2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 311 The Essence of a Merchant

Tan Jincheng brought his mother and younger sister with him to the meeting in Hangzhou on the 8th.

After arriving in Beicang, my mother stayed at home taking care of the children, except for a few days after the May Day holiday when she went out to play. She would also visit my uncle occasionally, so her life was rather monotonous and boring.

This trip to Hangzhou, including a weekend, will last four days, which is perfect for taking my mom to West Lake.

"You're going to a meeting, it's for work. Won't it be a bad influence if my daughter and I come with you?" Although she said this, Zhang Suzhi was actually very happy inside.

After her daughter was born, she became a full-time housewife and rarely went out when she was at home in Yicheng.

But who doesn't yearn to go out and see the world?

"It's okay. On the day of my meeting, I'll have Brother Li accompany you and Jin Yue out for a stroll. Or if you don't want to go out, you can just stay in the hotel. The meeting will only last one day. I'll take you around Hangzhou then. Hangzhou is quite beautiful."

"It would be great if Qingqing could come and play with us," Zhang Suzhi said with some regret.

Gu Qingqing often visits her, sometimes bringing some classmates along, which adds a lot of color to her boring life. She is very satisfied with her son's girlfriend.

"She's been very busy lately, with exams coming up and some company business to attend to. But her birthday is on the 15th, Mom. Do you think we should pick out a gift for her in Hangzhou?"

"The 15th, isn't that next Thursday?" Zhang Suzhi calculated the date.

"Yes, it's her 19th birthday. Mom, have you thought about what to buy for her? We can go to her school together to celebrate her birthday."

"Okay, let me think about what would be suitable to buy."

For parents, their future daughter-in-law's birthday is a very important event. People in Yicheng value etiquette and attach great importance to gifts, big and small. In the past, families like Tan Lihua's had many brothers on both sides, and there were considerable expenses during festivals. But now they don't have to worry about these things.

Tan Jinyue was overjoyed on her second long trip, chattering incessantly in the car. It's good to be rich; the GL8 that Lai Yiu-fai had wanted before has already been arranged, and this trip will be in the GL8.

Although she has accepted the fact that her son is very rich, Zhang Suzhi still can't stand the fact that her son changes cars so often. As far as she knows, this is the fifth car he has owned in the past two years, including the one Qingqing drives.

However, Zhang Suzhi also knew that she couldn't control this matter, so she shouldn't nag about it too often, lest her son get annoyed.

"Stay with Mom and wait for your brother to come home from get off work. Don't be naughty."

After checking in, Tan Jincheng said to Tan Jinyue that a child who is almost two years old is at the most fun age, which is why Tan Jincheng likes to bring Tan Jinyue along.

In my past life, I was selling boxed lunches at this time, and I wouldn't finish until 2008. Back then, I didn't have the opportunity to take her out to play often like this.

"Okay, I'll listen to my brother." The little voice was so sweet and pleasant to hear.

"Are you going to listen to your brother or your mother?"

"I will listen to what my mother says."

"Okay, then stay with Mom. I'm leaving now."
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"Mr. Tan, we meet again."

"Hello, Mr. Ni, it's nice to see you again. Please call me Xiao Tan." Tan Jincheng bowed slightly.

The visitor was the chairman of Lvyuan. I had met him once at the Shanghai National Autonomous Association Conference. He was a very impressive person. He was among the first batch of college students to take the college entrance examination after it was reinstated. He graduated from the Department of Radio Engineering at the University of Science and Technology of China and also had some connections with Anhui Province.

After obtaining his master's degree, he also taught public relations and economic cybernetics at the Department of Business and Economics of Ningbo University. In the 80s, these two courses were new and emerging.

These two resumes alone are incredibly impressive, and Tan Jincheng wouldn't dare to spout nonsense like he did in front of Dong Jinggui and Zhang Congxun.

After all, one graduated from junior high school and the other from high school; they're pretty much evenly matched.

"Haha, Mr. Tan is different from what I imagined. He's quite modest. Alright, since I'm about the same age as your father, calling you 'Little Tan' isn't considered taking advantage of my age."

"How could that be? You are a senior in this industry and have contributed a lot to promoting its development. We are all very grateful to you," Tan Jincheng said with a smile.

This man can be considered an academic businessman. In 1989, he and his wife, who also has a high level of education, started their own business and founded Green Plain. Over the years, he has been working hard to promote the development of the industry.

During an interview with CCTV last year, he offered many suggestions, calling for a focus on energy and environmental strategies, particularly on how to meet the basic travel needs of the people and properly address the issue of electric vehicles.

Following these calls, various regions successively introduced new electric vehicle policies, creating a more favorable environment for the development of electric vehicles.

To a certain extent, the explosive growth in electric vehicle production capacity and sales this year is a result of his efforts over the years.

The Zhejiang Business Leader of the Year in 2005 was indeed quite right.

"Haha, you flatter me. Business is business. I'm just trying to help Lvyuan sell more cars," Ni Jie laughed.

He'd heard plenty of flattery, but hearing such words from this year's hottest industry peer still made Ni Jie feel very pleased. "No flattery, the electric vehicle market has exploded so quickly this year, which is directly related to your efforts last year. The progress of any industry cannot be separated from policy support."

"No, no." Ni Jie waved his hands repeatedly, but he agreed with the latter part of Tan Jincheng's words.

After being praised by his junior colleague for so long, Ni Jie was a little embarrassed: "Xiao Tan, you are still young. I heard that you missed going to university because of an accident. Are you interested in learning something else? Doing business also requires continuous learning."

"I would like to, but I don't have the opportunity. I don't even know if Anhui University still wants me," Tan Jincheng said with a smile.

Actually, I've long wanted to improve my education level. I didn't have the opportunity in my previous life, but if it's possible in this life, I'd like to give it a try.

"Haha, if you're willing to go, it doesn't have to be a university in Anhui Province. Ningbo University or other universities in Zhejiang Province would also be fine."

"Oh? What do you say?"

"If you're interested, I have some connections at Ningbo University, so I should be able to put in a good word for you. Your company is in Ningbo, so you should still have a chance to get into Ningbo University."

"Of course I'd like to, thank you so much, Mr. Ni," Tan Jincheng said happily.

Unexpectedly, this is a pleasant surprise. For the next six months, Flash should not be too busy.

Each aspect of production, sales, and marketing has a specific person in charge. Taking advantage of such an opportunity to study at a university can both improve oneself and expand one's network of contacts.

Flashpoint's biggest shortage right now is high-end talent, and apart from headhunter recommendations, there aren't any other particularly good channels.

For a company to continue growing to its current stage, it must improve itself; otherwise, even if it becomes truly large, Tan Jincheng may not be able to control it.

"Okay, I'll ask around for you after the meeting, but whether it works out or not is another matter," Ni Jie nodded.

Many universities offer corporate training programs, which is not difficult to arrange, but we shouldn't be too sure about it.

"Okay, okay, thank you so much, Mr. Ni."

Sometimes being young is a good thing. Tan Jincheng can shamelessly flatter others to gain favor, but when it comes to market competition, he can play the game as he pleases, showing his mature side.

Having two faces, separating business interactions from private ones, won't make people feel too offended.

In the Zhejiang market, Flash's main competitor is not Chipray or Yadi, but Green Source. Having cultivated the Zhejiang market for so long, it will be very difficult for Flash to surpass Green Source's brand awareness in Zhejiang in a short period of time.

However, none of this prevented Tan Jincheng from flattering Ni Jie, nor did it prevent Ni Jie from extending a friendly olive branch; market behavior should be left to the market.

Flash's current advantageous markets are mainly concentrated in Henan and Anhui provinces, as well as Nanning City in Guangxi province, and several major cities in Guangdong and Fujian provinces.

As a populous province and a labor-intensive city, and in Nanning, a futuristic city overflowing with electric vehicles, Flash has invested heavily in marketing to ensure that generations of people remember the Flash brand.

Next, Flash will also carry out large-scale promotional activities in Zhejiang Province. Previously, Flash did not put much effort into promotion in Zhejiang Province, firstly because it did not have enough energy, and secondly because it was simply no match for Green Field.

Currently, apart from Ningbo, its home base, where Flash can barely put up a fight, all other cities in Zhejiang Province are no match for Lvyuan.

While he was flattering and accepting the other party's kindness, Tan Jincheng was actually thinking about how to compete with Luyuan in the Zhejiang market.

Okay, let's arrange a fan meeting for Jay Chou in Hangzhou. Online voting is one thing, but you can also vote yourself.

In addition, Liu Yifei herself requested that one of the three fan meetings be held in Ningbo. With two large-scale marketing events in two cities, coupled with summer promotional activities, she should be able to gain a foothold in the Zhejiang market.

The online voting campaign is already underway, and all three spokespeople, including Chris Lee, have voted. However, Chris Lee's cities have already been decided: Xiangcheng, CD, and Yicheng.

Liu Yifei's cities have actually been decided: Ningbo, Jiangcheng, and Nanning. Ningbo was her own suggestion, while Jiangcheng and Nanning were suggestions from Tan Jincheng. Jiangcheng is her hometown, so there should be relatively fewer haters there.

As for Nan Ning, it's purely from a market perspective; Jiang Cheng holds a very important position in the promotion of the Flash brand.

As for Jay Chou, Tan Jincheng prefers Beijing, Shanghai, and Hangzhou. Firstly, his schedule is the most hectic; Jay Chou has been a workaholic these past two years, with his time extremely limited.

The three major cities offer convenient transportation, making arrangements easier. Furthermore, promoting the product in these major cities aligns better with Guanneng's high-end brand image.

While Tan Jincheng was chatting happily, his mind was on business, and so was Ni Jie's.

While other manufacturers were thriving, he was also a businessman, and as a businessman, he was driven by profit. Green Plains didn't want to lose the market, so he had to step in.

If the industry is doing well, it's time to return to business operations and not leave everything to the boss.

At the end of this month, Luyuan organized a gathering of nearly two hundred representatives from supporting suppliers and vendors across the country to prepare for a strategic alliance summit and future market competition.

(End of this chapter)