My Roommate Lover - Chapter 6 - The Business Philosophy of a Two-Yuan Store

Hearing Zhang Xixi’s words, one could immediately tell she was the type who had just stepped into society with hardly any experience. In the jargon of the business world, people like her were fledglings, the easiest kind to take advantage of.

Jia Simiao asked with a smile, “Zhang Xixi, tell me, why do you set up a stall?”

Looking at him as if he were a fool, Zhang Xixi loudly retorted, “What a silly question! Obviously, to make money.”

“And how much do you make in a day?” Jia Simiao continued.

Blushing slightly, Zhang Xixi huffed in honesty, “They don’t recognize the value of my goods. I haven’t had sales for several days.”

Jia Simiao chuckled, “What if I told you that you could make hundreds all at once?”

Zhang Xixi exclaimed, “Really? How? Do you have a way?”

“I can try, but you can’t dictate how I sell.”

“Okay, if you manage to make a hundred, I’ll treat you to a cold drink.”

“Deal! Now, sort these items-what costs five yuan and what costs two yuan.”

That was easy for Zhang Xixi; she handled these items every day and could sort them blindfolded. However, there were too many items, and it took her nearly half an hour to sort all the small accessories. Then she heard Jia Simiao shouting loudly, “Hey, everything must go! Items originally twenty yuan, now just seven. Items originally five yuan, now two for six!”

“What?” Zhang Xixi’s eyes widened. Earning just two yuan per item wasn’t exciting at all, considering her cab fare alone cost twenty yuan. She wanted to stop Jia Simiao, but in the blink of an eye, a crowd had gathered. They picked through the small accessories, forming layers around the stall.

A customer asked, “Is this for real? Why so cheap?”

Wiping a tear from his eye, Jia Simiao replied mournfully, “Ah, my wife’s aunt fell ill. We just started our business and don’t have much money, so we decided to sell all these accessories at a loss. If couples buy two items together, they get an extra yuan off.”

The pricing was a direct hit at the lowest possible margin. Zhang Xixi was astounded. Who said you were married? Why isn’t it your aunt who’s sick? Wait until I deal with you later.

These college students, who had nothing better to do than wander along Xuefu Road, were familiar with the prices in nearby accessory shops. Jia Simiao’s prices were challenging the very bottom line. The extra discount for couples only spurred them on further.

After all, the prices were low; buying two accessories for five yuan was a steal.

Those without girlfriends or boyfriends teamed up. Zhang Xixi saw a handsome young man acting as a boyfriend for several girls, purchasing items. Essentially, the couple’s accessory purchase was just a marketing gimmick. Soon, Zhang Xixi couldn’t keep up anymore; people were paying, and she was too busy collecting money to manage anything else.

In less than an hour, two large bags of small accessories were almost completely sold out.

Zhang Xixi, with a bulging purse and a face full of sweat, excitedly said, “Jia Simiao, tell me, how much did we make after selling everything?”

Jia Simiao smiled, “You know how much stock we had. Calculate it yourself; we made one to two yuan on each item.”

One yuan… Zhang Xixi calculated quickly with her fingers, then screamed, “Wow, I… I made over three hundred yuan?”

“How does that feel?”

“Great!”

“That’s the business philosophy of a Two-yuan store.”

Throughout the streets and alleys, there were quite a few two-yuan stores with a variety of items. Despite their low prices, their daily turnover was huge. Earning ten yuan from selling one item or one yuan from selling ten, the profit created was the same. But the difference in sales volume was enormous. Once the sales volume increased, the price obtained from wholesalers naturally dropped significantly.

It was only small accessories today, but what about larger items? The rebates alone from suppliers represented a significant income.

Zhang Xixi laughed, “What business philosophy of a Two-yuan store? All I know is that we made a small fortune today. I’ve never made so much money at my stall before. Let’s go have that cold drink, and tomorrow we’ll head to Nanjiang Market to stock up more. If we can make over three hundred a day, that’s nearly ten thousand a month! I’ll be earning more than Jun’ao.”

Jia Simiao shook his head, “This kind of tactic works once or twice, but it’s not a long-term strategy. It disrupts market rules. Peers become competitors, and we will face exclusion.”

“Why worry so much? We make our money, and they make theirs. If they can, they should…”

Zhang Xixi stopped mid-sentence when she noticed that several nearby shops selling small accessories had adopted the same slogan, “Original twenty yuan, now just seven. Original five yuan, now two for six,” even offering an extra yuan off for couple’s accessories.

Now she was really upset; weren’t they stealing their marketing idea?

Jia Simiao calmly said, “Now you understand? Even if we stock up, it’s useless. We can’t make much money anymore.”

Zhang Xixi exclaimed, “Jia Simiao, you’ve ruined me! You’ve cut off my means of making a living. I can’t even sell small accessories anymore.”

Jia Simiao chuckled, “Selling these kinds of accessories won’t make you much money. You could always switch to selling something else.”

“Sell what?”

“What’s the rush? First, give me my twenty yuan wage.”

“Here’s a hundred.” Zhang Xixi was straightforward, handing Jia Simiao a hundred yuan and eagerly asking, “Hurry up, what are we switching to?”

“I’ll tell you tomorrow.”

“You… You’re leaving me hanging? Then give me back eighty yuan.”

As the two bickered, Tang Ziyu returned from class. She had come to see how Zhang Xixi’s accessories were selling. She hadn’t dared to come closer; usually, at this time, Zhang Xixi would be complaining about how the people didn’t recognize the value of her goods and how she hadn’t opened the stall. But today, she was starting to doubt she was at the right place.

On the ground, two large bags of small accessories were nearly emptied, and Jia Simiao and Zhang Xixi were arguing. What was going on? She hurried over and asked, “Xixi, your… your accessories?”

That got Zhang Xixi excited, and she no longer pressed Jia Simiao, proudly declaring, “Guess?”

Tang Ziyu glanced at Jia Simiao, then at the few remaining accessories on the ground, and exclaimed in disbelief, “It can’t be… they weren’t stolen, were they?”

“Stolen? We sold them all.”

“All sold…” Tang Ziyu was utterly skeptical, frowning, “Xixi, you’re not great at business, how come you’ve started lying? I’ve told you, being honest is the foundation of…”

“I really did sell them all. It went like this…”

She was proud and didn’t mention that it was Jia Simiao’s idea, but she recounted the sales events and then flaunted her wallet. Tang Ziyu was shocked, her mouth agape, staring at Zhang Xixi, then suddenly slapped her on the shoulder, exclaiming, “You made over three hundred in one day! At this rate, you’ll be a little rich woman. Hurry up, aren’t you going to treat me to a cold drink?”

Zhang Xixi generously declared, “Let’s go, of course.”

Jia Simiao laughed, “Sell off the remaining little accessories here.”

Zhang Xixi shouted a couple of times, and Jia Simiao added, “Clear them out at the original price, we’re not selling anymore tomorrow.”

Low prices still ruled; they quickly sold out everything. Feeling the fiery glares from the owners of nearby accessory shops, Zhang Xixi couldn’t have been happier.

The three of them walked quite a distance before finally finding an expensive cold drink shop. Zhang Xixi didn’t care; she was making money now and enjoyed a lavish meal with Tang Ziyu. When it came time to pay, the bill was quite hefty, which made her a bit regretful, but thinking about how much she had earned today, she quickly dismissed the slight pain.

By the time they returned to the ancestral house of the Jia Family, it was already around ten o’clock at night.

Shen Jun’ao, wearing anti-radiation glasses, was sitting at her computer desk, still working on her work plan report. When she saw Zhang Xixi, Tang Ziyu, and Jia Simiao walk in, she took off her glasses, stretched her arms back, and yawned. The movement caused her chest to heave dramatically, nearly popping the buttons of her casual shirt.

Zhang Xixi, in high spirits, shared the day’s sales achievements with Shen Jun’ao. Jun’ao was slightly taken aback, then stared at Jia Simiao, puzzled at how someone like him could have ended up in such a situation. Zhang Xixi didn’t understand; she was just a fledgling in the business field. But Shen Jun’ao was different; she was a criminal police officer, and she could see that Jia Simiao was no ordinary person.

Even she had to admit, the two-yuan selling concept was excellent, at least it cleared out all of Zhang Xixi’s junk. Unfortunately, she and Xiao Ya rarely discussed Jia Simiao, so they knew little about him, although Tang Ziyu had mentioned that his medical skills were quite remarkable. This man was certainly not a simple character; it was necessary to give Zhang Xixi and Tang Ziyu a heads-up.

Shen Jun’ao said calmly, “Jia Simiao, it’s getting late. You should go to sleep. We should rest too.”

Zhang Xixi exclaimed, “Right, right, I should go take a shower… Hey, Jia Simiao, you better not peep. If I catch you, I’ll snip you with scissors.”

Jia Simiao looked Zhang Xixi up and down, touched his nose, and said with a wry smile, “Looking like that and still expecting me to peep? There’s nothing to see…”

“What did you say?”

“Uh, I’m sleepy. I’m going to bed.”

“You stop right there.”

“If you chase me into my room, I haven’t violated any of the three main rules of discipline and eight points for attention.”

“I’m not afraid of you…” Zhang Xixi rolled up her sleeves, ready to chase after him.

“Xixi, keep busy, don’t make a fuss.”

Shen Jun’ao was secretly worried. Zhang Xixi was quite naive; if she continued interacting with Jia Simiao like this, wouldn’t she be like a lamb to the slaughter? Since the Zhang and Tang families had entrusted them to her care, she needed to ensure their safety and prevent any harm.