Chapter 40: Opening Branch Stores

Li Dong pondered for about five or six minutes and finally made up his mind. 

A branch store definitely needs to be opened, but it's not something that can be accomplished just by talking about it.

Determination aside, some things still need to be clarified.

Under the expectant gaze of Sun Tao, Li Dong did not respond directly but asked, "Where will the money come from?"

Although the Faraway Supermarket seems to be very profitable right now, time is too short, and they cannot come up with much cash on hand.

"Money is not a problem; we can take out a loan. We don't need too much—six to seven million would be enough to support the operation in the four counties and one district of Qingyang."

"Loan for what? The supermarket has just opened; will the bank lend us that much money?" Li Dong shook his head. The bank is not your family's, so how could they possibly lend six to seven million?

"We can use the shop as collateral. As Mr. Li has seen, Faraway Supermarket is profitable, so there is no risk…"

Before Sun Tao could finish, Li Dong rolled his eyes and interrupted, "Don't even think about it. The shop still has about three million in loans unpaid."

Sun Tao finally realized this and felt a bit depressed.

But he still wasn't willing to give up. Was he just going to watch others make money and then try to take over Faraway Supermarket's territory? 

Seeing Sun Tao's disappointment, Li Dong felt helpless.

He wasn't intentionally discouraging Sun Tao, but the fact was, he wasn't a money-printing machine.

In fact, seeing how profitable Faraway Supermarket was, Li Dong also wanted to open the branch stores soon, but without money, there was no way to proceed.

Li Dong and Sun Tao both fell into deep thought.

It's a money problem! 

Otherwise, taking advantage of Faraway Supermarket's booming popularity to capture the counties and districts under Qingyang would indeed be the best opportunity.

Yang Yun, who had been silently listening to their discussion, seemed to have been forgotten. Sun Tao and Li Dong hadn't noticed her presence at all.

Until now, seeing the two CEOs with worried faces, Yang Yun couldn't help but clear her throat to get their attention.

"Mr. Li, Mr. Sun!"

Sun Tao and Li Dong both snapped back to reality, looking at Yang Yun with puzzled expressions.

Yang Yun was feeling uncomfortable; she couldn't understand why these seemingly smart CEOs were acting so foolishly now.

"Gentlemen, if I may say, the supermarket's net profit for the first month should be no less than two million."

"Huh?"

Li Dong scratched his head; he knew that, as they had already made such a profit in just eight days.

But what did this have to do with their problem? After all, distant water can't quench the immediate thirst.

Seeing that Li Dong still didn't understand, Yang Yun couldn't hold back anymore and said helplessly, "Opening a branch store requires some time, right? We are renting, not buying. How much can the rent cost? The renovation fee doesn't have to be paid all at once, does it? We already have channels available, so it doesn't seem like it will cost much. Employee expenses will wait until we officially open, so there's no need to consider them now, right?"

Yang Yun said a lot in one breath, and seeing that Li Dong and Sun Tao seemed to understand, she finally felt relieved.

"So you're saying…"

Li Dong understood, and Sun Tao also got it. The two of them looked at each other and couldn't help but smile bitterly.

It turns out they had gone into a dead end, thinking that opening a branch store required a large amount of cash.

In reality, even if they start site selection and preparation for the branch store now, it wouldn't be completed in less than three or four months.

In the early stages, all they needed to do was find a good location, rent a good storefront, and pay for half a year's or a year's rent. The cost wouldn't be too high.

Even if the supermarket made two million this month, perhaps one million would be enough to get started.

Even the renovation, if they hired people from Yang Ding, they might be able to advance funds and take on the project. With Faraway Supermarket's terrifying profitability, it would be sufficient to support several branch stores.

Just as the two thought they had figured it out, Yang Yun added, "Actually, our funds are really sufficient. We can also delay payment to suppliers for three months. We can use these millions temporarily; it's better than leaving them in the bank to earn interest."

Li Dong and Sun Tao felt even more embarrassed. Right, they had just talked about banks trying to poach them; wasn't it because they had enough cash?

Faraway Supermarket now handles an enormous volume of goods; if they were determined, raising five to six million wouldn't be difficult at all.

Sun Tao felt awkward, considering himself a business elite but finding that even Yang Yun, an outsider, understood things better than he did.

Fortunately, not many people knew about this, and with Li Dong accompanying him in embarrassment, Sun Tao felt somewhat comforted.

Li Dong didn't think much of it. Since the money issue was resolved, they should go all out.

"Brother Sun, since the funding issue is resolved, let's proceed as you suggested and start with the counties and districts in Qingyang!"

"Okay! I'll take care of this. East Ping is gradually getting on track, and next, I'll focus all my energy on the branch stores."

Sun Tao was no longer bothered by the previous embarrassment and became full of enthusiasm!

A little hardship and exhaustion are nothing. He's still young and not waiting for retirement.

As long as Faraway grows stronger, his 10% stake will increase in value, and there will be plenty of opportunities to rest in the future. It's better to work hard while young.

Next, Li Dong, Sun Tao, and Yang Yun began discussing the details of opening branch stores. Although the money issue was resolved, it didn't mean the branch stores could start immediately.

Leaving the budget aside, site selection was still in the planning stage.

The key issue was that Li Dong needed people now—ordinary employees were fine, but he needed capable and independent talent.

Even if Sun Tao had three heads and six arms, he couldn't manage four or five stores alone, and East Ping couldn't be neglected entirely, as many things still needed sorting out.

Li Dong also needed to go to Pingchuan for school, so he wouldn't have much time to stay in Qingyang.

According to their current plan, they needed to simultaneously establish at least four branch stores.

One each in Nanping, Hechuan, and Yanghe, and one in the urban area of Qingyang to make a strong impression.

Moreover, the branch store in the city area needed a heavyweight figure to oversee it, preferably Sun Tao himself.

Although Qingyang was not very developed, it was a prefecture-level city. By 2002, large-scale shopping centers had already entered, with Yuhui and Century Lianhua having branches there, as far as Li Dong knew.

Unlike East Ping where Faraway Supermarket had a monopoly, the branch stores in the city would undoubtedly face troubles. Apart from Sun Tao and Li Dong, others might not be able to handle the situation.

So, calculating it this way, at the very least, they would need three or four capable store managers to support Faraway's operations.

...

"Brother Sun, you are familiar with this industry. Do you have any suitable candidates you can introduce to me?" Li Dong was also frustrated. He couldn't keep going to the provincial capital to poach people.

Moreover, not everyone was willing to move to a county to work.

Sun Tao hesitated but nodded.

It wasn't that he couldn't find people, but if Li Dong used everyone he introduced, it might cause problems later.

It was okay now that Li Dong needed people, but once Faraway developed, would Li Dong not worry about Sun Tao becoming too powerful? 

But it was still early to think about this, and Sun Tao didn't voice it. It would be better if Li Dong could find people on his own.

Seeing Sun Tao nod in agreement to finding people, Li Dong said, "Brother Sun, you take care of the city and Yanghe County. I'll handle Nanping and Hechuan. Let's finalize the store locations as soon as possible. I'll be going to Pingchuan in September, so I'll need you to pay attention."

With only twenty days until September, Li Dong wanted to settle everything before going to Pingchuan.

Once the locations were determined, the rest of the work would be easier to carry out.

After all, having gone through this before, even if he wasn't there, it would be fine as long as they followed the procedures from East Ping.