"I couldn't talk details over the phone, so here's the sample. We've worked together before, so I'll be direct. Tell me how many you can produce and the lowest price you can offer."
Ever since Director Zhou's nephew, Zhou Dacheng, got into trouble, Director Zhou had become extremely cautious. Liu Xiaoting handled all the negotiations, effectively acting as Director Zhou's spokesperson.
Previously, Jiang Weiguo had contacted the garment factory to order a batch of bell-bottom pants and floral shirts. The garment factory had to assume a certain degree of risk, so Liu Xiaoting had asked him to bring the samples for a face-to-face discussion.
Liu Xiaoting took the clothes and pants handed over by Jiang Weiguo and examined them. Her eyes flickered slightly.
She had seen similar styles at the 'Shu Se' clothing store, but their sales weren't as popular as other garments. In fact, they were selling quite poorly, so she hadn't paid much attention to them.
"Is this popular in the provincial capital now?"
Jiang Weiguo nodded. "Extremely popular, and currently, only 'Shu Se' has it. From my observation, they sell at least sixty to seventy pieces daily. Each pair is priced at eighteen, which is three to four yuan more than ordinary pants. We're both in this business, so you know the cost is at most ten yuan, right? Even after deducting shipping, it won't exceed eleven."
Sixty to seventy pairs a day? Liu Xiaoting's hand holding the pants paused. That means a daily profit of at least six to seven hundred yuan?
Liu Xiaoting's gaze returned to the pants in her hand. She hadn't expected these pants to be so popular. Honestly, according to her own aesthetic, she didn't find them particularly attractive. However, Jiang Weiguo had no reason to lie to her; otherwise, he wouldn't have traveled all this way.
"These shirts might be difficult. This kind of pattern requires separate design and production at the printing and dyeing factory. They definitely won't bother with small-batch production. However, the bell-bottom pants are no problem."
Jiang Weiguo was slightly disappointed to hear that the floral shirts couldn't be produced, as they were also selling well. Still, it was good that they could produce the bell-bottom pants.
"What's the lowest price per pair?"
Director Zhou had already provided a general price range, so Liu Xiaoting didn't hesitate much. She directly quoted the highest price. "The factory also needs to bear risks to produce this batch of bell-bottom pants. The lowest is twelve."
"Twelve is too expensive," Jiang Weiguo frowned. "The cost price is at most ten yuan."
Liu Xiaoting explained with a smile, "The cost price you're referring to is for mass production in those factories. For us to take on this job, not only do we need to find suitable fabrics, but the workers also need to specially create patterns for you."
"How about eleven? I still have to account for shipping and labor. Besides, selling at eighteen won't be competitive, and I'll have to lower my price further."
Considering that Jiang Weiguo intended to use this batch of bell-bottom pants to compete with Chen Lishu, Liu Xiaoting didn't haggle too much. She hoped that Chen Lishu would suffer a significant setback and learn a lesson.
"Eleven it is, then."
For each pair of bell-bottom pants, his purchase price was eleven, and he would resell them for seventeen. This would not only be cheaper than Chen Lishu's store but also allow him to pocket a six-yuan profit margin. If Chen Lishu also lowered her prices to match his, then it would be a battle of attrition – whoever could last longer. He had the garment factory behind him and was confident he could bring down Chen Lishu.
To sustain a price war with Chen Lishu, Jiang Weiguo gritted his teeth and directly ordered five hundred pairs.
A total of five thousand five hundred yuan, which was all his savings from years of work.
After agreeing on the terms and paying a deposit, with delivery scheduled for half a month later, Jiang Weiguo finally got up to leave.
...
That afternoon, Chen Lishu had no classes. She went directly to the store on the commercial street. As soon as she reached the entrance, she saw five or six people, all around eighteen or nineteen years old, emerging from the store, almost everyone carrying something.
"Third Sister-in-law." "Eldest Sister." "Sister Chen."
As Chen Lishu entered, she saw Gu Xingping, Chen Liyuan, and Ding Chen. While it wasn't unusual to see them all there, the key thing was that each of them was wearing a pair of bell-bottom pants.
Seeing Chen Lishu's gaze, Chen Liyuan smiled and stepped forward. "This was Xingping's idea. She said we could do some publicity for you, Big Sister. Those who just left are classmates Xingping introduced."
"Not only your paternal aunt's classmates, but also Ding's classmates and your sister's."
Wang Aixiang chimed in teasingly, "Good heavens, I thought everyone had gone home for lunch, but then ten or so people came in. I've never seen such a scene; I thought it was a robbery."
In the past, Wang Aixiang felt that being a small vendor was not honorable. However, due to life's pressures, she had to engage in this profession. Later, even though she earned a good amount of money working with Chen Lishu, she still didn't feel the profession was particularly glorious.
It wasn't until now, when Chen Lishu's university student sister, paternal aunt, and friends brought their classmates, and she saw the genuine smiles on their faces, that Wang Aixiang realized they genuinely didn't mind their status as individual proprietors. In fact, judging by their expressions, they even seemed to feel a sense of pride.
Wang Aixiang couldn't help but feel a pang of shame.
"Do you all not have classes this afternoon?"
Chen Liyuan glanced at Chen Lishu's expression and cautiously said, "Big Sister, I have one class this afternoon. I'll head back now."
Chen Lishu's gaze then shifted to Gu Xingping and Ding Chen, both of whom offered her apologetic smiles.
"Xingping, you've just started school, and your focus should be on your studies. Business is good here, so you don't need to trouble yourself by bringing people over anymore."
Gu Xingping nodded obediently. "Yes, then Third Sister-in-law, we'll be going back."
"Wait." Chen Lishu called the three of them back, took out ten yuan from her pocket, and pressed it into Gu Xingping's hand. "You all didn't eat lunch, did you? Go out and grab something to eat before you return to school."
After sending off Chen Liyuan and the other two, Chen Lishu began helping Wang Aixiang unpack and put the new stock on display.
Once the work was done, Chen Lishu asked, "Sister Aixiang, how many pairs of these are left?"
"Just a moment, I've recorded everything in the ledger. I'll go to the counter to get it for you," Wang Aixiang replied, hurrying to retrieve the account book.
Soon, Wang Aixiang opened the book and began her report. "The bell-bottom pants are more popular than the floral shirts. So far, including the five hundred pairs sold wholesale to agents, in the two months since we opened, we've sold a total of 2,872 pairs, with 1,784 remaining. For the floral shirts, we've sold a total of 1,011 pairs, with half remaining."
Chen Lishu nodded. At the current sales rate, the stock in the store would likely be sold out by October at the latest. By then, the busy farming season would have started, and supply in the county town would be an issue, let alone in the provincial capital.
It seemed she needed to contact Li Yuanchao from the south as soon as possible to see if there was any more stock to bring in.
In the afternoon, Chen Lishu closed the shop two hours early because she needed to go to the textile factory with Wang Aixiang to procure more stock.
Every time this happened, Chen Lishu felt that they were short-handed. However, policy didn't allow for it. Wang Aixiang, in any case, was operating legally. If she were to hire another person to mind the store, it would truly be blatant defiance of the authorities.