Rong Yang didn't come to Beijing very often, and he was always busy with important matters. But Rong Yang was able to take time out of his busy schedule to listen to the management report of the cosmetics factory, which showed how much Rong Yang valued the cosmetics factory.
Of course, this may also be due to the meticulousness of Rong Yang's identity as a businessman. No matter how small the business is, Rong Yang will not ignore it. What's more, it has only been half a year since the cosmetics factory was invested, and the investment cost has been recovered and it has started to make a profit. Now Wei Nian even has plans to expand the production line.
Rong Yang first listened to Wei Nian talk about the sales of cosmetics in the past few months. The sales figures have changed significantly since October. Rong Yang got straight to the point, "Sales in October, just talking about lipstick, have doubled compared to September. What's the reason?"
Wei Nian said, "We launched the colorless lip balm in September. There are two types of lip balm, one for adults and one for children, with a shelf life of three months. The weather in Beijing is dry and rainy, and many people are prone to dry and flaky lips. This colorless lip balm that moisturizes the lips has sold well since its launch. In addition, Axuan and her classmates have recruited a cosmetics agent at Peking University. This classmate who represents our cosmetics has first-class sales ability. She started in September, and her main products are lip balm, nail oil, and cleansing cream. She has been doing well. The agency price we gave her at the beginning was 30% off. Last month we wanted to sign a contract with her again. This is the content of the contract, please take a look." As he spoke, Wei Nian handed the contract to Rong Yang with both hands.
Rong Yang flipped through it casually and nodded, a satisfied look on his handsome face, "Not bad, we recruited a good talent. And he's a top student from Peking University. How did you recruit such a person?"
Wei Nian smiled at Chen Xuan, "It was A-Xuan and the others who discovered it, and it was also their suggestion to come up with the colorless lipstick."
Chen Xuan and Wei Nian made eye contact, and she naturally took over Wei Nian's words. Because she was very familiar with Rong Yang, Chen Xuan was not overly modest. She said matter-of-factly, "In fact, it was just a coincidence." She started from the store's lack of staff to hire temporary workers when they were doing activities, and continued to talk about Xu Ning's accidental proposal when she was short of money. Chen Xuan smiled, "A Ning is a very ambitious person. She doesn't have the airs of a rich girl at all. She does things very efficiently. At the beginning, she was just trying it out. I didn't expect her to do so well. I also sell cosmetics myself, but I sell them in the store, while A Ning is different. She studies at school and goes to dormitories to sell. In addition I have been to Peking University and other universities, as well as some textile factories, where there are more women. She is capable, and our overall sales volume has increased immediately. She is doing a good job, and we don’t want to lose money to her, so I discussed with Brother Nian and Yin and wanted to re-sign the contract with Ning. Give her a discount based on her order volume. If the volume is large, 60%, 50%, or 40% discounts are all fine. As long as her volume is large enough, we will give her more profits. After all, it is not easy to find someone like Ning who is capable and has a good temperament. Mr. Rong, please take a look at the contract we drafted first. If it is okay, we will sign it with Ning like this. I really want to keep Ning."
"Besides, the market here in Beijing is actually only this big. With our store and Aning, next year, we will focus on cleansing creams, soaps, and creams, as well as lip balms and nail polishes. After this year's development, next year should be a relatively slow growth. It won't be easy to have a sudden and large increase." Chen Xuan frowned slightly, "I've been thinking about this recently. After all, Beijing is a small city with so many people. Although we can still think of ways to do more activities, the overall consumption volume is certain. Aning said that we should send people to Tianjin to try to sell our cosmetics. I think this idea is very good, but there are no suitable candidates for the time being. Originally, Aning was very suitable, but she had to go to school. I discussed with Aning and wanted to try to recruit some sales staff. Mr. Rong, you know a lot of people. If there are people who are willing to go to Shanghai, Tianjin, and Qingdao to sell our cosmetics, they will know the basics better than the people we recruit." Chen Xuan naturally wanted to hear what Rong Yang meant. After all, in Chen Xuan's view, Mr. Rong was full of wisdom and should be able to give them guidance.
On the other hand, Wei Nian didn't think Rong Yang would have the right person. If Rong Yang had someone who made cosmetics, the brand wouldn't have failed.
However, Rong Yang did not recommend a candidate, not because he did not have such a person under his command. Rong Yang said, "If I really want to pick someone, I can pick one. But, you should be in charge of the cosmetics. It is better for you to be in charge of everything from research and development to sales. As for manpower, if you don't have it, go and recruit it. For a sales expert like Xu Ning, it is worth it even if it takes more time and effort and gives up a reasonable profit. In addition, I have another suggestion. If there is no ready-made suitable candidate, you can try to train such a person yourself."
Rong Yang's voice was neither too loud nor too low, but the content of the conversation opened up a new world of insights for Chen Xuan. Rong Yang said, "No one in the world is born good at something. For example, in the past, people started as apprentices, clerks, managers, and shopkeepers, working their way up one level at a time. There is not much difference between now and before. But there are also differences."
After a pause, Rong Yang tapped the contract signed between the factory and Xu Ning with his curved fingers, and said slowly, "The biggest difference is that education has changed from the previous private, privileged education for a small number of people to the current increasingly open education facing the general public and men and women tending to be equal. Moreover, this is the mainstream of the future society. Social change also lies in the reshuffle of classes. Since Puyi abdicated, the government was first controlled by the Beiyang warlords and is now in power by the Kuomintang. But one thing we must understand is that the social classes of officials, farmers, merchants and artisans advocated in the past during the Qing Dynasty are no longer applicable now. The status of businessmen is improving, and the status of women is also improving. Therefore, for people with higher education, doing business has also become a good choice. National industry was born from this. "Mr. Sheng, the original Westernization Movement was intended to revitalize our nation from the perspectives of business and technology. This is a far-fetched statement. It is good that you are not rigidly attached to gender when hiring people. What I want to remind you is that in any era, differences in education will become an important reason for class division. On the other hand, education is just a symbolic rule for the world's general understanding of knowledge. Whether a person is knowledgeable or not can be determined by his level of education, but don't just look at his level of education. You must first find the right person, whether he has received higher education or not, his knowledge and character are good enough, and he is willing to work in our industry. You must train him to be a person suitable for our brand sales. Once the person is trained, he can go out to work."
In the past, Chen Xuan might not have understood what Rong Yang said.
But now, Chen Xuan can completely understand Rong Yang's meaning. Chen Xuan is convinced, "Mr. Rong still sees further."
Rong Yang smiled, "The smooth road has always been there, and it is not a secret. The only difference is whether someone is willing to take it. You and Ah Nian are both willing to work hard and make efforts. Sooner or later, you will understand what I said."
"How is this the same? If I were asked to think about it myself, I would probably think about it for a very long time." Chen Xuan smiled and glanced at Wei Nian, "However, Brother Anian is smarter than me. Brother Anian should have thought of it earlier than me."
Wei Nian looked at her helplessly, feeling that these words sounded like consolation.
Wei Nian also had something to discuss with Rong Yang, which was a proposal to create another ordinary brand. Wei Nian said, "Like Siqing's lip balm, nail polish, and soap, we are positioned as a mid-to-high-end brand of domestic cosmetics. These things are sold to ladies with a certain economic foundation, but now, after all, most of them are ordinary people. I wonder if we can create a low-end brand, pig pancreas soap, when we have soap-making machines in the future. Pig pancreas soap is the soap that women in ordinary families use to wash clothes. Now, even families in the village who grow a little more than two acres of land will use pig pancreas soap to wash clothes. The sales range of pig pancreas soap is not only in big cities, but also in counties and towns. As long as it is managed properly, the volume will be huge and the profit will not be low."
"You can try it. What's the brand?"
"Clean." Wei Nian said, pig pancreas soap, isn't it meant to wash clothes clean.
Rong Yang commented, "Too ordinary."
Then, Rong Yang thought of something unusual, "Let's call it Super Clean."
Chen Xuan immediately said, "Mr. Rong, this is a good idea. If I were to buy it, I would buy this super one."
Wei Nian glanced at Chen Xuan, this is really a flatterer! Chen Xuan saw Wei Nian's dissatisfaction and said with a smile, "This is what Mr. Rong thought. Just like the domestic cosmetics we sell now, Kong Fengchun and Xie Fuchun are the time-honored brands, but the best-selling ones are not them, but Wudi. This brand is well-known, and many customers like Wudi's products. I also think that this brand name is very impressive!"
Chen Xuan's well-reasoned words made Rong Yang smile. Wei Nian didn't argue with her and smiled, "Yes, very impressive."
Chen Xuan tilted her head and smiled, then took out a small notebook from her bag and looked at it. She had discussed everything she had discussed with Rong Yang. Chen Xuan said, "These are the things I came here to discuss with Mr. Rong today. Mr. Rong, if you think there are any shortcomings in our work, please tell us directly so that we can improve it."
Rong Yang smiled and stood up, "Let's go eat now."
Ever since she met Rong Yang, Chen Xuan had determined that Rong Yang was a first-rate person in terms of both character and knowledge. Chen Xuan liked to be with outstanding people, and since she was so familiar with Rong Yang, she happily agreed. Wei Nian was not a rigid person, but even Rong Yang did not expect that Wen Yaying would suddenly call and ask to come over for dinner.
Rong Yang looked at Wei Nian and Chen Xuan, "I saw you two together at the dance that day, so you must be familiar with each other. Why don't you have dinner together?"
When Chen Xuan heard that Wen Yaying was coming over, her interest in having dinner with Rong Yang was reduced by three points. Chen Xuan asked Rong Yang, "Mr. Rong, is Miss Wen really your cousin?"
"Yes, my mother and Yaying's mother are sisters."
Chen Xuan nodded, thinking about Mr. Rong's character, it was incredible that Miss Wen was actually Mr. Rong's cousin.
Chen Xuan didn't say anything more about Wen Yaying, but listened to Wei Nian and Rong Yang chatting. Wen Yaying came very quickly, and when she saw Wei Nian and Chen Xuan, her delicately made-up face showed a little surprise, and she smiled and sat down, "I didn't know that my cousin had guests here."
"I'm inviting Anian and Axuan to dinner today. You came at the right time. We ordered dishes from Yuhuatai. Don't you like their soup dumplings the most?" Rong Yang asked Wen Yaying to sit down. Wen Yaying took the coffee from the servant and smiled, "Cousin, you're inviting Mrs. Wei to dinner, so you should cater to her preferences. Mrs. Wei doesn't like Huaiyang cuisine. I heard that Mrs. Wei likes the big steamed buns with mixed sugar from Tongheju. One and a half catties is enough to fill you up. And the braised pork elbow from Tianfuhao, right, Mrs. Wei?"
"The big steamed buns with mixed sugar at Tongheju are delicious, and the pork elbows in sauce at Tianfuhao are also delicious. However, I haven't eaten at Yuhuatai yet, and I really want to try it. The last time I went to Shanghai, I also liked Shanghai cuisine. I like to eat all delicious food, regardless of whether it's from the north or the south." Chen Xuan didn't care whether Wen Yaying was making fun of her. She asked, "Mr. Rong, do you know Japanese?"
Rong Yang: "I know a thing or two."
Chen Xuan's eyes lit up, and she said to Rong Yang, "Mr. Rong, I am learning Japanese now. I will speak in Japanese. You are welcome to do whatever you want. I have just started learning, so if I have any pronunciation problems, just correct me." Then, Chen Xuan started to speak Japanese. She was really annoyed with Wen Yaying. She heard that Wen Yaying studied in the United States. Wen Yaying gave up her studies halfway, so Chen Xuan thought that she didn't understand Japanese. Sure enough, Wen Yaying listened to Chen Xuan's chattering. Although Rong Yang didn't speak Japanese for Wen Yaying's sake and still spoke Mandarin, Wen Yaying didn't understand a word of Chen Xuan's chattering.
Especially, Wei Nian's Japanese was also good, and he would gently chime in from time to time. So, Wen Yaying watched the three of them chatting happily, but she couldn't get a word in, and she was very angry.
The author has something to say: ps: The first update is here, the second update will be in the evening~~~~~~~~~~~