wavenovel Chapter 95 Confirming Cooperation
Chapter 95 Confirming Cooperation
Chapter 95 Confirming Cooperation
In the conference room of Three Little Bees Company.
Lin Mu was discussing things with Gu Ming when he said, "You've benefited from the recent viral success of your documentary, haven't you?"
As he poured tea for Lin Mu, Boss Gu said with a smile, "You've had some. Orders have increased significantly."
Lin Mu took a sip of tea; it tasted good, with a noticeable aftertaste. He said, "I have a plan that can get you 10 times, or even 100 times, the viral impact of this event."
Gu Ming did the math in his head. If the number of orders increased tenfold, it would mean doubling the existing orders and adding another 40,000 orders per month. Just thinking about it made Gu Ming's scalp tingle. He hurriedly asked, "What kind of opportunity?"
Lin Mu explained his intention to cooperate with QQ Farm.
Gu Ming frowned and said, "It's a game. Are we going to gain popularity through a game? Isn't that a bit—"
Gu Ming is a post-80s generation. People of his generation generally hold the view that playing games is a waste of time.
Lin Mu thought for a moment and said, "I can explain to you why it became so popular, but there's no point in saying more. It all depends on whether you believe me or not."
Lin Mu's past track record was convincing, so Gu Ming asked, "If I'm going to cooperate, how much stock should I prepare?"
Lin Mu said, "If you want to play it safe, start with 1 cases. If you want to go big, go for 10 cases."
"10 boxes," Boss Gu exclaimed. In that case, his production costs alone would amount to 120 million, and these were all given away for free. Nobody knew if he could make it back from the customers later.
You should know that after a year of struggling, the company's cash flow was down to just over 100 million yuan. If this attempt had failed, his cash flow would have been at risk of breaking down.
Mr. Gu repeatedly asked for confirmation, "Mr. Lin, are you really that optimistic about this game project?"
Lin Mu asked, "Little Gu, do you know what a 'hot trend' is?"
"What do you mean?"
Lin Mu said, "Let me, like a peddler praising his own wares, say that by associating with me, you've caught the wave of opportunity. Compared to a year ago, you've soared to new heights and undergone a complete transformation. Do you agree?"
"I agree," Boss Gu replied firmly.
Lin Mu retorted in rapid succession: "If I'm considered your small opportunity, then the QQ Farm project is a huge opportunity ten times bigger than mine."
Gu Ming was greatly shocked: "Is it really that exaggerated? It's just a game."
However, Lin Mu knew that it really existed. At its peak, QQ Farm had 1.2 million daily active users, covering almost all young netizens at the time.
In other words, they don't have enough capacity yet. If they did, they could filter these users, select 1000 million high-quality customers, and directly send 1000 million boxes of bread. From then on, soft white bread would be tied to QQ Farm, becoming a symbol of the times together. The value brought by this would be immeasurable.
Of course, they don't have that much money either.
Lin Mu said, "I personally recommend that you stock 10 boxes, because 1 boxes is too small and not enough to create economies of scale. In terms of publicity, it will also be less effective. If you are experiencing cash flow problems, I can lend you some money. The interest rate will be calculated at the private lending rate. It would be a real shame to miss this opportunity."
Gu Ming gritted his teeth. Since President Lin had said so, he would grit his teeth and give it his all. Moreover, he might be able to reduce the cost.
He said, "Mr. Lin, you don't need to lend me money. The banks are chasing after me offering me low-interest loans, but I haven't agreed to them. I still have a lot of reserves that I can overdraft."
"Here's what I'm thinking: since we're stocking 10 cases, the main purpose is to let customers try it out and let them know that we have this brand. So I have two ideas."
"First, we don't need to pack 20 loaves of bread in our breadbox anymore. How about 10? This way, we can reduce our costs by half."
"Secondly, those who can receive our physical rewards are generally young netizens with money and free time. We put a small piece of paper inside and ask customers to promote our bread on QQ Space or blogs after they eat it. As long as they promote it, they can add our QQ number. After verification, we will give them a cash rebate of two to five yuan."
Lin Mu's eyes lit up, and he said, "I think it's a good idea, no problem."
After deciding to cooperate with the QQ Farm team and preparing an initial batch of 10 boxes, Boss Gu immediately began looking for a new OEM manufacturer.
The original contract manufacturer is no longer sufficient to meet his current normal production capacity, so he needs to find a new contract manufacturer.
With a production capacity of 10 boxes, even if the number of breads inside is halved or the production process is shoddy, the production cost is still 6 yuan per box. This is an order with a total cost of 60 yuan, which was not a small order in 2009.
Soon, Boss Gu set his sights on three factories, all of which were small to medium-sized factories with around 100 employees.
Mr. Gu drove his Xiali to the first factory, which was called Goldman Sachs Factory. The factory sign was rusty. Upon learning that Mr. Gu was there for an inspection, the factory owner, Goldman Sachs, and a group of factory leaders came out to greet him.
Gu Ming politely shook hands with Goldman Sachs, but immediately felt his hand was covered in sweat. He was startled and stared intently at the fat, greasy-faced Goldman Sachs. The boss had puffy eyes and a vacant voice, making him seem like a sluggish, fat pig. Gu Ming subconsciously sentenced him to death in his mind.
Goldman Sachs said, "Boss Gu, what's so interesting about the factory? Everyone's the same, just assembly lines. I know a really nice restaurant nearby. If you'd like to join me, let's go out for a few drinks. After we're done, I'll take you to a spa. The girls there are really young."
Gu Ming scoffed. What a useless good-for-nothing! But he didn't judge a book by its cover. He'd have to see for himself at the factory. He said, "Mr. Gao, with such a large order, I definitely need to do an on-site inspection. I'll go check if the factory's hygiene and production conditions are up to standard."
Goldman Sachs subtly winked at one of his executives, who then dashed off into the factory. Gu Ming, not being blind, naturally noticed this. His impression of the factory worsened even further. What? Was the factory's hygiene usually subpar, and they were trying to fix things at the last minute?
Gu Ming had already sentenced the factory to death in his heart, but he still didn't break off relations. He turned a blind eye and waited for the other party to finish working for a while before walking into the factory with a group of people.
As soon as I entered the factory, I saw people hurriedly sweeping the floor. Boss Gao smiled and said, "President Gu, today just happens to be the factory's big clean-up."
Boss Gu complained, "It's quite a coincidence that I came here today."
He glanced sideways at the ground, where cigarette butts and dried green liquid lay scattered about, looking like phlegm.
He shook his head inwardly. Food factories value food safety above all else. How could a factory like this possibly ensure food safety? This factory could be crossed off the inspection list, and he could start preparing for the second one.