Chapter 301 Fame in Hong Kong and New Layout

Chapter 301 Fame in Hong Kong and New Layout

Chapter 301 Fame in Hong Kong and New Layout
The next day, Yang Wendong called Qin Zhiye and told him his idea of ​​"everyone participating in drought relief."

Qin Zhiye's eyes lit up after listening to this, and he said: "Mr. Yang, this is a good idea. Many people are actually willing to do charity and help others, but they don't know how to do it, and sometimes they are just lazy.

And if they can know that they are participating in charity activities when they buy things, they will definitely be very satisfied. "

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Well, you should increase the publicity for this matter later, so that the whole of Hong Kong knows that spending money at Carrefour or buying drinks at Watsons is equivalent to donating money to buy water from the mainland, thereby alleviating the drought in Hong Kong."

"Okay, I'll ask the editor to polish the article." Qin Zhiye said, "Such publicity will definitely increase the sales of Carrefour and Watsons."

"I hope so." Yang Wendong smiled.

Some business marketing strategies that were outdated in the past may still be very impactful in this era.

In this era, the Chinese still have a strong desire to help each other. For example, when people on Shui Wutong Mountain had nothing to eat, many people climbed the mountain and waded through water to deliver food to them.

Besides, even if the effect is average, once this card is played, it will bring the company and responsibility together, and its reputation will also increase greatly.

On October 10, the Hong Kong Chinese Daily and the Oriental Daily launched the slogan "Overcome difficulties together and fight drought together".

"Overcome difficulties together and fight drought together?" After seeing the headline of Oriental Daily, a man bought it directly and started reading it.

The first part of the article talks about the current drought situation in Hong Kong. The tap water has been cut off in many places. Even in Hong Kong Island, the tap water is sometimes available and sometimes not. Many people are forced to take leave to go out and find water.

The second part talks about the impact of drought on Hong Kong's economy. Many industries require water. Although water shortage will not lead to shutdown, it will seriously affect production efficiency. Every factory needs electricity. Due to water shortage, even Hong Kong's two power plants have begun to reduce their power generation. This has a significant impact on Hong Kong's economy.

When the economy has problems, a large number of factories reduce their operations, which has a greater impact on ordinary workers. In this case, factories either cut wages or lay off employees, which will make life even more difficult for ordinary people.

The third part introduces the current methods used by the Hong Kong government and society to deal with drought. Due to the severe drought in South China, there is not much water that can be transferred to Hong Kong from the reservoirs in eastern Guangdong. The Hong Kong government has to entrust major shipping companies to transport water from the eastern China region of the mainland.

It's just that many shipping companies have limited extra carrying capacity and are not involved much. Currently, the one transporting the most water is Changxing Shipping Group, with more than 20 cargo ships running back and forth between Hong Kong and the mainland, and an additional 5 large oil tankers. Their water transportation efficiency is extremely high, and they can transport nearly one million tons of water in a month.

The fourth part describes the investment of some social forces in this matter besides the Hong Kong government. The one that invested the most is naturally the Changxing Charity Foundation, and there are also some wealthy Chinese. The British side basically did not participate because they have no shortage of water.

The fifth part is the focus of the article, describing how Carrefour and Watsons jointly launched the "Fighting Hardships Together" project. For anyone who spends at Carrefour, 0.2% will go to the Changxing Charity Foundation, and for anyone who buys drinks at Watsons, 0.5% will go. All these funds will be used to buy water in the mainland.

The sixth part is to call on more people to participate and donate to the Changxing Charity Foundation or some agencies of the Hong Kong government.
"Buying things can also be used for charity? That's interesting." The man looked at the scorching sun in the sky, then walked to the newsstand and asked, "Do you have any Watsons drinks?"

"Yes, ginger tea drinks can relieve heat and refresh you. Do you want some?" the newsstand owner said with a smile.

The man nodded and said, "Okay, I'll buy one."

In an office building in Central, Huo Yingdong looked at the newspaper, then handed it to the person in front of him and said, "Mr. Ding, Yang Wendong has come up with a new trick this time. Take a look."

"A new trick?" Ding Kejian, head of China Resources, was a little surprised after hearing this. He opened the newspaper and read it for a while before saying, "It is indeed interesting. It can not only promote my business, but also help many Hong Kong people solve the problem of water shortage."

Huo Yingdong smiled and said, "I said Mr. Yang is a natural business genius. He can even come up with this method."

Ding Kejian also said: "Yes, this drought is indeed too difficult. Although the mainland can earn some foreign exchange from Hong Kong, the losses in southern China are also huge."

Huo Yingdong asked: "South China is very large and has many large rivers. It's much better than Hong Kong, right?"

Ding Kejian replied: “Just looking at the drought situation, of course Hong Kong is more serious, but Hong Kong’s economy is much stronger, and if there is a drought, we can use boats to buy water;
But if there is no water deep inland, it is impossible to transport water by truck, right? We can only find groundwater. And even if people can find water to drink, what about the fields? No matter what happens in Hong Kong, we don’t have to worry about running out of food, right? "

"Oh, yes." Huo Yingdong also frowned: "There is nothing we can do about this kind of thing."

Ding Kejian added: "There is nothing we can do, but we can buy food from overseas to ensure that people have food to eat."

"Yes." Huo Yingdong continued, "How is the Hong Kong government's relationship with the mainland regarding the Dongjiang water entering Hong Kong?"

Ding Kejian said: "It has not been finalized yet. I don't know the specific situation. I heard there are a lot of disputes."

Huo Yingdong frowned: "That means the drought in Hong Kong cannot be solved in the short term."

Ding Kejian said: "Even if we sign the agreement today, such a water diversion project will probably take about a year. In the short term, Hong Kong's drought problem still needs to be solved by large ships transporting water."

Huo Yingdong nodded: "Yes, it seems that Mr. Yang was very far-sighted when he bought a large number of second-hand ships and planned for today. Otherwise, Hong Kong would be in a worse situation today."

"Yeah, but I don't know how he dares to gamble. If there is no drought in South China, then everything he has done will be in vain." Ding Kejian was also a little confused.

Huo Yingdong said with a smile: "If he loses the bet, he will only make less money. He bought so many second-hand cargo ships. Even if he doesn't transport water, he still has other businesses. The demand for ships in Hong Kong's shipping industry has been increasing in recent years. He won't lose money."

"Yes, Mr. Yang, just as you said, we always pursue a win-win situation in everything we do." Ding Kejian nodded and said.

"Not necessarily, with one exception." Huo Yingdong thought for a moment and said, "I have inquired about the five large second-hand oil tankers he bought. They are almost scrapped and cannot be used to transport oil at all.

He bought these ships only to transport water, otherwise he would definitely lose money, but it shouldn’t be a big loss.”

Ding Kejian agreed and said, "That's right. This may be the real noble cause. They would rather suffer losses than bet that the drought will continue. In this way, the efficiency of transporting water by five large oil tankers will be much higher than that of normal cargo ships."

"Yes." Huo Yingdong smiled, his eyes full of admiration.

Ding Kejian added: "I am also going to report this matter to the central government, so that they can see what Yang Wendong has done. No matter what happens to him in the future, at least it shows that he is a great entrepreneur who loves the people and has a sense of justice."

Huo Yingdong smiled and said, "That would be even better, but I guess if it were the 1930s or 1940s, he would definitely be an entrepreneur willing to help the country."

“Yeah.” Ding Kejian nodded and said, “Yes, if there were successful entrepreneurs like this at that time, many things would be much better.”

Huo Yingdong smiled and said, "It's a pity that there are no ifs in history."

In a simple office in Admiralty, Bao Yugang finished reading the newspaper and said with emotion: "It's really interesting."

Huang Xiuying followed up by saying, "Yes, this way, we can bring many people in Hong Kong to do charity together, and it will also make Carrefour more popular. I guess Jardine's new supermarket may not be able to compete with Carrefour." Bao Yugang smiled and said, "That's even better. We Chinese capital must surpass British capital in one area."

"Yes." Huang Xiuying asked again: "Can you spare one of your boats to transport water?"

Bao Yugang shook his head and said, "I would like to, but all my boats are already under contract and rented out to others. I can't get them back unless I buy another boat now."

Huang Xiuying frowned and said, "That probably won't work. HSBC is now a major shareholder of our company. Although we don't have a veto power, we can't harm its interests."

"Yes, so there is nothing we can do." Bao Yugang nodded, and then said: "I will donate 20 Hong Kong dollars, which is also my little token of my appreciation. Or I can buy all the supplies I need on the ship from Carrefour in the future, or buy some drinks from Watsons."

The advantage of having big banks as shareholders is that they have sufficient support, but the disadvantage is that they are no longer as free as before, which is even greater than the restrictions on listing.

"Okay." Huang Xiuying nodded.

Can you participate in charity by buying things you need?

When this matter became known to many people, they all thought it was very interesting. Anyway, they needed to buy these things themselves, and this matter did not lead to an increase in commodity prices. Everything remained the same as before. Therefore, more people were more willing to go to Carrefour.

As for Watsons' drinks, many people also want to try them. Anyway, they are going to buy drinks. However, many people do not like the taste of ginger drinks.
On October 10, Yang Wendong once again came to the Carrefour supermarket downstairs.

Liu Huayu arrived and said with a smile, "Mr. Yang, during this period, the number of customers entering our store has increased by about 10%, and the number of orders has also increased by 8%."

"Well, not bad. It seems that the 0.2% charity donation is not only not a loss, but a profit." Yang Wendong said with a smile.

Liu Huayu nodded and said, "Yes, but it was mainly due to the publicity effect of Oriental Daily News and Hong Kong Chinese Daily News. By reporting on it together with the drought, they even saved on advertising fees."

"This is much more effective than direct advertising." Yang Wendong added: "In the future, whether it is domestic or foreign, whether it is your own media or someone else's, you must consider soft advertising when doing publicity. Incorporating it into some interesting or hot news will have a better effect."

The concept of soft advertising is still rare in this era, and it is not even common in Hollywood and American television.

"Okay." Liu Huayu nodded and said.

Yang Wendong asked again: "Is Yifeng Supermarket of Yihe planning to open a new store?"

"Yes, this is their biggest advantage, and we must definitely invest our full efforts in it." Liu Huayu nodded and said.

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Well, you can discuss it with Zheng Zhijie and ask him to speed up the purchase or leasing of properties."

Liu Huayu paused and said, "Okay, but during this period, housing prices and rents in Hong Kong have become more and more expensive, causing our costs to continue to increase. Especially now that Hong Kong Land has joined in, competition has also led to rising rental prices."

Yang Wendong was not surprised and said, "Ask Zheng Zhijie to come over as well."

Now in the second half of 62, housing and land prices in Hong Kong are already very high. The land auction prices in places like Central and Causeway Bay are over HK$1000 per foot (HK$1 per square meter).

When house prices soar, rents will inevitably rise as well, especially now that too many people are blindly optimistic about Hong Kong's future real estate and economy.

"Okay." Liu Huayu agreed and quickly called someone.
Soon, Zheng Zhijie also arrived: "Mr. Yang, Mr. Liu."

Yang Wendong asked: "Lao Liu just told me about the housing prices and rents. Can you tell me more about it?"

"Okay, that's right." Zheng Zhijie replied, "In recent months, because of the sharp rise in housing prices, our rents have also started to rise sharply, and it has become very difficult to buy properties. Many owners are unwilling to sell, and sometimes there will be competition from Hong Kong Land, so the cost of opening Carrefour has increased significantly."

Yang Wendong asked: "Doesn't Hong Kong have a lot of high-quality properties? Do they also need to rent them out?"

Cheng Chi Kit replied: “It is true that they have many properties, but they are mainly in places like Central and Admiralty. Although there are also properties in other places, they may not be suitable for opening supermarkets, so many of them have to be rented or bought directly.

But in the current situation in Hong Kong, even if Swire Properties wants to buy, some owners are unwilling to sell, as many people expect to support three generations with one house.”

"Well, that's normal. Chinese people just prefer real estate and houses." Yang Wendong shook his head and smiled.

In ancient times, the Chinese loved land. One of the main reasons for the collapse of most dynasties was excessive land annexation.

When we entered the industrial society, we began to fall in love with houses. Real estate in Hong Kong and in the future mainland China was very hot most of the time. This was the reason why problems only arose when the population became increasingly smaller.

Zheng Zhijie added: "However, in the past two years, I have already purchased a lot of suitable properties, a total of 41, which are currently under opening or renovation, and also cover many densely populated areas.

Now we need to consider whether we should increase our efforts and continue to acquire or lease properties.”

Yang Wendong said: "Of course, Carrefour's expansion cannot stop. Even if the housing prices are a little higher, we can find ways to reduce costs. We cannot give up the development of the retail industry just because the real estate prices are a little higher."

Although real estate will have problems in a few years, the development of the retail industry cannot stop. If Jardine Matheson gains the upper hand, it may cost more to compete in the future.

Besides, the housing prices in 62/63 were still lower than those in 64/65. Even if we want to appropriately reduce property collection, we have to wait another two years.

Zheng Zhijie agreed and said, "Okay, I will continue to acquire suitable properties, and I will negotiate the price with you, Mr. Liu and Mr. Yang, in advance."

"Okay." Yang Wendong nodded.

He also knew that Zheng Zhijie's reminder was well-intentioned. After all, he didn't know the future. Normal service-oriented companies should be cautious at times like this.

Liu Huayu said: "In fact, there is another way, but the investment will be higher, but in the long run, it is more cost-effective."

"Tell me about it." Yang Wendong asked.

Liu Huayu said: "We bought old buildings ourselves, then demolished them to build supermarkets. The disadvantage is that the cost is very high because it is equivalent to buying land directly.

But the advantage is that we can avoid a head-on clash with Swire Properties. There are many old buildings and they cannot compete with us for all the locations. Secondly, we can consider the long-term real estate returns. "

(End of this chapter)