"You've been quite prominent lately; your ads are even on Anhui Satellite TV. My mom asked me to tell you thank you."
"What's there to thank for? It's just a small electric scooter."
"Then get two for them. I'll get one each for Sister Yanning and Li Jinglan; they did start this business with us after all."
"Have some shame, won't you? Using my stuff to do favors. When you leave, have Brother Sun use his pickup truck to haul them over for you."
"Haha, that's more like it. How about I treat you to lunch?"
"I'm busy at noon. We'll just eat at the cafeteria. You don't leave either; I'll ask the cafeteria to cook a few separate dishes for us."
"Alright, Boss Tan."
Zhang Xupeng sat opposite the desk, watching the busy Tan Jincheng, genuinely happy for him.
His family only saw his company's advertisements reaching Anhui Satellite TV.
As brothers who grew up together and lived in the same city, Zhang Xupeng knew how much pressure this good brother had been under these past few months.
Carrying nearly ten million in debt, even a small hiccup in the capital chain would prevent him from lasting another month.
He had slept at the factory for half a month straight; never had he worked so desperately before.
Fortunately, this pressure has now eased considerably.
At least he no longer has to worry about a lack of funds.
Once all of this month's electric scooters are launched into the market, everything will fall into place.
"What's the situation with Uncle Lin and Uncle Wu? How is the promotion going?"
"Not bad. The discounts we're offering are substantial, the brand has gained a little recognition, and with us covering the costs of the promotional schemes, their promotion efforts are quite smooth."
Lin Yumin is responsible for Henan Province, and Wu Zhenping for Anhui Province.
In fact, their distances aren't far; Wu Zhenping went to the Northern Anhui region.
The feedback from both of them indicates that with several major preferential policies, the ground promotion is still very smooth.
The reason they haven't returned is that their strategy is to focus on larger stores, with a minimum order quantity of 50 units.
If they can order 100 units at once, that would be even better.
While this reduces coverage, larger stores are better for brand image.
Tan Jincheng also thought this method was good.
Promoting 10 units at a time per store is not only inefficient but also gets lost among other brands, failing to create any significant impact.
There's a complete difference in presence between a store displaying 10 Flashride electric scooters with lightning logos and one displaying 100.
Another piece of good news they reported back was that the ex-factory prices have been increased by 50 yuan respectively.
From now on, they will be shipped at 1850 yuan per unit and 1550 yuan per unit.
50 yuan doesn't have a big impact on the first batch of 8,000 units, but it will have a significant impact in the future.
A gross profit margin of 450 yuan per electric scooter is completely acceptable for retail terminal merchants; this profit margin is not low.
Currently, the promotion ratio for the luxury and basic versions is 20% and 80% respectively.
Out of every 100 units, 20 are luxury versions.
Calculating a one-time purchase of 100 units, the total amount is 161,000 yuan.
Currently, there are several payment methods for purchasing electric scooters at specialty stores.
Large brands generally require payment before shipment, and these brands have sales and purchase requirements; even if sales targets aren't met, purchases must still be made as required.
Additionally, some miscellaneous and niche brands of electric scooters allow for payment after delivery, or payment for the first batch upon the second purchase after the first batch is sold out.
Furthermore, there's the prepayment method.
Flashride is not a major brand, but Tan Jincheng also refuses to accept its fate as a miscellaneous brand, so he requires terminal merchants to purchase through a prepayment contract.
This brought some difficulty to Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping's promotion efforts, but it's not insurmountable.
Taking 100 units as an example again, a 40% prepayment of 161,000 yuan is 64,400 yuan, which is generally not a big problem for larger stores.
As for the final payment, it must be settled within 10 working days after the goods arrive at the store.
In addition, there are some after-sales details, all of which will be written in the contract.
With a vision from the future, Tan Jincheng prefers to operate by contract when first opening up a market.
This provides a certain guarantee for the rights of both parties.
However, Tan Jincheng still hopes that one day, Flashride can achieve payment before shipment, like major brands such as Xinri.
Counting the days, Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping's promotion should be ending soon, right?
The two, who report their progress to Tan Jincheng daily, are expected to conclude this market promotion in a few more days.
This promotion is not only focused on the present but also involves collecting information on stores that are still hesitant but interested in cooperating, preparing in advance for future distribution.
"Tomorrow night, Super Girl will be live again. Do you think your redhead spokesperson can make it into the top five?"
Zhang Xupeng said, a little teasingly.
In his opinion, Tan's choice of spokesperson this time was no different from his previous bet on Liverpool winning the championship; both were gambles on whether they could win.
This time, however, the stakes were higher, and his taste was frankly not that great.
"Definitely, just watch. Our spokesperson will surely win the championship,"
Tan Jincheng said confidently.
"Come on, you've hardly watched any of the competitions. How do you know she'll definitely win? If you ask me, you should have signed a few more back then; that way, the risk would be smaller."
"Absolutely unnecessary. You don't even see how popular she is. Besides, I managed to bet on Liverpool winning the championship, even with such a small probability. You have to believe in my judgment and luck."
"Alright, if you get it right this time, I'll be completely convinced by you." Immediately after, Zhang Xupeng asked, "What's going on between you and Gu Qingqing?"
"What's going on?"
"Do you think I'm stupid or something? I couldn't tell at first, but after all this time, can't I see that your relationship isn't ordinary?"
"Oh, that. It's not exactly extraordinary. We're pretty much friends now. Don't worry, you're still my best friend,"
Tan Jincheng said with a smile.
Zhang Xupeng pursed his lips, but it was clear the latter part of the sentence made him happy:
"Who's talking about that with you? Just pretend. Didn't you tell her it's your birthday today?"
"You can see how busy I've been lately. How could I have time to celebrate my birthday? Besides, she's still a student, no need to rush into talking about this."
"See, see? You've given yourself away. And you said you had no feelings."
Tan Jincheng smiled without speaking, nor did he deny it; there's nothing wrong with having feelings for someone of the opposite sex.
She has high looks, a good figure, is decisive in action, dares to try and learn new things, and possesses the pride and persistence of a wealthy girl, but all of this is built on sufficient self-confidence, not the unreasonable arrogance of "I'm the boss and I own the Shu Road" type.
Tan Jincheng saw in her the gentle elegance of a Jiangnan woman, as well as the independence and self-reliance of a modern woman, which is very admirable.
If possible, Tan Jincheng certainly wouldn't mind being in a relationship with her, but it's really not suitable at the moment.
At the very least, he'd have to wait until her third year of university for her official internship, otherwise, it would easily cause gossip.
On the other hand, he genuinely hasn't had time for romance in the past two years.
The most important thing right now is naturally to make money, make money, make money!
For a company to grow bigger and stronger, good planning is essential.
The current plan is naturally to excel in the electric scooter business.
If 2005 is defined as the startup phase, Tan Jincheng hopes that Flashride will achieve a qualitative leap in both production capacity and brand status in 2006.
After entering 2008, with the global financial crisis and the rapid decline in economic growth, coupled with the four-trillion-yuan stimulus plan launched to stimulate the economy, China's economy will enter a period of rapid and vigorous development, with all industries moving forward quickly.
The electric vehicle industry is no exception; competitors are increasing, and industry involution is accelerating.
Flashride must accumulate certain capital before this to cope with market risks.
If 2004 is defined as the year of the first pot of gold, then 2005 to 2008 can be called Tan Jincheng's dream years.
Doing well in these four years, and securing a place in the electric scooter market, is the only way to realize his dream of new energy vehicles.
To build the initial framework of his dream in five years and live a life different from his previous one.
Time waits for no one; the easiest era to make money must not be missed.
Once all sorts of capital enter the arena, there will be no opportunities left for ordinary people.
As for romance, let it take its natural course.
Progressing step by step is also quite good.
After all, even by 2008, he will only be 23 years old, so there's absolutely no need to rush.
---
In the provincial capital of Henan Province, Lin Yumin squatted by a roadside trash can, smoking without any regard for appearances.
Beside him were several of his subordinates, also squatting or standing, smoking just as unceremoniously.
After taking the last puff, Lin Yumin extinguished the cigarette in his hand, threw it into the trash can, and pointed, saying,
"Brothers, see that electric scooter specialty store across the street? Once we secure this one, we can go back to Beicang for a good rest."
No sooner had he finished speaking than several of his employees cheered.
In July and August in China, the weather is very hot and humid, and business trips during this period are truly exhausting.
The exposed skin of the group had already tanned several shades darker.
Although it was hard work, Lin Yumin's eyes were now shining brightly.
At 35 years old, a bold adventure to leave the system seemed to have rekindled the passion he had in his twenties during the past half-month.
Visiting stores, communicating, promoting the brand, discussing cooperation intentions, signing contracts, going back at night to write summaries, reporting to and communicating with Boss Tan—his days were packed, and his life was exceptionally fulfilling.
This was an experience he hadn't had before at the petrochemical factory.
Through his interactions with Boss Tan, Lin Yumin had developed a clearer understanding of Flashride.
Extensive online and offline marketing, being the first in the industry to invite a celebrity to endorse their product, workers in the workshop toiling day and night—everything indicated that the young Boss Tan had a dream of challenging the industry's top players; he was truly ambitious.
Lin Yumin, with many years of marketing experience, was greatly impressed by Tan Jincheng's marketing plans.
They say every boss in a private enterprise is a sales champion, and it seems this saying is true.
Soft articles in QQ Zone and forum posts subtly introduced the Flashride brand to netizens, while the widespread broadcast of TV commercials and its association with current hot topic figures were like a sudden clap of thunder.
All of this seemed to have been planned by Tan Jincheng, and the timing was impeccable.
If no major errors occur in future large decisions, even when facing competitors, Lin Yumin is confident that Flashride will not be what it is today in a few years.
Perhaps by then, Flashride will also have its own production base, just like Xinri, the current industry leader.
Like boarding a high-speed train just as it departs, Lin Yumin was filled with anticipation for the future.
At the same time, Wu Zhenping, located in Yingzhou, Northern Anhui, had a similar feeling to Lin Yumin.
(End of Chapter)
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