Chapter 638 – Immediate success
All of Tai Hua Supermarkets opened at the same time except for the Beijing branch. The opening was delayed for half an hour for Iron-fist Zhu’s visit.
After Iron-fist Zhu made payments for his purchases and left, the store manager looked at his watch and waved his hand. “It’s time! Open the doors!”
The doors opened, and a big crowd rushed in. Some people knew there were discounted items and were there to get the bargain. Some were there just to take a look, and some were there to look at the leaders. Some did not even know what was happening. They only saw a crowd gathering and went over to see what was going on.
“Tian Peng Pigs is 10 cents cheaper per catty. Hurry up and get some before it’s sold out.”
“I heard there is an in-store promotion today. Wind and Rain VCD players and other products will be having a discount. The VCD player is only selling for 1,599 RMB.”
“I heard the Wind and Rain Super fan is also having a promotion. I want to buy one of them. It can also be used during winters.”
“Do you all know? I heard that imported goods are selling here. You cannot get them elsewhere.”
……
Luckily, Feng Yu had predicted this would happen. Tai Hua Supermarket had given out lots of fliers and 3 days before the opening, they organized promotional events to promote the supermarkets. There will surely be a huge crowd. Feng Yu had hired lots of people for crowd control and even asked the local authorities to send policemen there.
Those policemen were there to help maintain order. But they were not working for free. Shopping cards were given to them as an appreciation for their help. At the same time, Tai Hua Supermarket was able to foster better relationships with the local police officers.
Those who were there just to watch the ceremony also entered the supermarkets. But after they entered the supermarket, they realized this supermarket was huge. One could find almost anything in there.
The products were cheaper than what the shoppers could find elsewhere. Some products were less expensive by a few cents and some products like Wind and Rain VCD players were even cheaper by a few hundred RMB.
The shoppers also saw lots of newly launched products like Wind and Rain Super VCD players, Aiwa’s pagers that give stock prices updates, The Little Tyrant’s second generation of learning machine, etc.
This stock pager was a modern device in this era. It looks like a standard pager, but it will update the user on the stock prices and other related news. This was very important for those who play shares.
Aiwa Electronics had developed this product two months ago and was ready to mass produce it. But Feng Yu waited until the opening of Tai Hua Supermarket to launch this product together with the Super VCD players.
Those distributors were unhappy with the lowered retail prices for the VCD players at first. Although the supplier prices were reduced, their profits had shrunk too.
But when the distributors knew that Tai Hua Trading was the main distributor for the Super VCD players, and the Super VCD players were more expensive, advanced and had a higher profit margin, they were pleased.
Also, all the distributors were present at Tai Hua Supermarkets’ opening ceremony. They also brought their business partners and friends with them.
The distributors thought Tai Hua Supermarket would be proud of their presences, but when they arrived at the opening ceremony, they realized that they were considered nobody there.
The City’s leaders were considered low ranked officials at the opening ceremony. Almost all the top officials from the Provincial government were invited. Also, all the top businessmen from the province were also present. All the guests were the powerful connections of Tai Hua Supermarket Corporation shareholders.
But the distributors were looking down on this business in their hearts. This was only a supermarket. How much can you earn from this business? They also heard that the goods sold there were cheaper than in other places.
Although this would attract customers, the profits will be lower. Even with high traffic, the profits will not be high.
Furthermore, Tai Hua Supermarket did not rent the building. They bought the whole building, and most of the supermarkets were built by them. Only a handful of the supermarkets were renovated from old shopping malls. The initial investments should be very high.
The interior renovations and fittings should also cost a lot. From the distributors’ point of view, Feng Yu was taking a considerable risk in this venture.
The distributors also saw some familiar guests at the venue. Those guests were Tai Hua Trading’s suppliers. Were they also the suppliers for Tai Hua Supermarkets?
The distributors were only hoping that Tai Hua Supermarkets will not suffer too many losses and affect Tai Hua Trading. They do not want to be affected by the failure of this supermarket.
But as the supermarket opened its doors, the distributors were shocked. Had these people gone mad? Why were they rushing in?
Wow…… That old man looks like he is 72 years old and he was as nimble as a 27 years old young man.
Look! That old man even manages to push some young men aside. Was his hair dyed white? How can that old man be so strong?
If there were not so many staffs and policemen maintaining order, there might be a stampede.
Zhong Qingxian was also shocked to see so many people rushing into the supermarket. The supermarket was so popular on its opening day. If the supermarket was able to retain 10% of today’s crowd, then it should not be a problem for the supermarket to achieve high profits.
“Manager Feng, seems like your Tai Hua Supermarket is a success.”
Feng Yu laughed and waved his hand. “It’s too early to say this. We can only tell whether if it is a success after one month. Word of mouth is the most important factor. If the shoppers did not like our supermarkets after they enter, they would not come back again. If all of them enjoyed shopping here, then it will be impossible for us to fail!”
……
That evening, CCTV news reported about the meeting between the Chief Architect, Iron-fist Zhu, and Superman Li. The report states that Superman Li was in Beijing for the opening of Tai Hua Supermarket, and there was close-up footage of the supermarket.”
The midnight news showed an extended version of this report. It was extended from 2 minutes to 5 minutes.
The morning news the next day reported on the crowd at the opening of the supermarket and two lucky shoppers who won the lucky draw. The reporters also interviewed random shoppers. But those “random shoppers” were prearranged by Tai Hua Supermarkets, and they only mentioned good things about the supermarket. The items they “bought” were all given to them free by Tai Hua Supermarkets.
Many elderly viewers who watched last night and the next morning news brought their shopping bags with them to Tai Hua Supermarkets after their morning exercise. They heard that the things at Tai Hua Supermarkets were cheaper than other places. Their neighbors had gone there yesterday, and even the top official of China shopped there!
The afternoon news reported on Superman Li again, and Tai Hua Supermarket’s name was mentioned once more. That afternoon, shoppers were streaming into Tai Hua Supermarkets nonstop. The staffs had to replenish the goods on the shelves again and again.
Tai Hua Supermarket was a success!