A century-old wealthy family that rose from Shanghai

Chapter 150 A good start
After the affairs of Changjiang Real Estate were almost settled, Chen Guangliang finally breathed a sigh of relief.

This sale involved 122 western-style buildings with a total of 366 floors, with a total sales volume of 193.88 million oceans, of which the down payment was 58.16 oceans.

From this batch of projects alone, Chen Guangliang made a profit of millions, which can be said to be a huge profit!
Moreover, Chen Guangliang can also use this "down payment". After all, the construction costs do not need to be paid in one lump sum, but in installments.

However, considering the market capacity and his existing land reserves, Chen Guangliang naturally would not continue to invest in land.

"Boss Chen, the owner of the land near Zhaofeng Park has agreed to sell it to you. The asking price is 5100 yuan per acre, with a total price of 40000 yuan." Wang Zuoyi returned to Chen Guangliang with a flattering smile, having long forgotten the unpleasantness of the past.

Chen Guangliang also needed someone to do things for him, so he naturally didn't mind Wang Zuoyi trying to get the best of both worlds. After all, he wanted to buy land in a low-key manner on Yuyuan Road, so it would naturally be better to go through "Scolopendra subspinipes".

Recently, Chen Guangliang has purchased 12 mu of land in the middle section of Yuyuan Road for 9 yuan; and purchased 15 mu of land in the west section of Yuyuan Road for 8 yuan, excluding taxes.

"Okay, then let's get one last piece of land!"

Wang Zuoyi was overjoyed. He couldn't tell what the boss was really thinking at the moment. He didn't know whether he really wanted it or not, so he could only try hard to negotiate!

"Okay, I'll arrange the signing tomorrow. Are you free?"

"Have time"

After the discussion, Wang Zuoyi hesitated and asked, "Boss Chen, when will Changjiang Real Estate sell another strata building? I wanted to buy it this time but couldn't get one!"

There was no reason why he couldn't grab it, he just missed the opportunity because of hesitation!

Chen Guangliang said: "There is no specific time, but you can contact the people at Changjiang Real Estate and they will notify you when there is a property sales!"

Wang Zuoyi asked again, "Can this multi-story building really be deeded? Isn't it illegal?"

Chen Guangliang smiled and said, "We dare to sell it like this, so of course we have dealt with the legal and government issues. There is absolutely no problem with this."

Many people have this question, and I'm afraid some real estate companies are also asking around for information, especially going to the Municipal Council to confirm the "strata title deed" issue.

"Yes, the reputation of Changjiang Real Estate is quite good!"

Wang Zuoyi got the answer he wanted and then took his leave.

He had earned a lot of commissions from Chen Guangliang, but now he was ready to give it back to Chen Guangliang. Compared to his hard work in earning commissions, Chen Guangliang's real estate development was undoubtedly a "money grab".

This time, Chen Guangliang purchased another 35 mu of land, spending more than 98 yuan, which is equivalent to the 20 mu of land on Yuyuan Road he already has, as well as 10.2 mu on Xiafei Road and mu on Weihai Road.

Among the land on Yuyuan Road, 5 acres of land has been used as factories and cannot be developed, and the other 93 acres of land are under planning.

Even if it is the base of Changjiang Car Dealership, it can rent land later, which is more advantageous.

There are many restaurants on XZ Road. One day, He Wenqing, a salesman from Vitasoy, came to Xinya Tea House to promote soy milk.

"Are you the boss?" He spotted a wealthy middle-aged man with his sharp eyes.

"I'm"

Cai Jianqing, the founder of Xinya Tea House, looked at He Wenqing curiously.

"Hello, boss. I'm a Vitasoy salesman. This is our soy milk product, a nutritious beverage made primarily from soybeans. I also sell beverages on the first floor of Xinya Tea House. I'd like to place a few boxes of this soy milk with you. I'll only pay you if you sell it."

Cai Jianqing was surprised to find that the man was selling drinks. He simply asked, "I've never heard of Vitasoy. How could I just give it to you? What if it's poisonous?"

I really haven't heard of it. It's not that he is deliberately making things difficult for the salesman.

After all, the first floor of Xinya Tea House sells dim sum, beverages, canned foods, etc., while the second floor mainly sells Cantonese tea and dim sum. This is obviously following the tradition of early Cantonese teahouses. The difference is that the second floor hall is equipped with round or rectangular dining tables and sofa chairs, and Western-style coffee tables and sofa chairs are placed along the windows. It also provides tea, coffee, pastries and canned foods.

He Wenqing had undergone rigorous training and was wearing a Vitasoy "work suit". He immediately took out a copy of the Oriental Daily.

"Boss, this is the advertisement their company just made, and there's even news on it—Vitasoy, China's own milk. We have a factory, invested in Yuyuan Road. Every bottle of this soy milk goes through soaking, peeling, grinding, filtering, boiling, blending, sterilizing, and filling, all using modern production processes."

The news and advertisements were all published today.

Starting from today, Vitasoy plans to target 500 catering outlets in Shanghai, of course roadside stalls are not included.

Because of Vitasoy's current pricing and packaging, even though it is a mid-range consumer product, people with average incomes (monthly salary below 50) cannot afford it.

Cai Jianqing became interested and said, "It really is a bottled drink. How does it taste?"

He Wenqing quickly took out a bottle, opened it and invited Cai Jianqing to taste it.

Cai Jianqing was not polite either. It was not that he trusted a salesperson so much, but that Vitasoy left a very good impression on him.

The advertisement's 'Vitasoy, China's own milk' alone will attract people's attention.

"It tastes pretty good. I added sugar, so it doesn't have that raw taste of soy milk. Are you sure there's nothing wrong with it? If there's something wrong with it, it would be a disaster."

"Don't worry, boss. Our products have been in production for a long time, and we've tested every batch ourselves. This soy milk has a shelf life, and it's safe to drink within fifteen days. Our salespeople will come to the store regularly to restock and check the expiration dates. Any unsold items will be covered by our company."

"Okay, then put a few boxes!"

He Wenqing immediately brought in two boxes of 48 bottles from the tricycle outside.

Then they hope to put up posters in the store, after all, this is a marketing tool.

'Vitasoy, China's own milk'

'Vitasoy, more than just soda'

Both sentences are the slogans of Vitasoy's posters. Of course, the bigger advertisement is naturally the one that is widely promoted in newspapers.

On May 5, Vitasoy officially entered major restaurants and entertainment venues in Shanghai, with salesmen conducting door-to-door sales.

To this end, they had trained fifty salesmen to distribute the products in a grid-like manner, primarily stocking the bottles in restaurants for consumption and payment. On that same day, the Oriental Daily News featured a prominent story about Vitasoy in its main edition.

The news report detailed the birth of Vitasoy: Mr. Chen Guangliang observed that foreigners tended to be tall and strong, while Chinese people were weak and prone to illness. He concluded that foreigners, consuming more milk and beef, were therefore in better physical shape. He aimed to provide an affordable, protein-rich alternative to the pricier milk for ordinary Chinese families. Since soybeans, known as the "cow of China," are rich in protein and affordable, Mr. Chen believed soy milk, made from soybeans, could be a good alternative to dairy milk, and so he launched Vitasoy.

The news article touted the nutritional value of soybeans and the advantages of Vitasoy—its high nutritional value and excellent taste. It even included footage of the Vitasoy factory, a testament to its strength.

This matter is news, so it is not considered advertising, so it is free.

However, Vitasoy has already established a long-term cooperation with Oriental Daily News, and will naturally become a major advertiser in the future!

"How is the training of the second batch of salesmen going?" Chen Guangliang looked at the equipment in production. The air was filled with sweetness and milky smell, which was very charming.

Deputy General Manager Chen Shiyuan reported the situation: "In another week, they can be sent out to promote their products in residential areas."

Labor is cheap in this era and salesmen get commissions, so even if you employ 100 salesmen, the cost is not high.

Vitasoy adopts this direct sales approach, which allows it to establish a "market" at the fastest speed, because after covering all the restaurants and mid- to high-end residential areas in Shanghai, it has established the most correct market.

Chen Guangliang seemed to remember that the sales of Vitasoy in his previous life were very poor at the beginning. The biggest reason was that it did not adopt high-temperature sterilization, so the shelf life was only one day; at the same time, the packaging was not bottled, and it was impossible to determine the largest tipping group in restaurants.

Therefore, the product and sales levels of Vitasoy today are at least comparable to those of Vitasoy in Hong Kong in the 1950s. More importantly, the purchasing power of Shanghai in this era is higher than that of Hong Kong in the 1950s.

Chen Guangliang said, "As long as we establish these two sales channels, we only need to focus on the product. The biggest test standard is whether the market gradually gets on the right track." "Yes, we will record sales every day!"

Chen Guangliang felt that he had done his best in terms of products, channels and advertising, and that Vitasoy did not need to resort to trial and error. In theory, the market would gradually get back on track.

It's like Coca-Cola, which had been in China for a year but hadn't taken off. Chen Guangliang changed its Chinese name to "Ke Ke Le" and cast beautiful celebrities in pictorials, achieving a huge impact.

Sometimes, it is often a small 'change' that can achieve the greatest success.

After inspecting the factory, Chen Guangliang returned to the administrative office on the second floor.

This is his fourth general manager position after 'Changjiang Motors', 'Changjiang Real Estate' and 'Oriental Daily'.

The production capacity of the 'Vitasoy' factory is 2 to 5 bottles a day, which can basically meet the local demand of the Shanghai market in the next few years!
Of course, procurement of supplies in this era is a hassle. The main ingredients of soy milk: soybeans and sugar, will also be a hassle in the later stages.

If the Northeast had not been occupied by the Japanese, Chen Guangliang would have considered renting land in the east to grow soybeans, so Vitasoy would have encountered a lot of trouble in these two areas later.

However, Chen Guangliang did not need to bother and left this matter to his subordinates. After all, "Vitasoy" would soon be just a "small business" for him.

Of course, this brand will be brought to Hong Kong later!
Oriental Daily News was the first to report that an official from the Municipal Council commented on the recent incident of 'strata sales of houses' - it was not illegal.

Although the official did not reveal much information, this sentence also ignited the real estate market in Shanghai.

In the past, people were afraid to try it because they were worried about legal issues. Now that the Municipal Council officials have said so, it is obvious that there is something that can be done about it.

Of course, there are still many real estate companies that don’t understand how to deal with this title deed, and they can only continue to dig deeper into inside information.

But needless to say, the 'tiered sales' and 'installment sales' models will soon become popular in the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Of course, large real estate companies and banks are still somewhat dismissive. After all, they invest in construction properties in order to collect long-term rent.

For example, for a floor developed by Changjiang Real Estate, the first-year transfer fee is 600, and the rent is another 600. It only takes more than 7 years to recoup the investment, not counting the rent increase.

This model is only suitable for small and medium-sized real estate companies with assets below one million yuan.

As for the issue of future market 'saturation', I believe that most developers will not consider it.

"Manager Chen, the preparations for the Oriental Daily in Peking and Wuhan are almost complete. How should it be distributed? Should we also refer to the plan for Shanghai?" Hong Yanbin and Huang Chunsun came to Chen Guangliang's office and asked.

Chen Guangliang said without much thought, "Except for the first seven days, when we'll give away 1 newspapers a day, there's no need for other activities. We also have limited funds."

Even so, a total of 1 yuan is gone!

Currently, the Oriental Daily costs 6 cents to print six sheets of paper, but they sell them to newspaper vendors for only 1 cents, which means a net loss of 7 cents. Taking the Shanghai Stock Exchange as an example, this means a loss of over 4 yuan per issue.

Of course, advertising fees are not taken into account here. Currently, the advertising revenue of Oriental Daily has caught up and can basically maintain a "balance", that is, not lose money.

There must be a way to make money. If the newspaper price goes up by 1 cent, there will be a profit of 500 dollars.

Moreover, shareholders still have some opinions now, and they may have to consider raising prices in the second half of the year. After all, the declared price is 3 cents, and it is not excessive for them to raise the price of Oriental Daily to 6 cents.

Huang Chunsun said, "1 copies is enough. Seven days is enough for us to build up a certain readership base. I'll arrange it right away."

Chen Guangliang nodded, then he said, "What do you think? Should we take advantage of the current low land prices and purchase a piece of land to build the Oriental Daily News headquarters?"

The Oriental Daily News is currently renting someone else's property, but the newspaper is now considered to be a large and powerful company. It is possible that it will make a profit of one hundred thousand dollars next year.

When people invest in newspapers, they definitely don't do it for the dividends.

Hong Yanbin laughed and said, "Manager Chen, as the owner of a real estate company, don't you know that land prices everywhere have increased a lot now? Land in the concession is very expensive!"

Chen Guangliang replied: "It will only be more expensive"

There are still two years before the land price increases. We can’t wait until two years later to consider the headquarters!
Hong Yanbin's expression turned serious, and he immediately said, "Then let's buy a small plot of land. Two or three acres will be enough!"

Soon the matter was basically finalized, and all that was needed was to notify the other two shareholders!

Chen Guangliang’s idea is to spend next year’s profits in advance.

After all, the interest on the loan is much less than the increase in land price.

Furthermore, the interest earned from the Oriental Daily over the next few years would not need to be distributed as dividends, and could be used directly to build a newspaper building. Of course, given the limited financial resources, it would be best if the amount did not exceed 300,000 yuan.

(End of this chapter)