Chapter 882: Birthday Gift

Zhou Andong smiled and said: "You'll have to go talk to Young Master Zhou about that."

"Okay!" Jiang Huijun nodded very seriously, "Chairman Zhou, do you have time this afternoon? I want to go see 365 Home Furnishings."

"Sure!" Zhou Andong agreed: "Regardless of whether I have time or not, if the leader has business, I must accompany her."

Jiang Huijun laughed heartily. Then, the group went around the home appliance section again and returned to the first floor, where there were far more people than on the second floor.

Moreover, the goods were being loaded into shopping carts as if they were free.

In fact, many customers had already come yesterday, but after going home, they felt the items were truly cheap, so they came again today.

Seeing this scene, Jiang Huijun and the others were truly envious; when their Qi City Department Store opened, there was no such grand occasion.

A group of people arrived at the exit, where fifty checkout counters were lined up, and the cashiers were already prepared.

Tang Bei pushed a shopping cart into the checkout lane and placed several items on the counter.

The cashier used a barcode scanner and scanned the item code: "Eleven point two!"

Tang Bei took out twelve yuan, and the cashier skillfully collected the money and gave change.

"Tang Zong, what is this? How come when you scan the item code, the product name and price appear on it?" Jiang Huijun asked, pointing at the scanner.

Barcodes were developed as early as 1949 and patented. But the scanner wasn't developed until 1974, and it was truly commercialized in the early eighties.

Therefore, in the eighties, some import and export enterprises in our country had already started using barcodes on export goods, but at that time, there were no corresponding coding agencies domestically, and they all applied for American UCC codes through other channels.

It wasn't until 1988 that the domestic Article Numbering Center was established. In 1991, it represented our country in officially joining the International Article Numbering Association, and in June of the same year, the National Barcode Quality Supervision and Inspection Center was established.

At the same time, the first five national barcode standards were released and implemented, marking the official start of the use of commodity barcodes in our country.

So, this scanner thing was still new technology even abroad, and Da Run Fa supermarket was the first to use it domestically.

Because of this, they required all manufacturers to print barcodes on their products; if there were no barcodes, they were refused entry into the supermarket.

Regarding this "unreasonable" requirement, many manufacturers refused to supply Da Run Fa. Because printing barcodes was not only troublesome, it was also a significant expense.

More importantly, the entire domestic market was a seller's market; as long as there were goods, there was no worry about selling them. For a retailer to not know their place and actually make demands on suppliers—how much alcohol had they drunk and not yet sobered up from?

It's just that these manufacturers didn't know that half a year later, they would witness the power of Da Run Fa, and if they wanted to get in then, they would have to pay entrance fees and barcode fees.

"This is a barcode scanner; it hasn't been popular abroad for many years either," Tang Bei introduced. "And the display of product names and prices is a POS system we jointly invested in and developed with a technology company."

"In layman's terms, it's a Point of Sale information system. After the scanner scans the barcode, the system automatically reads the product sales information. For example, product name, unit price, sales quantity, sales time, etc."

"And through an internal network and computer system, it is transmitted to the backend mainframe for analysis and statistical sales data. What products were sold, how many products are left in the warehouse, and the daily sales volume can all be calculated."

"When we restock, we just need to look at the data calculated by the mainframe, and we can call the manufacturer to deliver the goods..."

Jiang Huijun personally operated the scanner, and then looking at the data appearing on the screen, she sighed: "This is the power of technology. The old man said that technology is the primary productive force; it is indeed wise. Just this one thing saves so much time and manpower."

Tang Bei smiled and made a gesture of invitation: "Secretary Jiang, please this way."

The group exited the checkout, turned right, and both sides were full of snack vendors, with everything one could imagine.

Tang Bei said: "To adhere to the rules of a trendy shopping space and aim to integrate into the consumer's life, we have set up a food street, themed restaurants, and boutique counters, allowing customers to enjoy more diverse leisure time while shopping..."

Jiang Huijun looked at the various foods and the scattered dining chairs in the dining area.

"Chairman Zhou, let's eat here at noon."

"No problem." Zhou Andong nodded; eating here was quite good, saving money and being convenient.

After leaving the supermarket, the group went to the temporary warehouse for a tour, and it was past ten o'clock when they returned.

Then they ate at the supermarket's food street, and Jiang Huijun and the others didn't give Zhou Andong any chance to pay the bill.

It was their first time experiencing this fresh way of dining, and it was cheap and affordable, so everyone ate very happily.

"Chairman Zhou!" After eating and coming out, Jiang Huijun said very seriously to Zhou Andong: "Da Run Fa must be introduced to Qi City."

"That is natural!" Zhou Andong said: "Wherever the Xiangjiang Qiudongfang Shopping Plaza settles, Da Run Fa will go to that city."

Jiang Huijun smiled: "Originally, I had doubts about you building a shopping plaza and high-rise residential area on Bu Kui South Street. But now, I am looking forward to the day it is completed."

Da Run Fa's self-service model and one-stop shopping completely subverted her understanding of the traditional department store retail model, truly opening her eyes. At this moment, she could imagine the grand occasion when the Xiangjiang Qiudongfang Shopping Plaza and Da Run Fa opened.

Jiang Huijun faced Zhou Xiaoli and Tang Bei: "President Zhou, Tang Zong, we are leaving now. Thank you for your hospitality. If you have the chance, you must come to Qi City to take a look."

"Okay!"

Tang Bei and Zhou Xiaoli shook hands with Jiang Huijun and the others to say goodbye.

The gate opened, and Zhou Andong said to Tang Lin: "Change this gate."

Tang Lin was a bit confused, "This gate is quite sturdy, why change it?"

"Change it to an electric retractable gate." Zhou Andong pointed to the left: "Build a guard booth there; security needs to be on duty 24 hours a day."

"You're the boss; if you say change it, we change it." Tang Lin shrugged indifferently.

There were still many people outside, and when Zhou Andong and the others squeezed out, everyone was covered in sweat.

"There are too many people." A leader from Qi City wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked back at the supermarket entrance.

"Get in the car!" Zhou Andong greeted Yuan Lu and Yuan Zhe, "Secretary Jiang, let's go to 365 Home Furnishings."

At this moment, on the second floor of the supermarket, Jian Mingfan stood in front of the Rifeng store, looking at the radiators hanging on the wall, muttering to himself.

Rifeng, isn't that the name his brother-in-law changed to after acquiring the Shanye Radiator Factory? Is this the newly developed radiator?

It looks pretty good. The kid touched his chin with a wicked smile on his face.

Jian Minglang, oh Jian Minglang, you have always been arrogant; this time I want to see how you slap your own face.

Standing beside Jian Mingfan were two boys and a girl, all about the same age, around fifteen or sixteen.

"Xiao Fan, what's there to look at?" The girl tugged at Jian Mingfan, "Let's go, let's go look over there."

"I want to buy a radiator!" Jian Mingfan's words made the three of them freeze.

A boy asked curiously: "Why are you buying a radiator?"

Jian Mingfan chuckled: "Jian Minglang's birthday is coming up; I'm giving it to him as a birthday gift."