2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 61 Returning Home (Part 3)

"Why are you knocking so loudly? You're disturbing my sister's sleep."

Zhang Xupeng, who had just entered, was about to greet them when he was interrupted by Tan Jincheng's complaints.

"Okay, okay, I was wrong," Zhang Xupeng said helplessly. Then he walked towards the kitchen and said to Zhang Suzhi, "Auntie, thank you for your help."

"It's no trouble at all. Go play in the living room, it'll be ready in a little while."

Coming out of the kitchen, Zhang Xupeng came to Xiao Jinyue's side and looked her over with great curiosity: "Isn't she quite cute? How can she be as ugly as you say?"

"It's been more than two months, of course you've become prettier. Babies are all pretty ugly when they're born, and you were even uglier when you were first born."

"Bullshit, you're uglier than I was when I was born."

Zhang Suzhi listened to the two arguing in my kitchen and couldn't help but find it a little funny. Since returning home this year, her son has matured a lot, and he only shows such childish behavior when he is with Zhang Xupeng.

The eggs were fried into an omelet, cut into strips, and then topped with some shredded meat. The aroma wafted from the kitchen, tempting the two of them.

Tan Jincheng, in particular, had been driving for six or seven hours and hadn't eaten much at the rest area. Now, tempted by the aroma, he was starving.

With some pickled vegetables, the two began to eat with gusto.

"It smells so good. It has to be Auntie's pickled green beans that are really good. There are many delicious foods in Beicang, but I can't find such authentic pickled green beans."

"If you like it, take a bottle home later," Zhang Suzhi said with a smile.

"Then I won't be polite. Alas, it's a pity my mom can never learn it."

"Have some shame! You're eating and taking things at the same time." Tan Jincheng couldn't stand it anymore.

"It's none of your business. You didn't pickle it."

It was a strange feeling; as soon as they got home, the two of them tacitly let loose and let loose.

The salted green beans were pickled by Zhang Suzhi herself. When she was in junior high school, the school cafeteria often had a shortage of dishes, and the taste was only edible. It was common to find long rice weevils in the rice.

Throwing away the rice weevils without batting an eye and continuing to eat is probably a memory for many born in the 1980s.

Under this supply and demand relationship, most students would bring some pickled vegetables from home to school. At that time, Zhang Suzhi didn't know how to pickle vegetables very well, and Tan Jincheng usually brought salted fish.

Tan Jincheng, who often traded salted fish for other people's salted green beans, was once thought by his classmates to be a bit dim-witted. It was around that time that Zhang Suzhi began to slowly learn how to pickle various kinds of vegetables.

After finishing his meal, Zhang Xupeng wasn't in a hurry to leave. There was no one at his home, and he had nothing to do when he got back.

The two of them lay in opposite corners of the sofa, chatting and joking around, while Zhang Suzhi sat on the small sofa, listening quietly.

After chatting for a while, Zhang Xupeng seemed to remember something and suddenly sat up straight: "By the way, tell me about that Taobao store? How come it made so much money this month?"

Zhang Xupeng already had a general understanding of the profit margins caused by exchange rates and labor costs in foreign trade import and export business.

But he really didn't understand this Taobao store. Why would so many people dare to buy clothes online without even trying them on? Weren't they afraid that the clothes wouldn't fit? "What's wrong with the online store? Did it make a lot of money this month?" Speaking of this, Zhang Suzhi also remembered it.

My son seemed to have mentioned it when he came back before. He said he had earned a few hundred yuan and gave it to her as pocket money, but I haven't paid attention to it since.

"Auntie, you don't know, the online store has somehow made a net profit of over 5 yuan this month," Zhang Xupeng said excitedly.

"Huh? How can there be so much? Didn't you say it was only a few hundred yuan a month?" Zhang Suzhi said in surprise.

"Yeah, I don't understand either. Actually, I made quite a bit last month, but Xiao Tan spent it all, saying it was for renovating the shop or something."

"What happened?" Zhang Suzhi asked Tan Jincheng.

Tan Jincheng looked at the two of them and said with a smile, "It's normal. During the SARS outbreak in 2003, people couldn't go out, so online shopping emerged. After two years of development, in December, the website launched a new payment system, making online shopping more convenient, and naturally more people went online to buy things."

"Our free shipping policy targets the entire Yangtze River Delta region. Just think about how many people in those three provinces have internet access. What's wrong with buying a piece of clothing online just for the novelty?"

"In addition, our online store has been revamped, giving us a significant advantage in terms of both clothing styles and the store's novelty. This is just the beginning; we'll earn even more in the future."

The main reason is that online shoppers have become more naive in recent years, resulting in a very low return rate. Even when they realize they've been scammed, some online shoppers don't even think about returning the goods.

As the women's clothing category with the highest return rate on Taobao, it won't be so easy to make money once the Taobao system matures.

"Earning over 5 a month is just the beginning?" Zhang Suzhi asked in shock.

"Yes, that's about right. The main reason is that our clothes have low costs, are supplied directly from factories, and there are basically no staff wages," Tan Jincheng nodded.

“I can’t accept this money. You’re short of money for your business right now.” It’s more than 5 a month. If I split it with Zhang’s family, it would be more than 2 a month, which is equivalent to my annual salary.

If what my son said is true, and there's more to come, I really can't imagine.

"It's okay, Mom, just take it. The Taobao store and the company's finances are separate. It's like a cunning rabbit with three burrows. If our company goes bankrupt, this money can help us get back on our feet."

"Yes, Auntie, just take it. I'll tell my mom that when I get back. Actually, our company makes quite a bit of money. We've earned six or seven hundred thousand in just over three months, so we're not short of cash."

"Actually, the good days for Taobao stores won't last long. Once everyone discovers this business opportunity and the competition intensifies, then naturally it won't be as profitable. Let's just leave it at that for now."

Once Singles' Day goes live, the return rate for women's clothing is expected to rise sharply. This will lead to a decrease in profit margins due to inventory backlog. In addition, the launch of new platforms like Tmall will also squeeze the traffic and profits of small Taobao shop owners.

If you really want to open a Taobao store, QQ underwear, which has the lowest return rate, is actually the best category; this stuff has extremely low cost, tears easily, and most buyers are undesirable sex workers, so there is almost no return rate.

You bought it to tear it up. If you can't tear it up, you'll get a bad review. How can you return it then?
However, I can't say this in front of my mother. It wouldn't be bad to secretly open a shop like this if I had the chance.

"You haven't done anything illegal, have you? How did you make so much money? You made six or seven hundred thousand in three months, that's over two million a year!"

This number was beyond Zhang Suzhi's wildest imagination. Old Tan's brother started doing business after graduating from junior high school, and now he's said to have a net worth of only a few million, which is already quite remarkable in the family.

How is it possible that my son can earn 200 million a year?

(End of this chapter)