Huayu: Starting from joining the mainstream entertainment industry in 96

Chapter 24: Unorthodox Approaches and Excessive Profits

The afternoon sun slanted into Shengying Media's office, and the air was filled with the smell of paper and fresh ink.

Chen Yu was teaching several girls basic accounting, while Wang Sheng was working on refining the matchmaking program proposal, trying to cleverly hide more "explosive" elements that would generate buzz under seemingly service-oriented segments.

Just then, a series of slightly hurried footsteps approached from afar, breaking the tranquility of the office.

Qian Qianjin, the deputy head of the purchasing department, walked in with a slightly protruding belly and an expression that was a mixture of excitement and mystery on his face. He practically slipped in, completely unlike his usual demeanor as a department head in the factory.

"Mr. Wang, are you busy?" Qian Qianjin lowered his voice and winked at Wang Sheng.

Wang Sheng put down his pen, knowing full well that this person was definitely not there for official business, so he got up and led Qian Qianjin to a relatively quiet corner at the back of the office.

"Section Chief Qian, is there any news about the equipment procurement?" Wang Sheng said with a smile, offering him a cigarette.

Although he doesn't smoke, he usually carries two packs with him. There's no other way; cigarettes and alcohol are the best way to get started.

Qian Qianjin took the cigarette but didn't light it. Instead, he leaned closer and lowered his voice as if afraid the wall would hear him: "President Wang, there is news, and it's great news, but... I don't know if you have the courage and appetite to eat it."

Wang Sheng raised an eyebrow slightly: "Section Chief Qian, just say what you want to say. Do we need to beat around the bush?"

"Great!" Qian Qianjin slapped his thigh, his eyes shining. "A professional-grade VHS camcorder, a Panasonic M9000, you know the market price—it's at least ten thousand yuan a unit, and you have to pull some strings. Now there's a way to get it for that price—"

He extended his right hand, spread his five fingers, then bent the middle three fingers to make a "six" gesture. After that, he raised the bent middle three fingers to make a "five" gesture.

"Six thousand five?"

Wang Sheng's heart skipped a beat; the price was almost halved. But he remained outwardly calm: "How many units? Where did they come from? Section Chief Qian, this is a bad deal. Could it be a hot potato?"

"A total of 150 units! Brand new grey market imports, complete documentation, absolutely genuine, sourced through 'special' channels."

Qian Qianjin's voice lowered even further, almost becoming a whisper: "To tell you the truth, it was a rather powerful young master from Zhongqi Company who got it. Originally, we had agreed to supply a TV station in a prefecture-level city to upgrade their interview equipment, and the contract was almost signed. But, hey! Isn't that a coincidence? The head of the purchasing department at that TV station drank himself to death at a business dinner the other night!"

Wang Sheng's eyes narrowed: "Dead?"

“Absolutely true!” Qian Qianjin nodded firmly. “I specifically asked an old comrade-in-arms who works at that TV station to find out. Right now, the station is fighting like cats and dogs for that lucrative position. Who cares about the procurement plan from six months ago? That young master invested a lot upfront and is eager to get his money back, which is why he’s willing to sell at a low price all at once. Otherwise, how would we have had a chance to snag this bargain?”

One hundred and fifty units, at six thousand five hundred each, totaling nearly one million.

This accounts for almost half of the funds raised.

Wang Sheng quickly did some mental calculations but didn't reply immediately.

Seeing him hesitate, Qian Qianjin assumed he was worried about the supply and quickly added, "Mr. Wang, don't worry. This guy is a professional in this business. He's got connections, but his reputation in the industry is decent. He promised me that as long as the payment for this batch of VHS is settled quickly, he can also get the Hi8 and MiniDV equipment at a much lower price than the market price. It just takes about ten to fifteen days. I think since he wants to do more business in the future, there's no need for him to play tricks and ruin his reputation."

Zhongqi Company...

Wang Sheng pondered for a moment.

The full name should be Film Equipment Company.

There are many state-owned equipment companies, but in the film industry, there is only one.

Laymen may not be familiar with this company, but those in the industry generally know what it does. As a national professional materials enterprise directly under the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television with a monopoly, it has long been responsible for the procurement, supply, import and export, technology introduction and industry management of all equipment such as projection equipment, film, light source, and screen for projection units across the country. Its power and business scope are very large.

With access to distribution channels, it's just a piece of cake for the company's employees to deal in digital camcorders.

As the deputy head of the purchasing department at Beijing Film Studio, Qian Qianjin must have had a lot of dealings with China National Machinery Industry Corporation and must know the background of that young master to be so certain.

but……

Wang Sheng pressed his finger on the table: "Where is the goods? Can I inspect them?"

"The goods are in a warehouse in eastern Guangdong. Payment is required before shipment. If the goods pass inspection, they've agreed to send their technicians with a few sample machines, or we can send someone over ourselves. Once the order is placed, they'll arrange shipment immediately by train..."

Qian Qianjin met Wang Sheng's thoughtful gaze and spoke a few words faster: "President Wang, this is an opportunity not to be missed! Once this batch of equipment arrives, the cost of the low-end packages can be reduced by a large margin instantly, and the profit margin will be even greater."

After a moment of contemplation, Wang Sheng made a decision: "Section Chief Qian, here's what we'll do. You find two technicians, and I'll send two more to form a team to go there overnight. Once they've inspected the goods and there are no problems, I'll transfer the money to them. Oh, and the people I sent need to come back with the truck after they've inspected the goods."

"Good, Mr. Wang is indeed a man of great courage."

Qian Qianjin's face lit up with excitement: "I'll go make the contact right away, I guarantee it'll be done perfectly!"

After saying that, he didn't bother with formalities and turned to leave in a hurry, as if afraid that someone else would snatch up this windfall. Even if the rebate for each machine was only one hundred yuan, it would still amount to fifteen thousand yuan.

Wang Sheng could roughly guess why Qian Qianjin was so proactive.

As for whether the origin of that batch of equipment was legitimate or not.

As the saying goes, heroes are judged by their origins, and even the most mediocre characters are judged by their background.

We need to solve the problem of hunger first before we can think about anything else.

Compared to other self-made men of that era, Wang Sheng believed that his way of starting out was quite, quite upright.

……

After Qian Qianjin left, Wang Sheng asked Li Tingting to call Chen Liang over.

Chen Liang and his team were training in an open space at the Beijing Film Studio.

The area was set up as a simple wedding venue, serving as a practice session for decorating.

The 9999 yuan "Golden Jubilee Collection" isn't actually that high-end. The process is pretty much the same as a regular wedding video recording. The main feature is the dual-camera setup, with two broadcast-grade cameras. Just setting them up there makes it look impressive and prestigious. The core selling point is satisfying people's need to show off.

The vast majority of parents who hold weddings for their children are basically those who have been frugal and thrifty all their lives, or at least they think they are frugal and thrifty. They have finished building their generation's "five-room brick house" and have no more motivation to move forward. The last bit of glory in their lives is to hold weddings for their children.

On the wedding day, the room was filled with relatives and friends.

It's quite restrained that the groom's parents didn't go on stage to dance, but they still couldn't resist showing off. The wedding venue, the quality of the cigarettes and alcohol, and so on, were all designed to satisfy their need to show off.

……

It didn't take long.

Chen Liang arrived at the office.

Wang Sheng recounted his trip to eastern Guangdong to inspect the goods and pick up the equipment.

听到要去取150台摄像机，陈良眼睛都瞪圆了：“150乘以8，一个月1200场低端套餐？一场1999，200多万？一个月200万？！”

Wang Sheng nodded slightly: "Theoretically speaking, yes. After deducting the 35% taken by the Purple House, we can get 65%, which is about 155 million. After deducting the cost of about 30, according to the current tax system, after paying taxes, we can have a gross profit of about 100 million per month. In other words, under ideal conditions, we can earn back the cost of the equipment in one month, so..."

"Liangzi, every piece of equipment must be powered on and tested. The functionality and imaging must be perfect. Secondly, safety is paramount. I will wire the payment directly as agreed. You just need to inspect the goods and accompany the truck for transport."

Be careful on the road, bring all your self-defense tools, and don't resort to violence unless absolutely necessary. Equipment is important, but people are more important; you must return safe and sound," Wang Sheng said solemnly.

Chen Liang grinned and nodded solemnly, "Don't worry, I'll go and call my cousin to come with me. He just got discharged from the army not long ago."

Chen Liang has a lot of paternal relatives; his grandparents had five sons and one daughter.

Chen Liang's father was the fourth child in his family. Because Chen Liang's cousins ​​were born earlier and there were no policy restrictions, Chen Liang had seven older cousins ​​and four older cousins.

Only Chen Liang's lineage is a single-lineage successor.

Wang Sheng was similar to Chen Liang, but he was the only son in three generations, and he had no paternal relatives to rely on. As for maternal relatives, although he had two uncles, they had little contact and could not be relied upon.

Sometimes, having many relatives can be a burden, but other times, having many relatives can also be an advantage.

Chen Liang has never been afraid of trouble since he was a child, because when he gets into a fight, he can call on his seven older cousins ​​for help.

Some children are bullied because they have few paternal relatives. Of course, if the same generation has no backbone, then having more people won't help. If the parents have a falling out, then it's all over.

In short, a family can prosper only when it has many members, works together with one heart, and dares to take risks and fight hard, thus spreading the costs of trial and error.

Chen Liang knew a little about it, but his main purpose was not to revitalize the family, but to put into practice a saying he had heard since childhood: "Let the rich help the poor to get rich."

Workers at the factory and relatives at home would help if they could. If someone's character was bad, Chen Liang wouldn't recommend them to Wang Sheng.

Wang Sheng understood and said, "When you come back this time, see what your cousin can do and arrange a job for him in the company."

Chen Liang smiled and said, "Okay, sure."

(End of this chapter)