Our Rise Era

Chapter 13 Capital strangulation!

"More than a hundred years ago, Western powers built concessions and occupied territories in China by leasing them!"

"More than a hundred years later, they suppressed Chinese local brands through brand leasing and acquisition, and obtained the right to use some Chinese national enterprise brands, some of which were even permanent..."

"Since the millennium, what has disappeared from the shelves is not only domestic brands, but also the broken backbones..."

"..."

The sunlight filtered through the half-open factory window, casting patches of light on the scraps of paper and dried soup on the floor.

The air was filled with the smell of a mixture of grease and seasonings, which lingered for a long time. The huge drum-type instant noodle machine was parked nearby, making it particularly quiet. On the high production line, bags of unfinished instant noodles were suspended in the air, swaying gently in the wind.

The slightly disabled workers wore neat hats and clean work clothes. Although their faces looked tired and mechanical, their hands were not slow at all.

This is the scene in the production plant of Haikang Instant Noodles in Zheng’s Food Co., Ltd.

The factory is located in the eastern part of Taifeng County, and currently has a total of about 400 employees. As far as I can remember, this instant noodle factory was close to listing for financing three times, but was stopped by Zheng Guodong at the last minute.

The county leaders advised several times and visited the company in person several times, trying to persuade them with both emotion and reason, and they were even prepared to support [Haikang Instant Noodles] as a pillar industry of Taifeng County.

But Zheng Guodong never agreed.

The last round of financing seemed to be in 2004. After that year, Hikvision Instant Noodles, which used to be seen everywhere in the streets and alleys, gradually became less and less common, and were replaced by some other unfamiliar brands that had just emerged.

After Zheng Guodong took Zhang Yang to visit the factory, he walked into the office and made a cup of tea for Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang looked at Zheng Guodong and said, "If you go public in 2004 to raise funds, the scale of your [Haikang Instant Noodles] will not be limited to this place..."

"I also thought about going public and made all the preparations, but when the investors came and I saw those people, I regretted it... I saw the market plan. Every word in the plan was written beautifully, but between the lines of the plan, there were hidden "Japanese capital" and "acquisition". Financing means decentralization. After decentralization, Japanese capital can use the shareholder mechanism they have established to spread in. I know that some of the things I did were stupid and extremely disadvantageous to the entire company, but who is willing to kneel down? In the past, our ancestors won battle after battle, but now it's our turn, our knees are weak, and we kneel down one after another..."

After listening to this, Zhang Yang sighed: "So you have been suppressed by capital over the years. At the peak, there were more than 1000 people, but now there are only more than 400 people left. In the future, there may be even fewer..."

"..."

Zhang Yang's words were like a hammer that left Zheng Guodong speechless.

Zheng Guodong looked out the window at the workers working in the factory.

For a moment, I felt a little powerless.

Zhang Yang looked down at the types of Haikang instant noodles, made some himself, and after taking a few bites, he frowned deeply: "You have to reform! If you don't reform, don't accept investment, don't seek innovation and change, don't reform, and just stick to that so-called backbone, you will only end up dead..."

"How to reform?" Zheng Guodong looked at Zhang Yang.

"The instant noodles packaging is too old-fashioned. It is a product from the last century. Although it is food, it is definitely not popular among young people. Besides, the taste is too monotonous. I took a few bites and it tasted ordinary. Thirdly, [Haikang Instant Noodles] has no publicity. It only relies on the brand influence in the past. In this Internet and media era, there is no gimmick. It is simply a gorgeous dress at night. What's more, you are just wearing coarse linen clothes, not gorgeous clothes..."

Zheng Guodong watched Zhang Yang listing off all the problems with Haikang Instant Noodles.

Zheng Guodong could only remain silent.

Doesn't he understand these things?

He had also thought about reform and experimentation, but whether it was advertising on TV or other methods, he spent a lot of money but achieved very little.

In recent years, the pressure from foreign capital has been increasing. Some capable and operational people in the company could not stand the loneliness and temptation of high salaries, and were eventually poached by foreign capital in various ways.

……

[The sun is setting in the west], this phrase is probably his evaluation of the entire [Haikang Instant Noodles].

So, when he happened to see the traffic and influence of magazines such as Reader's Digest and Yilin on the grocery store ZY, he decided to have a chat with Zhang Yang.

I want to hear what young people think.

"Mr. Zheng..." Zhang Yang looked at Zheng Guodong.

"you say!"

“How much publicity money do you have?”

"See if there are any projects, if there are suitable projects..."

"How much money you have depends on how many projects you have..."

"About a million?"

"..." Zhang Yang narrowed his eyes, as if he was lost in thought. After a long moment, he smiled and said, "Well, give me some information about other domestic instant noodles, and I'll think about how to help you get them... Just writing some articles will have limited publicity and influence..."

"You can try..."

Just after Zheng Guodong agreed, the phone on the desk rang.

The moment Zheng Guodong answered the phone, his originally calm expression gradually turned a little cold.

"What did you say? The Lianhua Department Store in the Magic City has stopped purchasing goods from us?"

"..."

"Has [Master Kang] completely encroached upon the last of our market share in Shanghai?"

"..."

"Have all our promotional posters and advertisements been removed from various locations and replaced with other brands?"

"..."

"What did you say? Other areas that have been maintained for decades have also started to be returned?"

"..."

On the other end of the phone.

Bad news came one after another.

Zheng Guodong hung up the phone, his expression becoming increasingly grim.

Looking at Zhang Yang, he forced a smile: "I didn't expect that the capitalists would encircle and suppress us so thoroughly, not even giving us time to catch our breath..."

After saying this, Zheng Guodong lit a cigarette in front of the window and stared at the factory building in the distance again, feeling unhappy.

perhaps……

This brand must be completely in its own hands...

disappear?

After a while.

There was a knock on the door in the office.

A young woman came over silently.

"Mr. Zheng, people from Xinding Holdings Co., Ltd. are here to see you. They are waiting for you at the door..."

After hearing what the young woman said, Zheng Guodong put out the cigarette in his hand: "Let them in..."

"Oh, but..." The young woman glanced at Zhang Yang and hesitated for a moment, as if she had some concerns.

"One of our own."

"it is good."

The young secretary nodded and walked out of the office.

About a few minutes later, the young woman pushed open the door and brought in several young men in suits.

The young man in the lead was very tall.

He was wearing a well-tailored dark blue suit with a silver collar pin on his collar, exuding a hint of confidence and majesty. He was wearing a pair of shiny black leather shoes, and every step he took was firm and powerful.

His eyes were sharp, shooting forward through the gold-rimmed glasses like a blade. After seeing Zhang Yang, he was briefly surprised, and then he took the initiative and sat on the sofa. His attendant took out a contract and placed it on the table.

"Boss Zheng, I have discussed this with Mr. Okawa of Wuyang Food Co., Ltd. Let's take a step back. Xinding Holdings Co., Ltd. will take 25% of the shares, and Wuyang will take 26%... a total of 40 million yuan. Once you sign the contract, we will help you go public. We have promised before that within two years, the market value of Haikang Instant Noodles will double..."

"What if I don't sign?"

"We are here to give our national brand one last chance. If you sign, we will survive, which will benefit you, me, and everyone else. If you don't sign... Mr. Zheng, to tell you the truth, this is the last chance. I hope you understand that this is not a child's game, nor is it a small vendor's business waiting for a price. They have lost their patience, and neither do I..."

"..."

(End of this chapter)