Chapter 526 Opportunities in the Cola Market

As for various metal deposits, Yang Wendong was not very interested in this aspect. It was not that these were not profitable, but he had no special advantages in participating in them.
As a time traveler, you should use your prophetic function to develop some advantageous industries, rather than fighting with other giants in traditional industries;

However, if your company has a high demand for metals, you may be able to participate appropriately;
Of course, the best model is to acquire shares of such large mining companies, such as Rio Tinto, Vale, etc., but the timeline is too early now. Rio Tinto has only gradually risen after the 90s, and Vale is even less likely to think about it. It almost triggered a war between the two countries.
Changxing Industrial is best at plastics, and Honor Electronics is the largest electronics company in Hong Kong. It is natural that the two companies can work together to produce extension boards.
But it always takes some time, and the Spring Festival of 69 arrived.

During the Spring Festival of this year, the Yang family moved to a new villa in Taipingshan. The villa had been built half a year ago and then spent a summer to remove the odor. Before moving in, Yang Wendong also found two environmental testing agencies in Japan and the UK to conduct a comprehensive inspection.
After making sure there were no problems, they moved in with confidence;
The new villa is larger, has more rooms and is more luxuriously decorated. It is divided into three buildings in total. The middle one is the main building, and the two side buildings are for bodyguards, housekeepers, cleaners, and various other service personnel such as medical staff.

Behind the villa is a lawn, which Yang Wendong specially transformed into a playground for children. In front of the villa is a swimming pool and a rockery, under which there are some small goldfish.

The whole villa is also surrounded by a wall, and there are electric fences and infrared surveillance cameras above the wall, and some German Shepherd dogs are also raised;
In addition to the villa, there are also security personnel and forces of Victoria Peak itself. This is also a place where Hong Kong's politicians and businessmen gather. It can be said that it controls half of Hong Kong's political resources and wealth. The Hong Kong government, HSBC Jardine's bosses, etc. all live here.

In terms of security, it is basically impossible for anyone to break through here unless there is an air raid. In the past, no serious criminal cases have ever occurred in Taiping Mountain. Even the two top gangsters named Zhang in the future did not come here to commit crimes.

After tidying up, Yang Wendong said to his family: "Theoretically, the current environment in Hong Kong will get better and better, but we still need to be careful in the future, especially when it comes to travel.

If you want to take a walk or run for exercise, you must be in a safe area and make sure you have bodyguards around you. Don't feel that your life is being disturbed. At our level, being disturbed is inevitable. Just ignore it."

Many wealthy people and their families in Hong Kong’s history have encountered accidents while traveling;
As the 70s approached, the Hong Kong government began to crack down on the evil forces in Hong Kong. For example, the person corresponding to "Lei Luo" in the previous life fled to Taiwan.
But this led to another problem. Many of the original societies were cracked down, and some violent gangs were born. Some of them came from overseas.

Generally speaking, social organizations are not stupid enough to deal with politicians and businessmen, but the same cannot be said for bandits. Zheng Yutong's gold shop has been robbed several times. Although there is insurance, it still hurts the company.

Su Yiyi and others agreed: "We know."

Yang Wendong added: "You should also pay attention to the children's schooling."

"Yes," everyone agreed.

Afterwards, Yang Wendong discussed future matters with the assistant in charge of security; this was much more important than making money.
Time soon arrived after the New Year;
Wei Zetao and Wang Zhiqun came to Yang Wendong's office again, but this time they were holding a milky white extension cord in their hands.

Wang Zhiqun asked: "Mr. Yang, what do you think of this?"

"It looks pretty good. It feels like a high-end product." After Yang Wendong took the extension cord, he looked around and asked, "What are the materials used inside?"

Wang Zhiqun said: "The plastic here is made of highly flame-retardant plastic bought from Japan. This kind of plastic is difficult to ignite with ordinary fire. It takes at least half a minute of open flame to ignite.
The copper sheets and copper wires inside the extension board are also implemented in accordance with some American and European standards; in addition, the spacing between the sockets has also been adjusted, so the volume is larger. "

"This kind of large volume feels more advanced." Yang Wendong asked again: "Can't Formosa Plastics produce this kind of plastic?"

Wei Zetao replied: "Not at the moment. Wang Sheng's main market is plastic pipes, plastic toys, daily necessities and other customers, not cars or electrical appliances. The flame retardant properties are not very good. Once the lighter is lit, it will catch fire.
The Japanese material is specially supplied to cars, and is more expensive, but it cannot be ignited by ordinary fire.”

Yang Wendong thought for a moment and said, "You said that the cost of plastic production in Hong Kong is relatively high, but if we can produce this kind of flame-retardant plastic ourselves, will we not care about this cost?

You said before the New Year that we want to make home appliances in the future. Although the flame retardancy requirements of plastics in home appliances are not as high as those in cars, they must not be very flammable. If the air conditioner or refrigerator catches fire one day, it will be the end of us. "

Wei Zetao nodded and said, "Mr. Yang's idea is indeed feasible. We can make high-end plastics in Hong Kong and supply them to home appliances and even Japanese cars in the future."

"We don't have the ability to develop this kind of material. Lao Wei, you can go to Europe and the United States to ask if you can buy the patent for this material. We have a market in Hong Kong, and we only need to have the production capacity." Yang Wendong followed up.

The biggest advantage of having your own industry as the terminal is that when you move forward in the supply chain, you will have a direct customer market. Otherwise, if you only make high-end plastics, who will you sell them to?

Of course, there are risks. If your suppliers do not perform well, it will affect your terminal brand. However, doing business always involves risks, which must be borne.

Wei Zetao agreed and said, "Okay."

Yang Wendong took another look at the plastic power strip in his hand and said, "This was made during the Chinese New Year. Those who participated should give more red envelopes."

As a capitalist, Yang Wendong also gives workers rest time, but he does not require everyone to rest on weekends or during the Chinese New Year. If they work particularly hard, he will just give them some extra bonuses, and the employees will most likely be happy with that.

"Don't worry about this, Mr. Yang." Wei Zetao said with a smile.

Yang Wendong added: "Then you can do some more safety and life tests. If there are no problems, you can launch it on the market."

"Yes, Mr. Yang." The two agreed. Extension boards and wires are not a big industry at least for now. It is hard to say whether they can become big in the future. Yang Wendong knows a little bit, which is enough. When one day it can really sell well in the European, American or Asian markets, with an annual output value of several hundred million, then he does not mind investing heavy resources to expand this industry.

Time soon came to mid-February. Hong Kong's economy was stable and improving, the stock market and the property market were rising, and after many residential areas were opened, many people lined up to buy, and scalpers also began to become active;
Although the real estate economy is a pathological cancer, there is nothing you can do about it. The whole world is doing this, and you have to do it. Other countries are overdrawing their future development, but you are not. This is equivalent to two identical companies, one developing with loans and the other waiting for its funds to be repaid before developing. Unless the latter one masters the core technology, it will be strange if it does not go bankrupt.

Changxing Real Estate has been engaged in the business of developing ordinary land for sale and self-holding high-quality land and properties, and its business in all aspects is also good;
Changxing Shipping continues to enjoy the dividends of the shipping market. It is also purchasing additional ships from Taiwan and Japan. Although the current ship prices are more expensive, the freight rates are even more expensive.

Relatively speaking, the unlucky one is Hong Kong's manufacturing industry. Because shipping costs are too high, many industries with high transportation costs have been hit hard. Even Changxing Industries has to gradually transfer the production of large and lightweight products such as trolley cases to factories in the UK and France, and is also preparing to open a factory in Mexico to facilitate its entry into the US market.

On February 2, Yang Wendong came to Watsons Industrial Park in Shatin Town;

After the tour, Yang Wendong asked, "How are Red Bull's sales in the United States?"

Zhou Haoran replied: "At present, Red Bull's main customers in the United States are truck drivers and some bar customers. In addition, Lin Sheng's people are also cooperating with us to try to sell it among Detroit auto workers, but the progress is relatively slow.

The main reason is that Americans are more accustomed to using coffee to relieve stress. Truck drivers cannot drink coffee in the car, and bar customers have no time to drink coffee, but auto workers have enough time and space to make coffee inside the factory at night. There are even special coffee shops inside each factory. It is difficult for our drinks to compare with brewed coffee. "

"European and American workers often like to take a break by drinking coffee. It is normal for them to spend half an hour drinking a cup of coffee. If we only look at this point, it is indeed difficult for us to open up this market," said Yang Wendong.

The coffee culture of Europeans and Americans is actually a kind of rest culture. When you are tired from work, you can drink a cup of coffee and then take a break and chat. Normal beverages are definitely not acceptable.

Zhou Haoran continued, "Yes, so I had another idea, to send Red Bull to the Japanese car factory. At present, my people in Japan have used some connections and spent a little money to send Red Bull to the Honda factory.
The effect is quite good. Japanese people don’t drink coffee, but they need to be refreshed when they feel sleepy at night. Drinking a little Red Bull can also help. However, the price of our drinks is relatively expensive for Japanese people. ”

"It's fine as long as we can open up the market slowly." Yang Wendong said nonchalantly, "It will take many years for this kind of high-priced beverage to really cover the world. There's no need to rush. It will take time for your production capacity to increase. The priority is to supply PepsiCo first, and then cooperate with Robert Kuok in Malaysia to reduce the cost of sugar.

Otherwise, one day, if Southeast Asia's economy continues to develop and has industry and agriculture, we may lose our advantage, or we may have to move our factories to Southeast Asia. Although this may be inevitable, it is better to do it later. "

The main production costs of Coke are packaging, cola powder, syrup, equipment and labor, etc. Coke powder is provided by PepsiCo and is not included in the transaction between the two parties. As for the other two items, the equipment has been produced in Hong Kong as much as possible. The cost of packaging is steel, which he cannot control at present. The only thing that is easy to control is syrup, and the cost of sugar also accounts for a large part of the beverage.

This is also one of the reasons why he wants to cooperate with Guo Henian. In addition to the fact that sugar itself is a good industry, he also wants to maintain the cooperation with PepsiCo.

"I see. Mr. Guo has already started to organize the farm. It is estimated that the first batch of sugarcane will be planted in the second half of the year." Zhou Haoran paused for a moment and then said, "Mr. Yang, we also have cola. I think there is an opportunity in this area."

"Very happy? What opportunity?" Yang Wendong asked curiously.

When he acquired Watsons in 62, Watsons already had a cola business, but sales were very poor. After Yang Wendong took over, he changed the name to Very Cola, but the operation was still unable to turn things around.
It's not that the cost is not as high as Coca-Cola and Pepsi, but it's not as well-known. Once it really invests in promotion, the cost of each bottle of beverage will go up.

In addition, after reaching a cooperation with Pepsi, Fanta was gradually put in cold treatment. The business is still there, but the sales volume and output are very low. There is no dedicated production line, and it usually produces a little occasionally by borrowing Pepsi's production line.

As a time traveler, he knew that if he wanted to make cola, his only chance would be the future mainland market. Only a blank market would give new brands in traditional industries a chance to rise.

Zhou Haoran said: "Mr. Yang should know about what's happening in the Middle East, right?"

"I know." Yang Wendong nodded.

Zhou Haoran continued, "Because of the United States' choice, and because Coca-Cola's factory is still in Israel, Arab countries directly banned Coca-Cola. Pepsi still exists, but it has also been affected.

Mr. Wang told me this. Honor Electronics has already set up retail stores and after-sales stores in the Middle East. The Chinese people sent there couldn't buy Coke, so they asked us to bring some Coke with us next time we send goods.

When I found out about this, I thought this would be a great opportunity. In the current global market, only the Middle East could be our opportunity.”

"It is somewhat feasible," Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Okay, let's contact the distributors in several Middle Eastern countries, and then we will ship the products to them and see if we can achieve results there."

Although he had planned for the Middle East crisis long ago, it was only in ships and home appliances. The cola beverage sector was a pleasant surprise;

If there is an opportunity, take it. If not, there is no loss anyway. The cola production capacity on your side can be replaced at any time.

PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
I have severe tinnitus. I am still on IV drip + hyperbaric oxygen every day. I will update once today.
(End of this chapter)

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