Losing Money to Be a Tycoon c1-883

by Inebriation-seeking Blue Shirt, 青衫取醉

First, he had to make sure that he incurred losses in time for the next settlement. After all, this did not just concern money; it also concerned the special reward that the System had prepared for him.

  As for what he would do if he earned everything back with interest during the next cycle…

  He could open more businesses to spend more money then.

  At the end of the day, he had to resolve the problems on his hands at the moment!

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  At that thought, Pei Qian retrieved his phone and looked at his calendar. It was October 13th. He had until October 24th to continue spending more money on Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and Upwind Logistics. After that, he would have to stop.

  If he wanted to spend more money in that final week, he would have to do so on his own employees.

  Tengda was considered a huge company now. More than a hundred employees were working on Tengda Games, Zhongdian Chinese Network, and TPDb. In addition to the forty-odd employees in Shang Yang Games, the hundred-odd employees in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, and the delivery men in Upwind Logistics and Fish-Catching Take-Out; Pei Qian had a total of six to seven hundred employees to take care of.

  Of course, he treated the employees of different businesses differently. He could not possibly give his delivery men the same benefits as he did the core employees of Tengda Games.

  If he spent more money on each person, he would be under less stress.

  However, there was a limit to the number of benefits he could distribute. What if he still could not finish spending all the additional money?

  Pei Qian pondered for a moment and decided to drink some poison to quench his thirst. He would organize a sale! Pei Qian could not do this during the previous cycle, mainly because Fish-Catching Internet Cafe had been his only physical business. What’s more, Fish-Catching Internet Cafe had only become famous just before settlement. Pei Qian’s hands were tied; he could not do anything about it.

  This time, the money was rolling in much earlier. That meant Pei Qian had plenty of time to react.

  He looked at the time and then looked at October 24th on his calendar. Although it had not yet become common, 1024 was Programmer’s Day.

  It was just like November 11th. Now, people still saw it as One’s Day and not a day to splurge on online shopping.

  November 11th would fall under the next cycle. Pei Qian could not wait until then, but he could wait for October 24th.

  On that date, he would organize a sale so that more businesses could incur losses. Wouldn’t that reduce the weight on his shoulders?

  At that thought, Pei Qian began to see the light at the end of the tunnel. He quickly thought about the businesses on his hands.

  He had to consider properly which businesses he wanted to organize a sale.

  He could not offer a discount on the games because there were no production costs. If he offered discounts, they would only earn more It would be akin to committing suicide.

  His ultimate aim in running a sale was not to become more famous but to incur more losses. Thus, Pei Qian narrowed his options down to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and Upwind Logistics.

  He would focus especially on Upwind Logistics. He was already making a loss thanks to manpower expenses. If he could increase the number of deliveries each Upwind Courier station had to make, he would be able to distribute more remuneration to his delivery men. This meant that he would increase his overall spending and thus overall losses.

  What’s more, he had control over the amount of losses he incurred. At the same time, he would be able to improve Upwind Logistics’ reputation. The System would likely approve this decision.

  After conducting a simple test on the System, Pei Qian came up with a simple plan to commemorate 1024, Programmer’s Day.

  First, he would provide a sum of money to Fish-Catching Take-Out, so that it could offer discounts on all their menu items. At the same time, delivery fees would be waived.

  Apart from this, he also had to provide Upwind Logistics with a huge sum of money.

  At the moment, Pei Qian had close to two hundred Upwind Courier stations. He predicted that he could open forty to fifty more stations before the 24th. Most of Jingzhou City would be covered.

  Those who made use of Upwind Courier stations to make their deliveries would have their express delivery charges waived. Pei Qian would cover these charges using the System Funds. Normally, Upwind Logistics would also earn a commission from delivering parcels to customers’ doorsteps. Pei Qian planned to waive this commission during the event period as well, so that more delivery companies would be attracted to work with Upwind Logistics.

  He would purchase a bunch of small gifts to be delivered to customers along with their parcels. This would be another way to spend more money.

  Middlemen normally profited from the difference in price, but Pei Qian would be the only middleman who would personally make up for the difference in price.

  He would start off by doing some marketing of the event, which would last from October 24th to October 31st.

  Pei Qian did not dare to engage in large-scale marketing. Although this would allow him to spend more money, there were also higher risks. He could not afford to mess up.

  Pei Qian also intelligently set payday to be at the end of the month. This ensured that he would be able to distribute huge sums of money to his employees just before settlement. As much as possible, he could deplete the System Funds.

  During the event, Pei Qian would also increase remuneration for Upwind Logistics and Fish-Catching Takeout’s delivery men. For every additional delivery they made, they would earn an additional bonus.

  Although each delivery man would probably not get much, Pei Qian had many Upwind Courier stations and employees around Jingzhou City. Altogether, it would add up to a huge sum of money.

  As for the consequences…

  Obviously, more users would use Fish-Catching Take-Out and Upwind Logistics thanks to the Programmer’s Day event. However, both of these businesses were incurring losses. The larger they became, the more losses they would incur. Pei Qian did not have to worry too much.

  What’s more, even if these businesses started generating profit, it would be a problem for the next cycle.

  This was exactly why Pei Qian did not dare to mess around with the other businesses. He could not afford to organize sales or promotions for the internet cafe or games because there were too many risks involved. Everything might backfire.

  After coming up with a general plan, Pei Qian felt more confident. Thus, he prepared to make calls to Lu Mingliang and Ma Yang, intending to give them a simple brief on the event first.

  Soon, Lu Mingliang answered the phone. “Do you have time today? Come to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe’s Handong University branch. I have a plan to market Fish-Catching Take-Out and Upwind Logistics.”

  Lu Mingliang paused. “Boss Pei, I’m at the Handong University branch.”

  Pei Qian responded, “Huh? What are you doing there?”

  Lu Mingliang answered, “Boss Ma asked me to come over. We’re discussing the details of the computer-installation business.”

  Pei Qian’s mind was filled with question marks.

  He was caught by surprise.

  What the h*ll is that? What’s a computer-installation business?

  “Give me a while. I’ll be right there!”

  Pei Qian quickly got dressed, being careful to put on a thick sweater and scarf. Then, he headed out of the door.

  It was a good thing that his flu had subsided. His condition improved after he rested for the entire day the day before. Today’s weather was pretty good: the sun was shining, and there was not much wind. Pei Qian could go out without much hindrance.

  In any case, it was a critical period. How could such a small thing stop Boss Pei’s huge money-making plan?!

  He quickly made a call to arrange for the company’s chauffeur to drive him around.

  Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, Handong University branch…
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br />   Not long after his call with Lu Mingliang, Pei Qian arrived. Looking at Boss Pei’s serious and stern expression, all three men became confused.

  “Boss Pei, you…” Lu Mingliang didn’t recall Boss Pei looking like that when he last saw him.

  Pei Qian pulled his scarf down slightly and said in a nasal voice, “I’m down with slight flu.”

  “Brother Qian, you should rest properly if you’re sick! I have to scold you this time. Stop thinking about work; take care of your own body!” Ma Yang waved at a nearby waiter. “Get Boss Pei a glass of warm water.”

  Pei Qian quickly said, “There’s no need for that. I’ve had so much warm water that the thought of it makes me want to puke now. Get me some coffee.”

  Pei Qian looked at the system unit on the table and sharply noticed that it was slightly different from the system units in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe.

  There was a glowing logo on this one!

  Pei Qian immediately realized that the situation was not as simple as he expected.

  Good. The three of you are sneaking around behind my back! It’s a good thing that I found out early!

  Pei Qian was speechless. If I had not been thinking about how to incur losses despite being sick, I might have been thrown under the bus completely!

  Ma Yang giggled. “Brother Qian, I wanted to give you a surprise, but you found out in the end.

  “Zhang Yuan and I have been thinking about making use of Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and Upwind Logistics to start a side-business in custom-made system units…”

  Ma Yang briefly explained how ROF’s brand came to be.

  Simply put, Repent and be Saved had led many ballers with high standards for their computers to Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. These ballers formed a demand for similarly branded high-end computers. Zhang Yuan, who enjoyed making system units in his spare time, saw this as a business opportunity. He decided to start a computer-installation business and work with Upwind Logistics to deliver these system units to customers’ doorsteps.

  Not much investment was required. They would earn five hundred to a thousand yuan for each system unit sold. All Zhang Yuan and the other managers of the internet cafes had to do was purchase the hardware online, deliver them to customers, and provide after-sales services. They did not have to spend a lot of money.

  Even if the business failed, they would not incur much loss. This was because Zhang Yuan and the others had no plans to accumulate the hardware. They would only place orders if there was demand. After listening to Ma Yang’s description, Pei Qian fell into deep thought. If they did this, they would surely generate profits!

  Alright, Ma Yang, you big-eyed fellow. Even you are betraying me now!

  However, on further thought, it seemed like Ma Yang could not be blamed for this. After all, Ma Yang could easily be hoodwinked.

  Zhang Yuan should take all the blame instead!

  It looked like Pei Qian had to eliminate all threats by taking Zhang Yuan away from Ma Yang’s side!

  Pei Qian looked at the prototype of ROF’s first-generation system unit.

  All things aside, the business sounded extremely promising. If he allowed them to carry on, they probably would be able to generate some profit and launch a sneak attack against Boss Pei at the last minute.

  Pei Qian could not help but celebrate in his heart.

  I nearly fell for their trick. That was close! It’s a good thing I came prepared!Pei Qian was not mad. Instead, he was quite happy.

  Alright, since you love being entrepreneurs so much, do me a favor. Help me to spend more money! This project sounded very profitable, but since Pei Qian had found out about it, he was going to keep a close eye on it and prevent it from generating profit!

  Ma Yang watched as Boss Pei smiled and said nothing. At that moment, he could not figure out whether the latter supported the idea or not.

  “Brother Qian, what do you think of this plan? Is it promising?” Ma Yang asked.

  Pei Qian nodded. “I think it’s not bad, but there’s a problem. You’re spending way too little money!

  “There’s no point in being quiet about it. If you want to start this business, start big! Don’t worry about not having enough capital; I’ll fork out the capital!”

  Zhang Yuan was stunned. He did not know exactly how to feel. “Boss Pei, it’s great that you support us, but… there’s no need to spend all that money…”

  Hadn’t Zhang Yuan only thought about selling system units to build their reputation? Many other internet cafes were doing the same. There was no need for so much funding at this stage. Even if Boss Pei invested millions of yuan in this business, Zhang Yuan would not know where to spend the money. Pei Qian shook his head. “You’re too conservative! You can’t even think of ways to spend money? How can that be?”

  Chapter 293 - Everything that Boss Pei Did Felt Wrong

  Chapter 293 Everything that Boss Pei Did Felt Wrong

  Zhang Yuan was confused. “Huh? Boss Pei, what do you mean?”

  Pei Qian sniggered. “From the way things are going, customers have to wait at least four to five days for their system units to arrive at their doorstep after placing their orders, right?”

  Zhang Yuan thought for a moment and replied, “Er… we could deliver the units in three or four days if we act quickly.”

  Pei Qian shook his head, obviously unsatisfied. “That’s really slow.

  “Based on our current model, we are creating good computers to be displayed in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe. Gamers can come to the internet cafes and try out the computers for themselves, in order to see if they are good or not. “If they like the computers, they have to pay for it. We would then order the necessary hardware and assemble a computer for them. At the same time, we would be responsible for getting the system units delivered to their doorsteps and providing after-sales services. All we would earn are the installation and service fees, right?

  “Here comes the problem. If we order the hardware online, it would take at least two or three days to come even if the delivery is quick. Then, we have to assemble the system units and deliver them. That would take another day at least. Wouldn’t customers become very anxious in those few days?

  “That’s a huge problem!”

  Zhang Yuan was slightly confused. “Huh? It’s just three or four days; they can wait, can’t they?

  “Even online shops that sell ready-made computers work that way, right? Some shops even take a full week to deliver the system units after the orders have been made. We’re already considered quite fast.”

  Pei Qian shook his head. “We’re only two or three days faster than other online shops; how can we call that a core benefit? Gamers still have to wait, don’t they?

  “Fast service is this: customers placing an order in the morning and receiving their system unit by the afternoon on the same day!

  “That’s why we cannot only place orders for hardware after receiving customers’ requests. We have to be prepared with the hardware in advance.

  “We need to achieve four things:

  “We should deliver customers’ purchases as quickly as if they had been bought from physical stores. Our after-sales service has to be as good as first-tier brands. Our marketing model and the quality of our goods have to match up to the most good-hearted online stores. Our quality-to-price ratio must be pegged against what unscrupulous merchants selling ‘lemon’ products[1] boast of! “Only then can we do this glowing logo justice, understand?”

  Zhang Yuan became speechless. He pondered for a moment and said, “That requires us to have large amounts of stocks prepared. Yet, that’ll be like false bravado. If we can’t sell our stocks, we’ll have to hold it until the next generation of products comes out. By then, the stocks would have to be sold at very low prices. The risks are too high!”

  Pei Qian smiled. “There will be risks to anything that we do. How can we sit back and do nothing just because of that?

  “As long as money can buy an excellent shopping
experience for our customers, it would be money well-spent!

  “Since we have decided to venture into this business, we should not keep it so low-profile. I’ll give you a sum of money. You can rent warehouses near each of our Fish-Catching Internet Cafe branches and store our stocks there.

  “Don’t worry about overstocking. I’m thinking about holding a 1024 Programmer’s Day event. We can use that opportunity to publicize ROF’s brand as well.”

  All three men looked confused. “Programmer’s Day?”

  Pei Qian nodded and explained his plan in detail.

  The main event was a huge sale for Fish-Catching Take-Out and Upwind Logistics, starting from the week beginning with October 24th. The event would ultimately aim to give back to old and new customers alike, improve the businesses’ reputation, and increase their market share. Of course, the core aim was to spend as much money as possible.

  After finding out about the computer-installation business, Pei Qian decided to include it in the 1024 Programmer’s Day event.

  It would seem quite underwhelming if he only gave discounts for Fish-Catching Take-Out and Upwind Logistics on Programmer’s Day.

  Now, he could give discounts on system units, too. It was just as well!

  “ROF can be included in the event as a computer-installation brand as well, but we have to make some changes.

  “First, we have too few types of systems, one, to be exact. We won’t be able to properly satisfy customers’ requests.

  “I think we can come up with three types of systems: costing 7,999, 11,999, and 15,999 yuan respectively. During the sale, we can sell these systems at their cost price. In essence, these systems would be sold at the total cost of their respective hardware parts. That would mean we would deliver and install them at no charge.

  “We can also include a free upgrade. Those who purchase the 7,999 yuan system can upgrade to the 11,999 one for free. Those who purchase the 11,999 system can in turn upgrade to the 15,999 one for free.

  “The first 100 customers can enjoy this free upgrade. After that, we will hold a ballot and allow lucky customers to upgrade at no charge. “Fish-Catching Internet Cafe can hold a ballot at regular intervals as well. We would give one entire system to one lucky customer during each ballot.