2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 223 A Soft Yet Firm Approach (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

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Did your boss say when he'll be back?

"The boss is currently in Guangxi Province and hasn't said when he'll be back yet, but it should be soon; the event there is almost over."

"Alright then, ask them when they're coming back. It's not good to keep going around playing every day."

Zhang Xuhui nodded, but in his heart he was thinking, "We didn't invite you over. You came on your own. Otherwise, I could have stayed at home a few more days."

Indeed, after Xu Xueming talked with Zhang Xuhui twice in Yicheng, he asked Zhang Xuhui to accompany him to Beicang under the pretext of an inspection. Zhang Xuhui had no choice but to come with him.

He had informed the boss before coming, but the boss was busy preparing for the "Ten Thousand Miles Trip" event and ignored him, moving to the city to live instead. He no longer came to the company and left Xu Xueming to him.

Zhang Xuhui had no choice but to accompany him throughout the visit to the factory, the industrial base under construction, and to have some food, drinks, and fun.

Through this interaction, Zhang Xuhui also experienced the difference in the working styles of the two places. There would be some hospitality tasks here, but most of them were normal "celebrations" after the cooperation was agreed upon.

When discussing cooperation, such as during meetings, things can be very simple. You can do it in the company cafeteria or even order takeout, and no one will say anything.

This situation of taking him around to play is something that has never happened before.

However, the boss said that normal hospitality, even if it's a little over the limit, is fine with him. As for other things, just ignore him and pretend you didn't understand the implication to avoid getting into any trouble.

Let him play for as many days as he wants. He'll remind you when he gets tired of it or when he's in a hurry to talk business.

Sure enough, after wandering around Ningbo for four or five days, this guy finally remembered his business. The boss was coming back soon, so he could finally relax.

"The days of entertaining guests with meals and drinks are coming to an end, sigh." Zhang Xuhui sighed inwardly.

He was also benefiting from this opportunity. Since arriving in Ningbo, he had not yet visited the city. He had not even been to the Jiufeng Mountain scenic area within Beicang, let alone the City God Temple. This was a good opportunity for him to travel on public funds.

They had talked twice in Yicheng, but Xu Xueming insisted on cooperation and ignored Zhang Xuhui's demand for a price that was simply for the acquisition of intangible assets. So there was no point in talking. However, after several contacts, Zhang Xuhui did get some useful information.

The reason the other party was so calm was that, in addition to FlashTech, another company was also interested in Andar's intangible assets. This company was also an electric vehicle company located in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province.

This company focuses on developing electric vehicles and plans to build an electric vehicle factory in Wangjiang County, which is under the jurisdiction of Yicheng, so as to continue to make the Andar brand shine in the market.

Through his connections, Zhang Xuhui also discovered that the electric vehicle company was just a small workshop with a registered capital of only 100 million yuan. In the owner's words, it was a complete sham, as the concept of electric vehicles didn't even exist in the market back then.

He probably wanted to use a low price to swindle the intangible assets into his hands. As for when to build the factory, that was entirely up to him, as was how to build it.

In fact, if FlashTech had agreed to the car manufacturer's request in the same way, acquiring intangible assets would not have been difficult, and the advantage would have been even greater. But Tan Jincheng couldn't do that.

The other party is not from Yicheng, so they can take the assets and run away. But all my social connections in the first half of my life were in Yicheng, and I can never deny that I am from Yicheng. I can't fool Yicheng.

In terms of the difficulty of the negotiations, FlashTech is more difficult, but there are advantages to being more difficult. As long as this negotiation is successful, many other troubles will be reduced in the future.

February 13, the sixteenth day of the first lunar month.

Tan Jincheng, who had returned to Ningbo via Nanning, met with Xu Xueming in his new factory office.

"Manager Xu, I'm sorry for the neglect. I made the plans before the New Year, and I have to attend this event, otherwise it will affect the marketing plan for the next few months."

Upon meeting, Tan Jincheng poured tea, offered cigarettes, and apologized repeatedly.

Xu Xueming was indeed somewhat dissatisfied, having been left hanging in Ningbo for several days. However, given Tan Jincheng's attitude and the fact that he met with him as soon as he returned, he couldn't say anything more.

Although he spent most of his time sightseeing these past few days, he also did some serious work. He and his entourage visited Flash Technology's two existing factories and the industrial base currently under construction.

The two factories are not large, but their production speed is extremely fast. Electric vehicles are in high demand and short supply, being shipped out in large quantities, leaving almost no inventory in the warehouse. I also visited the FlashTech Technology's direct-sale store in Beicang. Just after the Spring Festival, a new batch of migrant workers, led by veteran factory employees, came into the store to buy electric vehicles, and business was booming.

In addition to enjoying in-store discounts, employees of Flashpoint Technology can also receive a 200 yuan coupon. This 200 yuan coupon is not limited to personal use; you can sell it to others as you see fit.

However, each person only has one chance. Some employees who do not need to buy a car will sell the coupons at a discount to their friends or fellow villagers. The direct sales agents do not care about this; they only care about the coupons.

Anyway, the company has issued fewer than 1000 coupons so far, and the store staff can count whether they are fake.

In addition, you can enjoy a discount of 100 yuan by presenting your previous purchase invoice. You can also trade in your old car for a new one at the store. This 100 yuan discount can be used in conjunction with employee coupons, regardless of the car model.

Based on the starting price of 1999 for the Flash Charge model, with the two discounts combined, an electric scooter can be purchased for only 1699 yuan. This price is very attractive given the current general price increase of electric scooters.

Xu Xueming was naturally unaware of these details; he only noticed that the store was doing very well, and he also learned about Flash Technology's sales figures from Zhang Xuhui last year.

In just six months since it officially went on sale at the end of the year, it has sold 3.8 electric vehicles, with sales exceeding 6000 million yuan, making it a medium-sized enterprise.

This company has only been established for six months. During the visit, Xu Xueming also learned about FlashTech's sales expectations for this year. It has to be said that they are very ambitious. FlashTech's sales target for the whole year is 20 vehicles!

If we can achieve this sales volume, it will be more than 3 million yuan in production and sales for the whole year.

Compared to the electric vehicle company in Taizhou, FlashTech is on a completely different level. If such a company were located in Yicheng, it would be a household name.

It would be wonderful if Yicheng could be brought in, but unfortunately this young man seems to have no interest in investing in his hometown.

Sigh, young people these days have no sense of building their hometowns at all. Why can't they accept cooperation?

"I understand. It's understandable that Mr. Tan is busy with such a big business. It's alright. There's no rush between us. Cooperation can't be decided in a day or two," Xu Xueming said with a forced smile.

“Thank you very much for your understanding, Mr. Xu. In order not to take up any more of your time, let’s get back to the main topic. I heard that Mr. Xu is not satisfied with our quote?” Tan Jincheng said with a smile.

"I'm not dissatisfied with the price, but I feel the cooperation method is a bit inappropriate. Mr. Tan is also from Yicheng and grew up in the petrochemical family area. Does he really have no interest in investing in his hometown?"

As for the quotes, Xu Xueming had no complaints. FlashTech offered 200 million yuan, while the electric vehicle company in Taizhou offered 80 yuan plus expected R&D investment in electric vehicles.

In terms of price alone, FlashTech can be considered somewhat sincere, but Xu Xueming clearly wants more. The 200 million is a one-time price, and what happens afterward has nothing to do with him.

If the higher-ups think the price was too low, they will definitely hold them accountable. But with an expected value of 80+, even if they know the company is not very reputable and may be a big liar, at least there is an expectation, which satisfies the higher-ups' lingering hope for the Andar brand, making the probability of being held accountable much smaller.

The expectation could be one year, two or three years, or even more years. After many years, it will have nothing to do with you anymore.

As for the rest, Xu Xueming did nothing.

To be honest, Xu Xueming actually preferred dealing with Mr. Lin from Taizhou. Mr. Lin was a seasoned veteran, very shrewd and shrewd, unlike this young man in front of him, who was completely unyielding. How could anyone do business like that?
However, in Tan Jincheng's view, doing business really can be done this way. This is no longer the era of ragtag behavior. Doing business honestly, contributing to the local economy, and solving employment problems can also make money.

While taking a roundabout route may indeed provide shortcuts, not everyone can take those shortcuts. If you fail to acquire Andar, you only lose one opportunity. You can always look for another opportunity in the future, or you can realize your car manufacturing dream by borrowing qualifications, like Chery, Geely, or even Zotye.

But taking shortcuts will only create a huge hidden danger for your future.

"I can't accept Mr. Xu's words. As a native of Yicheng, I certainly have the idea of ​​investing in the development of my hometown, but at the moment we really have no intention of investing in automobiles. As you know, our company has another shareholder, Beicang City Investment. It's not possible for me to make the whole decision on such a big matter as manufacturing automobiles."

“However, since Mr. Xu brought this up, I can offer another solution.”

"I acquired Andar's intangible assets for 500 million yuan. In addition, I invested in building an electric vehicle logistics transfer center in Yicheng. In the future, it will radiate to Central China and even Western China through the Yangtze River waterway and land transportation channels. The scale will not be small."

"Furthermore, I can personally donate funds to my hometown to improve people's livelihoods. In addition, I can promise that if Flash Technology has any new industrial plans in the future, I will also consider Yicheng."

Tan Jincheng's words, though seemingly gentle, carried a firm edge, leaving Xu Xueming stunned for a moment before he finally reacted and said in a deep voice, "I'll report it to my superiors."

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(End of this chapter)