booktalesy Chapter 29 Purchasing Goods
Chapter 29 Purchasing Goods
As Zhang Beichuan had predicted, business in the afternoon was slower than in the morning, but there were still quite a few customers.
By the time the store closed for inventory at 6 p.m., there were 26 flint lighters, 10 piezoelectric lighters, and 15 electronic watches, with a total sales amount of 808 yuan!
"808 yuan..." Lan Baojun's hands trembled slightly as he held the ledger. "Xiao Chuan... this, this is too much!"
Zhang Dequan was so excited he couldn't speak, he just kept grinning.
The two brothers, Lan Baoqiang and Bao Hong, standing to the side, were so excited that their eyes turned red.
With sales of 808 yuan per day, at this rate, Zhang Beichuan will easily become a new millionaire in the county within a month!
The impact made everyone's breathing quicken.
Zhang Beichuan was happy, but remained relatively calm.
"Many people are drawn to the new business today, and since it's a Saturday, we'll have to wait and see if this business can last. But it's a good start."
He patted Lan Baoqiang and his brother on the shoulder, took out twenty yuan from his pocket, and handed it to them.
"You've all worked hard today. Consider this money as temporary wages. I'll treat you to a nice meal at a restaurant tonight!"
The two brothers, Lan Baoqiang and Lan Baoqiang, exchanged a glance, staring at the large ten-yuan note, their throats churning.
"Brother Xiaochuan, this...this is way too much!"
The workers in the county town only earn 2 or 3 yuan a day, but Zhang Beichuan offered 10 yuan a day.
"Take it if we tell you to. From now on, when the shop is busy on weekends, come and help out. You two won't be shortchanged on your wages."
Lan Baojun looked at the two brothers and nodded.
"Since your brother Xiao Chuan gave it to you, just take it. From now on, come help out whenever you have time."
"Okay!" Lan Baoqiang, pulling his younger brother along, said with a big smile to Zhang Beichuan, "Thank you, Brother Xiaochuan!"
"You're welcome!"
After saying that, Zhang Beichuan counted out thirty yuan and handed it to Lan Baojun. "Baojun, you take Baoqiang, Baohong, and Cuicui to order the food first. Third Brother and I will come over after we finish taking stock."
"Okay!"
Lan Baojun left excitedly, taking Baoqiang and his brother with him.
Zhang Beichuan and Zhang Dequan carefully counted the remaining inventory. There were still many lighters, about nine hundred left; and fewer than one hundred and seventy electronic watches.
"Youngest, school starts tomorrow. Cui Cui needs her dressing changed every three days. Why don't you take her back tomorrow, and I'll pick her up again in a few days for her next dressing change?"
Zhang Beichuan thought for a moment, "That works too."
After locking the shop door, Zhang Beichuan and Zhang Dequan walked towards the restaurant in front.
Lan Baojun, Baoqiang, and Baohong were chatting and laughing around the table, on which were several steaming dishes.
On such a happy day, wine is naturally indispensable.
Everyone enjoyed a delicious meal, and while Zhang Beichuan watched them having a good time, he started thinking about increasing the variety of goods available.
Lighters and digital watches have high profit margins, but their prices aren't particularly cheap. We need to add some everyday items that can be sold in large quantities with low profit margins.
After a satisfying meal, Lan Baojun took Baoqiang and his brother home.
After returning to his lodgings, Zhang Beichuan locked the door, and with a thought, he returned to 2026, where it was still daytime.
He had ordered 500 watches and was thinking about what else to sell back in 1986 when his stomach started growling, so he had to go downstairs for lunch.
After a quick meal, Zhang Beichuan strolled into the nearby old market, intending to try his luck and see if he could find anything good.
The area is lined with shops, and the sounds of vendors hawking their wares mingle together. Although it is not as well-organized as a shopping mall, it exudes a strong local atmosphere.
His gaze swept over the various stalls—hardware, pots and pans, fabrics and shoes... Suddenly, a clothing store with a clearance sale sign caught his attention.
It was noon, and there were only a few customers browsing in the store. The shelves were piled with brightly colored synthetic fiber shirts and other items.
The design is clearly imitating the trendy designs of the Jiangzhe region, but the workmanship is rough and the color scheme is garish.
Zhang Beichuan flipped through the pages casually and couldn't help but shake his head.
These clothes look outdated in 2026, but were too avant-garde in 1986. Ordinary people would probably find them hard to accept, let alone put them in Beichuan Department Store for sale.
Just as he was about to leave, a pile of scattered goods in the corner caught his attention.
After seeing off a few customers, the clothing store owner warmly greeted them.
"Young man, what would you like to buy?"
"Look at the socks."
After speaking, Zhang Beichuan walked towards the several large baskets of socks, which were plain in color, mainly dark blue, black and gray.
The materials included cotton and nylon. He squatted down and squeezed them.
"Boss, how much is this?"
The clothing store owner pursed his lips, thinking that a young person would buy a couple of pieces of clothing, but he never expected that they would only buy a few pairs of socks.
"Pure cotton ones are three yuan a pair, or five pairs for ten yuan."
Zhang Beichuan smiled and said, "In 2026, everyone will like pure cotton, but in 1986, industrially processed products like nylon were the fashionable items that everyone liked!"
"What about nylon?"
The clothing store owner glanced at him in surprise. He was only in his early twenties, yet he liked the cheapest nylon stockings. The owner couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that business was getting harder and harder.
"One dollar a pair, buy ten pairs and get one free."
Zhang Beichuan had a sudden inspiration. Nylon stockings were in high demand in 1986, and supply and marketing cooperatives and department stores often ran out of stock. A pair cost three yuan.
These small commodities are inexpensive, consume quickly, and are suitable for high-volume, low-margin sales. They are also daily necessities needed by ordinary people, which can attract more customers to the store.
He randomly picked a few pairs of socks to check, confirmed there were no defects, and then looked up and asked.
"Did you buy a lot, or a little?"
How much do you want?
Zhang Beichuan retorted, "How much do you have?"
The shopkeeper's eyes lit up. He had brought back this batch of nylon stockings almost a year ago, and usually only some elderly men and women would occasionally buy a few pairs.
"There are probably three to five hundred pairs here, and another thousand pairs in the warehouse. Do you want them all?" Seeing Zhang Beichuan nod, the shopkeeper thought that they wouldn't sell anyway, so he might as well clear out the stock to break even. "If you want them all, I'll give you a discount of eight cents! The profit margin on socks is thin, so it won't be much less."
Eight cents, that's enough to sell.
Zhang Beichuan knew very well that the owners of these old markets bought their goods, such as socks and some street-stall clothes, by weight.
"Four cents! I'll take them all for four cents!"
The clothing store owner noticed that the young man was quite young, but he was very good at bargaining, immediately cutting the price in half!
"Young man, four cents? I can't even break even. Look at these socks, they're really good quality, they're even Peony brand, with all sorts of prints! Six cents, the lowest price I can offer!"
Zhang Beichuan was too lazy to argue with her. "How about 50 cents? If not, I'll just buy it online. I can just wait a few days."
Seeing his resolute attitude, the shopkeeper turned to leave. The socks were taking up space in the corner, and he could still make a dime even if the socks were piled up for five cents.
"Fine, fine, I'll take it. Five cents it is! But you can't be picky, you have to take it all."
Zhang Beichuan then turned around and said, "Okay, then I'll trouble you to help me order and pack it up."
"A total of 1568 pairs, 784 yuan."
Zhang Beichuan scanned the QR code to pay, and with a "ding," a bank deduction notification arrived on his phone.
【招商银行】您帐户6999于03月25日扣款784元，余额48385元......
The boss found several large black plastic bags and packed them up for him. The three bags were heavy and quite heavy to carry.
The cost was 784, and it was sold for two yuan a pair in 1986, resulting in a profit of more than two thousand yuan from 1568 pairs.
It might not sound like there's much profit, but if you exchanged those two thousand dollars for gold in 1986 and brought it back to 2026, that would be a solid eighty thousand dollars!
A hundredfold profit!
Capitalists would tremble with fear upon hearing this!
Thinking that there were still many things to deal with back in 1986, Zhang Beichuan, after returning home, had a sudden thought and went back to a late summer night in 86.