Starting a new chapter in life

Chapter 157 Beverages Now Available

This is why when Xiao Chen, the clerk, mentioned it to his uncle, his uncle asked Jing Yan and the others to come and talk to him. The business of the supply and marketing cooperative was affected, and the sales department was the first to be held accountable. Chen Hanqin was a smart man and thought that if the retail volume was affected, then going to wholesale was a way out.

However, there are really not many small vendors who can wholesale. When his nephew told him about this, he discovered an opportunity to solve his current predicament. This is also why Jingyan and the others were able to get in touch with him so easily.

If this had happened a year or two earlier, let alone Xiao Chen, he wouldn't have bothered to deal with it even if his parents had intervened. He certainly wouldn't have been so polite and attentive now, with tea and water served.

However, this is often the case; heroes are made by the times, and it is simply the inevitable trend of the times.

He Zhijun was smart enough, and Chen Hanqin was willing to cooperate. It didn't take long to finalize the cooperation. The next step was to discuss the specific purchase quantity, unit price, transportation, and other details. At this point, Jing Yan's participation was needed, since no one knew the required amount better than her.

At first, Jingyan was hesitant to order too much wine. After inquiring about the wholesale price and minimum order quantity, she decided to order 100 bottles of Shikumen Shaoxing wine and 50 bottles of Huadiao Shaoxing wine per month for the time being.

Moutai is a high-end liquor, and we only have twenty bottles ordered each month. It's a small business; even if we ordered more, we might not be able to sell them all. Although baijiu (Chinese liquor) increases in value with age, it has very strict storage requirements, and Jingyan isn't willing to take the risk. She's ordering this amount first, and if business is good later, she can restock.

Bulk liquor is easy to arrange, thirty jin (approximately 15 kg) per month, which is three large barrels. Of course, Zhang Gong liquor, a low-alcohol liquor, is also indispensable. Many men in Shanghai don't like strong liquor like men in the north because they can't handle it. This kind of low-alcohol liquor is very suitable for people who like good liquor but have a low alcohol tolerance. Jing Yan gritted her teeth and ordered five cases, or sixty bottles, per month.

Beer was ordered the most because Jingyan believed that beer would be the most popular drink. Among these beverages, only beer could be chilled in the refrigerator, making it perfect for pairing with barbecue in hot weather. Therefore, she initially ordered thirty cases per month.

Chen Hanqin was surprised that Jing Yan would order so much on her first order. He had originally thought that even if Jing Yan was bold, she would only buy according to the minimum order quantity, and that she would need to try it out for at least two or three months before determining her monthly needs.

To my surprise, she placed an order based on her monthly needs. It would be a lie to say I wasn't pleasantly surprised. I was also very pleased that my usually unreliable nephew had finally done something good.

Both parties had a clear intention to cooperate, and the contract was quickly drafted and signed. Chen Hanqin promised to deliver the wine to the merchant ship that replenished the Changxing Island Supply and Marketing Cooperative at the beginning of each month, and Jing Yan would take the token to pick up the goods.

After picking up and checking the goods and signing the acceptance form, the payment can be transferred from the post office to the supply and marketing cooperative's corporate account. This saves Jingyan the trouble of running back and forth, and Jingyan doesn't need to ask Yuan Xiaoling and her husband to rent a cargo ship, saving on shipping costs.

The alcoholic beverages are sold at 80% of the retail price in Jingyan's shop. If they were sold at the same price as the supply and marketing cooperative, there would be a 20% gross profit margin.

Of course, prices can be adjusted upwards appropriately, but not exceeding 30% of the supply and marketing cooperative's retail price. In other words, Jingyan has a range of 50% gross profit margin for alcoholic beverages, depending on how she sets the prices.

Since it was only halfway through April, Jingyan paid for the drinks needed for the next two weeks, 290 yuan. After receiving the receipt, they arranged to pick up the goods at the dock the next morning.

All requirements were listed in the contract, which was Jing Yan's request, in order to reduce various troubles. After both parties signed, Chen Hanqin very warmly escorted the person to the office building entrance. After seeing Chen Hanqin see the person off, the director of the supply and marketing cooperative came over to inquire.

I was very satisfied after learning that everything went smoothly. Although the profit from wholesale was 20% less than that from retail, the large volume made up for it. I only had to work once a month, and the turnover was equivalent to 30% of the sales of the supply and marketing cooperative. It saved time, space and labor, so it was worthwhile.

The young couple returned to the shop happily. Jingyan finished making the labels for the alcoholic beverages, planning to put them up as soon as the drinks arrived the next day. She roughly calculated that if all the alcoholic beverages could be sold each month, the profit from alcohol alone would be around three hundred yuan. With the boost from alcohol sales, she thought that the sales of barbecue and braised meat might also increase.

The next morning, Jingyan got up early and went to the shop. It was a weekday, and He Zhijun had to go to work, so he couldn't accompany her to the dock to pick up the goods. Fortunately, Dou Zhixiao was there at the shop; the young man could handle the physical labor.

After all, she wouldn't feel comfortable if the boss didn't show up for the first handover. Fortunately, Chen Hanqin was reliable. The quantity was checked and there were no problems, and the alcohol was not damaged. After Jing Yan signed for it, she and Dou Zhixiao pushed the meat back to the store.

The two of them worked together, and she took out two or three bottles of each type of wine and put them on the shelf behind the cashier as a display. The remaining wine was moved by Dou Zhixiao to a small warehouse next to the kitchen, which had not been used much before, but now it could finally be put to use.

Jing Yan kept one key to the warehouse for herself and gave one to Dou Zhixiao. As a waiter, serving drinks to customers was his job, and having a key would make things more convenient.

After the liquor was put on the shelves, Jingyan hung the signs on the wall. Sure enough, the previously empty wall finally became a bit lively. She also took out ten bottles of beer and put them in the refrigerator compartment so that any guests who wanted to try the taste of ice-cold beer could give them a go.

Once the restaurant started serving customers in the evening, regular customers immediately noticed the different shelves and menu wall. Those who wanted good wine checked the prices and, finding them acceptable, ordered a bottle or two of beer or a few ounces of baijiu (Chinese liquor) for a leisurely drink, looking quite content.

As Jingyan had predicted, once the drinks were on the shelves, most people who came to the restaurant for gatherings or to host parties would order a few bottles. The clinking of glasses helped to build rapport. China's drinking culture has a history of thousands of years, and there are many sets of toasts. These customs, which were suppressed during the Cultural Revolution, began to resurface in the 1980s, and Jingyan's shop was one of the first to benefit from them.

April's profit reached over 3,700. If the current sales volume can be maintained, monthly profit could exceed 4,000. Therefore, Jingyan was in high spirits after the end-of-month accounting.

Jingyan hadn't been in Haishi for long, and had only settled on the island for less than a year, so she was genuinely frightened when typhoons started to appear in June. Changxing Island is surrounded by the sea, so typhoons at sea would inevitably affect this area.

When a typhoon strikes and cargo ships are unable to set sail, and all the vegetables and meat on the island cannot be transported over, it would be self-deception to say you are not afraid.

Jingyan's shop was forced to close due to the lack of food sources after the typhoon. The only good news was that her home and shop's vegetable gardens were not only self-sufficient, but she could also spare some for her employees to take home as employee benefits.

This benefit made the shop assistant's neighbors extremely envious. On an isolated island cut off from the outside world, if you ask what is most lacking, it would be supplies. Food is the most important thing for people. When the staff canteen had no vegetables or meat and could only make some potatoes and cabbage to make do, Jingyan's family was not really lacking in vegetables and meat.

Thanks to the refrigerator, he was able to store some meat, and with the sausages he made himself, he had plenty of oil and fat in his daily meals. At this time, the meals He Zhijun brought to work every day always attracted attention from his colleagues.

The lunchbox was packed with vegetables, meat, and eggs, providing ample nutrition. Even his boss was envious, saying, "Xiao He, your wife is really good at managing a household. In this terrible weather, she can still prepare such a sumptuous meal for you. She really makes the women in our family pale in comparison."

He Zhijun politely invited his colleagues to share his food, but no one actually ate it. Everyone knew that food was precious, so why would they eat someone else's food? They just looked at it and admired it.

When He Zhijun came home that evening and talked about it, his pride was barely concealed, making Jingyan laugh so hard she didn't know what to say to him. After discussing it with her grandmother, she cut off five sausages that had been made earlier, weighing about two pounds, and handed them to He Zhijun.

"Take advantage of the darkness to deliver it to your boss's house, and pick some vegetables from the garden along with it. Tell him it's all from our own garden, so he can have a taste."

He Zhijun hesitated: "Sending some vegetables over is fine, but these sausages are pure meat. Isn't that going too far?"

Jingyan chuckled: "I remember when I first met you, you were so generous. What happened? Why are you so stingy now? I asked my grandma, and she said there are usually two typhoons like this in the first half of the year, and they usually calm down after three or four days."

We still have plenty of sausages at home. Sending over a few won't make a difference. They say that helping someone in need is more memorable than adding to someone's success. If you don't take this opportunity to make your presence felt with your boss, when will you?

Don't forget, if your boss hadn't mentioned a promotion opportunity to you when you hosted a banquet last year, you might not have gotten that promotion and raise at the end of last year.

Having learned from past mistakes, even if our investment doesn't yield returns now, at least in the future, your leaders will think of you first when similar opportunities arise. What's that called? That's called investing in advance. Don't sacrifice long-term gains for small profits.

He Zhijun laughed: "I'm only doing this because I see you working so hard every day just to earn more money, so I can't bear to be a spendthrift anymore. You used to spend your allowances without a second thought."

But ever since you came into my life, seeing you worry about money has made me habitually want to save. I've almost forgotten what my mindset was when I was so extravagant. Maybe this is what maturity is all about.

Grandma teased from the side, "Don't you know how much money your wife has made in less than a year?"

He Zhijun looked at his grandmother. He really didn't know, nor had he inquired about it. He only knew that Jingyan's shop was profitable, but he didn't know the specifics.

Grandma could tell from his expression that he didn't understand. She took out the account book from the house, flipped to the monthly summary, and said, "The total net profit is nearly 20,000 yuan. We've already made back the money for the shop's rent. So, are you still reluctant to part with it?"

He Zhijun was shocked: "So many?"

Jing Yan smiled and said, "The main reason is that there are no other restaurants on the island that offer the same thing as us. We are unique, so business is good. But in another year or two, once others start selling braised meat and barbecue, our business will be affected, and we may not make as much money as we do now."

In business, the most profitable thing is to have something unique, but following trends is human nature. We'll make as much money as possible now before anyone realizes that the food business is profitable. Later, when other businesses start doing it, we'll be considered an established business and won't have to worry about competition.

He Zhijun didn't know much about these things, but he knew that his family wasn't short of money. Since they weren't short of money, everything was easy to talk about. He was relieved this time, and happily put on his raincoat, braved the wind and rain, went barefoot, rolled up his trousers, and went to the vegetable garden to pick vegetables.

After picking a basket of various vegetables and carrying five sausages, he trudged through the mud in his rain boots straight to the leader's house. What should have been a ten-minute journey would have taken no more than half an hour round trip, but today he was gone for more than an hour before returning.

Even though he was wearing a raincoat, his clothes were soaked through. As soon as he entered the house, he went to the bathroom to wash up with hot water. After a hot shower, the steam made his face flushed. After drinking a bowl of strong ginger soup, He Zhijun quickly fell into a deep sleep.

Fortunately, the typhoon passed in just a few days. When the wind and waves subsided and the sun shone, the cargo terminal became busy again. The canteen added fresh dishes, and food-related shops also opened for business.

People who had been hungry for several days suddenly came out, and Jingyan's shop was bustling like never before. Jingyan was busy every day, both happy and tired. Fortunately, this good business situation only lasted for a week before it gradually eased, and everyone finally had a chance to catch their breath.

Amidst the hustle and bustle, the children have settled down at school. Of course, the most worrying one is not the two older children, nor the boy An'an, but the little girl Zhizhi.

She was the youngest child in kindergarten, yet she had already become the undisputed leader of the class, known for her fighting prowess. Because she was ruthless, even though the children on the island were generally quite resilient, she still managed to make the boys cry twice. Jingyan went to the school once and was reprimanded by the teacher. When her parents were called in again, she made He Zhijun take the blame for the teacher's reprimand.

After their parents were called in, Jingyan and He Zhijun both asked about the reason for the fight. And surprisingly, Zhizhi was actually in the right; both times she stood up for other girls. The girl whose hair was pulled couldn't beat the chubby boy and cried from being bullied. Zhizhi stepped in and punched her, giving her a black eye.

The child whose snacks were snatched cried. Zhizhi snatched the snacks back and kicked the child a couple of times. Jingyan was a little confused. Schools on the island, even kindergartens, teach some martial arts. How come Zhizhi is so brave?