Chapter 179 Ships Arrived and New Supply Chain Issues
Chapter 179 Ships Arrived and New Supply Chain Issues
Time soon came to July, and Sun Zhiwei, who was far away in Europe, sent the news of several ships for sale in Europe back to Hong Kong by air.
Su Yiyi looked at several different photos and asked, "Brother Dong, this ship is so expensive. How can we choose if we are in Hong Kong?"
"I still have to go to Europe, but I have to check all the information in Hong Kong first." Yang Wendong said, "I have also found several captains or first mates who have worked in the shipping industry for decades through other connections, and I will also consult their opinions."
Although it is said that you should employ people you doubt, but when it comes to a transaction worth millions of Hong Kong dollars, he couldn't really trust it to someone he just met.
Sun Zhiwei went to Europe with the more specific purpose of obtaining more accurate information. After the information was transmitted back to Hong Kong, he also needed to find some other people to cross-verify it.
If a few experienced veterans who are not familiar with the product agree that the price is similar, and he also goes to see it in person, then he will be able to make up his mind to buy it.
Wei Zetao next to him also said: "Ms. Su, in addition to finding several professionals, we have also commissioned a third-party organization in Europe to verify whether the information of these ships is true and whether there have been any major incidents in the ships' operating history."
"Oh." Su Yiyi nodded: "Such a high price, it is indeed necessary to pay attention to it."
Yang Wendong asked: "Old Wei, how is the European agency's investigation into the Wilson going?"
Wei Zetao said: "It's not a big problem. The information provided by Oslo is a bit embellished, but the ship itself has not had any major accidents.
In terms of fuel consumption, there may be a slight difference, about 10%, because the engine of this ship is still from the 40s, and the technology is backward. "
"Well, second-hand ships are just like that." Yang Wendong nodded and said, "But the oil price is not high now, so this difference is still acceptable."
In this era, many Hong Kong shipping tycoons like second-hand ships. One important reason is that the oil price is very cheap, so cheap that it doesn’t matter even if the old ships consume a little more fuel.
This situation did not change until the oil crisis broke out.
Wei Zetao said with a smile: "In fact, fuel consumption is not really important to us. Our cargo has a large space, but the weight itself is very light."
"Yes, I didn't think of that." Yang Wendong said with a smile.
Wei Zetao added, "Mr. Sun has checked the information of several other cargo ships in Europe. It is estimated that they will be sent to Hong Kong in a few days. Let's confirm it again. If there is no problem, Mr. Yang, we also need to decide as soon as possible."
"Is there a problem with export transportation from the United States?" Yang Wendong asked back.
During this period, in addition to exporting trolley cases to Japan and Taiwan, we also began to try to export to the United States. After all, there is a large channel distributor in the United States with whom we have been cooperating for a long time.
After the first batch of goods was delivered, 3M’s feedback was very good and they hoped to increase the purchase volume.
Wei Zetao said: "Yes, the boxes we export take up too much space on the ship, the cost is very high, and now Hong Kong exports a lot of goods to the United States, many ships simply don't have that much space for us."
"Well, okay, let's confirm it one last time, and then we'll go to Europe together to finalize things." Yang Wendong finally decided.
A week later, after various materials had been verified by multiple parties, Yang Wendong and Wei Zetao went to Europe together, conducted on-site inspections of several possible ships to be purchased, and visited two information investigation agencies.
Finally, the 47.6-ton cargo ship was purchased from the Norwegian Oslo Company for US$10500.
After the agreement was signed, Yang Wendong and others paid a down payment of US$20. The rest will be paid after the ship is shipped to Hong Kong and a detailed inspection is carried out in Hong Kong before the final payment is made. After the transfer in Hong Kong, it will be handed over to the Hong Kong crew team.
Coming to the 6-ton cargo ship again, Sun Zhiwei said, "Mr. Yang, according to the cargo size provided by Mr. Wei, I calculated that this cargo ship can hold about 7 to suitcases."
"6 to 7? Well, not bad." Yang Wendong nodded. According to the normal freight rate, this trip would cost about 50 Hong Kong dollars. Then he asked, "How long does it take from Hong Kong to Los Angeles?"
Sun Zhiwei replied: "It depends on whether we are willing to spend money on fuel. If we run at normal speed, it will take about four weeks. If we increase the speed, it will take about three weeks, but the fuel consumption will increase by about 3%.
In addition, if the boat is operated at high speed for a long time, the life of the boat will be greatly consumed, and the maintenance cost and time will also increase. In this regard, I need to be familiar with the boat in the future before I can make an accurate judgment. "
"Well, okay, let's go as fast as possible." Yang Wendong nodded and said, "If one ship is not enough, we may continue to buy more."
As long as the first ship can prove its economic benefits and there are enough orders from various places, it will be necessary to add more ships later.
Just like real estate, ships themselves can also generate profits, or even higher, but the risk lies in the fact that the technical requirements are very high, and one also needs to understand the market and operations. There are many people in Hong Kong who play with ships, but in the end only a few of them become shipping kings.
"Okay, I understand." Wei Zetao said, "Mr. Yang, what should we transport when the ship returns from the United States? Or should we contract the business to other shipping companies?"
Yang Wendong asked: "I remember that the ships between Hong Kong and Europe and the United States are mainly for Hong Kong to ship goods to Europe and the United States. They are relatively empty when they return, right?"
Sun Zhiwei replied: "Yes, that's right. Hong Kong itself is a trade transit center. In addition, Hong Kong's manufacturing exports have been increasing in recent years, and the destinations are basically Europe and the United States, especially the United States.
On the return trip, the cargo is much less. Hong Kong itself is a city and cannot import much. The ships returning from the United States also carry some cargo and then transfer in Hong Kong. "
Yang Wendong asked again: "It takes a long time to load and unload cargo now. I remember that the shortest one takes three to five days, and the longest one takes a week, right?"
"Yes." Sun Zhiwei nodded and said, "It takes a lot of time to load and unload cargo on a ship, especially when it comes to very heavy cargo. However, our trolley cases have a large space and are light, so loading and unloading cargo is very easy. If there are enough people, it may be completed in one or two days."
"This is an advantage." Yang Wendong thought for a moment and said, "We must bring goods back from the United States.
I don't know how to do it specifically now, I'll see how it works when we actually do it later." "Okay." Sun Zhiwei agreed.
Yang Wendong added, "Mr. Sun, I have recruited a first mate and some important technical personnel on board in Hong Kong. You should go back with us and get familiar with them first."
"Mr. Yang, I think it's better to ask them to come over." Sun Zhiwei suggested: "Although this ship will be fully inspected when it arrives in Hong Kong, it may not be able to find many problems when it is parked;
So I plan to follow the cargo ship back to Hong Kong. This journey will take nearly a month, which is enough for me to get more familiar with the ship. The personnel for various positions you recruited in Hong Kong should also go with me.
This way, we can study the ship together, and if there are any questions, we can also communicate with former sailors and crew members of the ship during this voyage."
"Well, that's a good idea." Yang Wendong nodded, and then said to Wei Zetao: "Old Wei, immediately have the 13 people in Hong Kong come by plane, and then take this ship back to Hong Kong."
A ship cost millions of Hong Kong dollars to buy, so he would not care about other investments. The most important thing now was to ensure that there were no problems with the ship, or that the seamen were familiar with the cargo ship as soon as possible.
In this way, once the ship arrives in Hong Kong and completes the transaction, it can start work immediately.
Time is the most important thing.
Wei Zetao agreed and said, "Okay, I'll make a call right away."
After saying that, the person left.
Yang Wendong glanced at Sun Zhiwei and said with a smile: "Old Sun, you will have to work hard during this period."
"You're welcome, Mr. Yang." Sun Zhiwei said with a smile.
Yang Wendong added: "When our colleagues from Hong Kong arrive, we can prepare more supplies at sea."
"Okay, thank you, Mr. Yang." Sun Zhiwei nodded and said, "But the supplies should not be too much, just enough is enough. Vegetables and the like cannot be kept for a long time, so generally only those vegetables that can be kept for a long time are used."
"Yeah, okay." Yang Wendong didn't care.
After the European incident was over, Yang Wendong and Wei Zetao returned to Hong Kong.
Changxing Industrial's five main products are also planned for expansion. The three are small in size and are very suitable for export because they do not take up space and can be easily booked on ships.
As for larger suitcases, we can only consider exporting them in bulk after the ship arrives. Now we can only focus on the nearby Asian market, and export a small amount to the United States as exhibition items or samples.
On July 7, Yang Wendong came to the factory of Changxing Industry.
After Wei Zetao finished reporting some things inside the factory, he said: "Mr. Yang, we have calculated internally that even if we use our own ships to transport the rotary mops, the price in Europe and the United States is still very high.
Although it is not as heavy as a suitcase, its irregular shape takes up more space and the shipping cost is too high.”
"Well, I remember that the sales of spin mops in Japan were not very good, right?" Yang Wendong asked.
Wei Zetao nodded and said, "Yes, even if it is sent to Japan, the cost is still high. The cargo shipped by sea is not afraid of being heavy, but it is afraid of taking up too much space."
"Well, it's indeed not suitable to export too far." Yang Wendong nodded.
In this era, because containers were not yet popular, the cost of shipping ordinary goods was too high.
Yang Wendong also knew that container shipping had actually already appeared, and European and American countries were also beginning to gradually test and use it, but this involved changes to the entire ocean transport vessels and docks, and there was great resistance.
Even in Hong Kong, container reform did not begin until the late 60s.
Wei Zetao added: "So in order to maximize profits, I suggest that we directly authorize factories in some countries."
“Then how do we determine the other party’s production quantity? There’s no way to monitor this, right?” Yang Wendong asked in return.
Wei Zetao said: "Instead of charging by counting, we can roughly calculate the licensing fee based on the market size.
Although it may not be accurate, it can also earn a large sum of cash in a short period of time, so that we can continue to buy ships to expand the export speed of suitcases. "
"Okay, then let's work with international lawyers to reach an agreement on this matter." Yang Wendong nodded and said.
He will definitely try his best to produce in Hong Kong anything that can be produced in Hong Kong.
But the transportation cost is too high, which kills the possibility of export, so it is better to authorize it.
By getting more cash, you can develop your other industries, which can also drive employment and benefit yourself.
"Okay." Wei Zetao added, "There is one more thing. Just yesterday, several major plastic particle suppliers in Hong Kong informed all factories at the same time that they would increase prices by 20% to 30%."
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(End of this chapter)