cost more than a few fen. If they were thrifty and ate together, the daily food expenses would certainly not exceed fifty fen, leaving an extra two to three fen.
The longer they worked, the more they saved. If it was a month, it would be several yuan.
The place Lin Qi finalized was not too far from where Chen Lishu was opening her store, about a stop away. The client was a resident who wanted to convert their own house into a storefront.
At this time, building materials were hard to come by, and finding people was not easy either, as most people were working. In the end, after seeing the appearance of Chen Lishu's store, the client made up their mind to renovate. After all, Chen Lishu was not the first, nor would she be the last, to dare to be the first to try something new.
Lin Qi mentioned that the client even had a machine hidden in their home.
Before the opening, Chen Lishu specifically went to a photo studio, not to take pictures, but to have them print two promotional posters of the protagonists from the movie theater's "The Pursuit" and "Farewell to the Homeland."
Since the release of the two films, the thinking of young people had been greatly impacted, and the word most discussed in daily conversations was 'idealism.'
Of course, the idealism here was positive and upward-looking, unlike the slightly sarcastic 'idealism' that came later.
Chen Lishu enlarged the photos of the protagonists in flared pants and pasted them in the most conspicuous place on the glass.
In later generations, celebrities did endorsements. Now, it was the perfect time to leverage free publicity.
The day before the opening, she, Lin Qi, and Wang Aixiang transported two large bags of clothing, one bag each of patterned shirts and flared pants.
By the time all the goods were unpacked and displayed, it was already past six in the evening. Everything was ready, waiting for the opening the next morning.
The next day, Chen Lishu deliberately got up early, arriving at the store by seven o'clock. Not long after, Wang Aixiang also arrived.
"Why do I feel a bit nervous? My heart has been pounding non-stop," Wang Aixiang said, unable to resist peeking outside for the third time.
Chen Lishu smiled, "Relax. At the beginning, most people won't accept our clothing, so not many will buy it."
Adhering to a low-key principle, Chen Lishu still did not set off firecrackers or beat gongs and drums on the opening day. She only hung a sign, and two promotional posters were pasted on the shop's glass doors.
Not long after, as the shop door creaked open, two female comrades walked in. Chen Lishu stepped forward with a smile, "Greetings, comrades. Please take a look. All the goods in our shop are imported from Hong Kong, the same style as the clothes worn by the protagonists in the movies. Each item is only eighteen yuan."
Although the cost price was only nine yuan, the goods were transported by her from afar. A regular pair of pants in a state-run shop cost fourteen to fifteen yuan, so Chen Lishu didn't think eighteen yuan was too high.
The two female comrades' eyes kept drifting to the hanging pants, and they seemed very tempted, but when they heard the price Chen Lishu quoted, they began to hesitate.
Seeing this, Chen Lishu quickly said, "We have fitting rooms here. If you try on the clothes and don't feel satisfied, you don't have to buy them. After all, you only know the effect after trying them on. These flared pants have a narrow top and a wide bottom, which makes your legs look longer and slimmer when worn. There's a fitting mirror over there, so you can see the effect yourself."
The two female comrades, seeing Chen Lishu's enthusiasm, found it difficult to say the words of refusal. In the end, they nodded and agreed to try them on in the fitting room.
Wang Aixiang quickly went to find suitable sizes for the two of them.
"The zipper on these pants is actually in the front!" one girl exclaimed softly.
Most women's pants nowadays had side openings. It was indeed quite rare for them to open in the front like men's.
Chen Lishu quickly explained with a smile, "Women in big cities in the south are now wearing this type of pants, and it will definitely become popular here too."
The two women didn't say anything after hearing this, took the pants, and went to the fitting room.
Soon, they came out after changing into the pants. The first thing they saw was each other, and they couldn't help but let out a "puchi" sound of laughter.
"I'm used to wearing loose pants, so it feels a bit awkward to suddenly wear flared pants."
"Your legs are long, and when you wear them, I think they look quite good."
"Really?"
"Yes, it looks similar to the poster on the door." Da Feng Novel Network
The two whispered to each other for a while, then looked in the mirror from side to side for a long time. The girl who was praised for her looks hesitated for a long time, and finally made up her mind to buy a pair.
"Comrade, as you are our first customer on our opening day, I'll give you a five percent discount. Here is your change, nine mao, please take it."
The girl didn't expect such a bonus and immediately felt like she had picked up nine mao. She happily took it, then pulled her companion away.
Later, a few more people came in, but most of them were attracted by the posters on the door, and very few genuinely wanted to buy.
By the end of the day, only five pairs of pants and two shirts were sold in the store.
Lin Qi had witnessed the popularity of shops in the county town, so he was somewhat discouraged by this situation.
Wang Aixiang wasn't much better. She had expected them to be snatched up as soon as they were hung, but the gap between expectation and reality was too great.
"This is just temporary, believe me."
Chen Lishu's comfort didn't help much. From the customers' reactions, they knew that this batch of clothing would likely be stuck in their hands.