Chapter 115: Supply Chain, Taking Over the Shop (Requesting Monthly Votes)

At Shuangqing Restaurant, in the private room of the Huangshan Hall on the second floor.

Every time Chen Yansen came here to eat, seeing the private room names made him feel it was surreal.

A Sichuan restaurant naming all its private rooms after place names in Huian Province could be seen as adapting to local customs.

"Knock, knock, knock—"

Chen Yansen knocked twice on the door, and without waiting for a response from inside, he pushed the door open and walked in.

He saw Cao Dahua chatting with a man sporting a three-seven side-parted pompadour; this man had thick eyebrows, a long face, and small eyes, with his browbones and cheekbones protruding outward. He wore a blue suit and did not look like a good sort.

"Come, Old Zuo, let me introduce you. This is my student, and also the founder of Fox Tao, Chen Yansen."

Cao Dahua stood up, patted Zuo Hongyu's shoulder, and said with a smile.

"President Chen, I am Zuo Hongyu, the Deputy Vice President of Procurement at Da Boluo. It is a pleasure to meet a business talent like you."

Zuo Hongyu stood up as well, greeting him with a simple, honest smile.

"President Zuo, you are too polite. Let us sit down and chat while we eat."

Chen Yansen examined him closely; when not smiling, his expression was stern, giving people the feeling that he was not easy to get along with.

But when he smiled, he radiated sincerity and simplicity; he had never encountered such a peculiar appearance before.

"President Chen, do you intend to enter the mobile phone industry?" After sitting down, Zuo Hongyu took the initiative to speak.

"Can you secure supplies from vendors like Gao Tong, Xia Pu, Sony, and LG?"

Chen Yansen acknowledged with a sound and asked directly.

Hearing this, Zuo Hongyu immediately understood that Chen Yansen's ambitions were not small; Shanzhai phone manufacturers in the southeast area were unwilling to use such high-end goods, generally opting for good-quality, low-priced generic products.

After all, sometimes the factory went bankrupt before the phone even had problems, so there was no need to consider after-sales issues.

"In terms of touchscreens, flexible circuit boards, audio components, and sensors, I have supply resources from international manufacturers; as for chips and cameras, I am confident I can negotiate them down."

When discussing professional matters, Zuo Hongyu was full of confidence.

He had struggled in Shencheng for over ten years; it was not for nothing. Although Shanzhai phones were of low tier, he had still accumulated some connections and resources; it was just that in terms of supply prices and payment terms, he could not compare with big companies.

Moreover, Chen Yansen's mobile phone business was still in its infancy; many favorable supply conditions had to be built on a foundation of scale.

"If a downstream vendor gets the component dimensions wrong, and you must deliver to distributors tomorrow, how would you handle it if it were you?"

Chen Yansen nodded and asked further.

In his view, having connections and resources was one thing; being able to handle crises was another matter entirely.

"President Chen, to be honest with you, this situation is quite common in the industry. The general approach is to first communicate with the original supplier to urgently produce a new batch, then have the marketing department soothe the distributors, and finally replace the supplier according to the contract terms to pursue economic losses."

Zuo Hongyu said calmly and unhurriedly.

The meaning in his words was clear: ensure shipment first, then deal with the supplier issue. This approach might seem indecisive and unsatisfying, but it was most in line with the company's interests.

Because changing suppliers on the spot would only make things worse.

"President Zuo, you are someone recommended by Teacher Cao, so I trust you. As for compensation, feel free to state your terms."

Chen Yansen thought for a moment and said generously.

"President Chen, Brother Hua told me that your R&D team is still being assembled and will take at least 3-5 months to complete system development. I can join the company in three months; this way, I can save the company some money, and I can also hand over my work in Shencheng properly."

Seeing that Chen Yansen had given a verbal offer, Zuo Hongyu pondered for a moment and responded with a smile.

"Agreed."

Chen Yansen snorted coldly in his heart; Zuo Hongyu's words clearly showed he was afraid the project was unstable and wanted to wait and see for three months.

However, Zuo Hongyu's thinking was not wrong; his mobile phone had no operating system, no contract manufacturer, and not even a name yet. Even if Zuo Hongyu joined, it would be difficult to start work.

Afterwards, the three raised their wine glasses and began toasting and drinking.

While Chen Yansen was interviewing Zuo Hongyu, the other party was also interviewing him.

The reliability of a boss often determined the success or failure of a project.

As they drank and chatted, Zuo Hongyu was surprised to find that although Chen Yansen had never entered the mobile phone industry, he was very knowledgeable about the intricacies of procurement and sales.

From Misses in Shencheng to foreign women, from the economic situation to the development of smartphones, it seemed there was no topic Chen Yansen could not handle.

Furthermore, his thinking was clear and his logic rigorous; Zuo Hongyu thought: No wonder he established such an enterprise before turning twenty.

Zuo Hongyu, who had originally intended to wait and see, after three cups of wine, patted his chest and guaranteed: "President Chen, I will contact the suppliers as soon as I return to get the product list first; we can discuss prices and payment terms in detail later."

The meaning of these words was clear: he had a good impression of Chen Yansen and was willing to help first.

Chen Yansen smiled and said bluntly: "If you work for me, I will definitely pay you; I do not like eating free meals."

Zuo Hongyu repeatedly declined; he had not yet joined the company and felt it was really improper to accept money, his attitude was firm, simply refusing to take it.

Seeing this, Chen Yansen had no choice but to stop insisting.

This meal lasted from 10:30 in the morning until 1:30 in the afternoon. After eating and drinking their fill, the three walked out of the restaurant.

Chen Yansen remained sober; after his constitution broke through to 4, he had tried drinking a jin of baijiu in one go, feeling as if he had only drunk two or three cups of beer; his liver's metabolic function was more than ten times stronger than before.

Cao Dahua, with his belly protruding and face flushed red, swayed unsteadily towards the school supported by Zuo Hongyu, insisting on taking Zuo Hongyu to tour the office and have a cup of tea.

Chen Yansen hurriedly stopped him, booked rooms for the two at a nearby hotel, and told them to rest first.

Otherwise, Cao Dahua wandering around the school in this drunken state might just get a scolding from Tang Qingshan.

After settling the two, Chen Yansen walked out of the hotel lobby and was about to return to the school when his peripheral vision caught a transfer notice posted at the entrance of a gym.

Upon closer inspection, according to the owner's explanation, it was a transfer of a thriving shop, sold as a package.

Chen Yansen thought for a moment and understood the owner's difficulties; he had been there twice, and the gym had never had more than 10 customers in total.

At this time, the fitness atmosphere was not strong, the equipment was all second-hand goods of unknown origin, all very old; even though the annual card was only 800 yuan, very few people signed up.

Chen Yansen thought that every time he tested his strength data, there were outsiders present; taking over this gym would not cost much money and could serve as an employee benefit, which was quite good.

Having figured it out, he walked into the gym and asked the front desk: "Is your boss in? I am interested in this shop; have him come and talk."

"Please wait a moment, I will call him." The young lady at the front desk nodded, took out her phone, and dialed.

About ten or so minutes later, an Audi A3 stopped outside the door, and a man with a short crew cut got out; he was in his thirties, not tall, but muscular, with corded muscles all over his exposed forearms.

"Y-you, you want to take over my shop?" The flat-haired man paused, glanced left and right, saw the place was empty except for Chen Yansen, and asked.

"Mm, calculate the price. If it's reasonable, I'll buy it as a package deal," Chen Yansen said casually with a nod.

"Rent is 4,000 yuan a month, paid semi-annually, with the contract signed with the landlord. There are three and a half months left; I'll count it as three months, totaling 12,000 yuan."

"Renovation cost over 80,000. I've run this shop for five years, depreciating at 10% annually, so that part counts as 40,000."

"The treadmill, elliptical, exercise bike, Smith machine, lat pulldown station, dumbbells, barbell, and bench press in the room count as 110,000 as a package. The yoga mats, jump ropes, and ab benches here are freebies, given to you for nothing."

"There are also 79 annual membership holders you must take over; the transfer fee is 50,000, making the total 212,000. If you truly want it, the price can still be negotiated."

The two sat down, and the flat-haired man counted on his fingers, itemizing the costs for Chen Yansen to hear.

This man had well-developed muscles, yet his mind was remarkably clear.

Chen Yansen smiled; these broken pieces of equipment in the room looked older than Wang Zihao's grandfather, how could they be worth 110,000? Who was he trying to fool?

"I'll give you 150,000; handle the members yourself. I'm taking it over as an employee gym, not open to the public."

Chen Yansen slashed 62,000 off in one breath.

Although that 50,000 transfer fee was unreasonable too, the shop was at the school gate, and the flat-haired brother had paid a transfer fee himself when he took it over, so naturally he wouldn't accept a loss.

Chen Yansen knew the score perfectly; the transfer fee couldn't be wiped out, so he had to play on the equipment price.

"Brother, I'm saying, a few thousand yuan is negotiable, but you just slashed 68,000 in one go. Are you kidding me?"

The flat-haired brother's face darkened, and he asked back, displeased.

"The equipment isn't worth much; either take it all away, and I'll give you 100,000." Chen Yansen wouldn't fall for that, and actually felt he hadn't cut hard enough.

"Do you really want it? Which company are you from?" Seeing he couldn't trick Chen Yansen, the flat-haired man chuckled and changed the subject.

"Fox Tao." Chen Yansen didn't hide it.

"Fine, 150,000 it is. There are still two part-time college students at the front desk..." The flat-haired man stopped halfway through his sentence, deliberately pausing.

"Keep the front desk staff; they just need to help open and close the door and restock the beverage cabinet."

Chen Yansen didn't care and took them all on.

"Then I'll go get a contract ready, wait a moment." The flat-haired man said.

"No need, I'll call our legal team." Chen Yansen waved his hand; besides Wang Jing, Fox Tao had also hired a legal advisor through social recruitment.

"Fine." Hearing that Chen Yansen could summon a legal advisor anytime, the flat-haired man's little calculations in his heart vanished instantly.

Not long after, another man in a suit walked in, bowed slightly to Chen Yansen, and called out, "Brother Sen."

Strictly speaking, calling him "Boss" would be more appropriate, but since everyone at Fox Tao called him Brother Sen, he just followed the crowd.

"I'm leaving this place to you; the money will go through the finance account."

Chen Yansen stood up, gave his instructions, and walked out.

After Chen Yansen had walked far away, the flat-haired brother asked curiously, "Who is that person? You look several years older than him, yet you call him brother?"

"Him? He's our big boss at Fox Tao." The legal advisor answered briefly.

Halfway there, Chen Yansen told Xu Xingxing to find the category manager responsible for sports and outdoor products, ask merchants for an internal discount, and purchase a batch of treadmills and new fitness equipment.

"Monitor, there's no space in the Entrepreneurship Park to put these things." Xu Xingxing reminded him in a low voice.

"To the right of Shuangqing Restaurant, the old Dali Gym, I bought it. Come inspect it tomorrow, get the access cards sorted for everyone, and from now on it will be our project's exclusive gym."

Chen Yansen explained.

"Boss, you bought a gym for everyone? Why didn't you say so earlier? I just heard Du Yaoyao recommend it and bought an annual card." Xu Xingxing said with a bitter face.

"Go ask the boss to refund the card; I've already spoken with him."

Chen Yansen finished speaking with a smile and hung up the phone.

Back at the Entrepreneurship Park, many people were still working on Saturday; the interview rooms were all full. Xu Dan and several recruitment specialists were busy beyond measure, conducting interviews, signing contracts and processing procedures, and organizing onboarding training for new employees.

Chen Yansen walked to his seat, plopped down, opened the small fridge, casually grabbed an ice cream bar, and ate it in big bites.

Song Yuncheng across from him glanced at him, wanting to speak but holding back; worried the cold weather might upset Chen Yansen's stomach, but seeing his expression of enjoyment, he stayed silent.

(End of this chapter)