Chapter 97: So Many Things

The next day.

As soon as Li Dong arrived at Longhua, Sun Tao greeted him enthusiastically.

Before Li Dong could speak, Sun Tao said with a big smile, "Mr. Li, the performance numbers came out yesterday."

Li Dong, maintaining his calm demeanor, walked into the office and sat down before asking, "How much was the performance?"

"3.28 million!" Sun Tao's joy was even more pronounced.

Li Dong calculated for a moment. The usual performance at Longhua was about 1.5 million, and since it was a Sunday, the numbers should have been around 1.8 million. The current result was nearly double, indicating a substantial gain.

With a 1.5 million increase, even if the profit margin was as low as ten percent, they would have earned an extra 150,000 yesterday compared to usual.

Li Dong nodded, finally showing a hint of a smile. "Not bad. Yang Si's influence is indeed not just for show."

Although the commercial event cost nearly 350,000 and resulted in a loss of 200,000, the numbers weren't the whole story. For the supermarket, the most important aspects were customer traffic and new customers.

Thanks to Yang Si's signatures and photos, the Longhua store gained nearly a third more new customers. Even if only a small portion of this new traffic converts into long-term customers, the long-term benefits of this deal were clear.

Short-term profits were important, but for a business aiming for longevity, long-term benefits were crucial.

Li Dong pondered for a moment and then said, "While Yang Si's influence is still fresh, let's seize the opportunity and try to retain these new customers."

Sun Tao nodded eagerly. If these customers could become regulars, Far East would see at least an additional 200,000 in revenue each month.

Li Dong glanced at the calendar on the desk and after some thought said, "Tomorrow is Qingming Festival, let's organize a promotion."

Sun Tao hesitated.

Li Dong asked, "What's wrong? Do you think Qingming isn't suitable?"

Sun Tao thought for a moment and then nodded.

Li Dong smiled, dismissing the concern. "Qingming is also a time for outings. Some old notions are outdated now."

In modern times, many businesses hold promotions during Qingming Festival, and no one seems to find it inappropriate.

Although the atmosphere in Pingchuan was still relatively conservative and there weren't many businesses doing promotions during Qingming, Li Dong wasn't worried. Some things just needed to become familiar with people. Even if the promotion didn't succeed, it wouldn't be a loss for him.

Seeing Li Dong's attitude, Sun Tao agreed.

After discussing the promotion, Sun Tao asked, "Mr. Li, Manager Qi and Store Manager Guo have already started the handover. Have you decided on the store managers for Nanping and Hechuan?"

Li Dong thought for a while and said, "In addition to Nanping and Hechuan, we still need six more store managers in Fucheng. That makes a total of eight store managers needed."

Sun Tao nodded. It wasn't just the store managers; Far East was facing a significant personnel shortage.

Although Li Dong had established a head office, it was essentially just a shell. Aside from the finance and marketing departments, nearly all other work was handled by Sun Tao alone.

Sun Tao was also struggling to keep up. With the upcoming branches in Fucheng, he would have to coordinate dozens of stores by himself.

Plus, he was already spending nearly all his time in the supermarket, dealing with Longhua's issues as well.

Thinking of this, Sun Tao mentioned, "Mr. Li, besides the store managers, we're still short of directors for the procurement, operations, administration, and human resources departments…"

Halfway through, Sun Tao smiled wryly. "I didn't realize it until now, but it turns out I'm doing the work of ten people. Mr. Li, could you consider giving me a raise?"

Li Dong chuckled and teased, "What, didn't the 2 million from last year cover it? Do well this year and you might become a millionaire."

Sun Tao knew Li Dong was joking, but the idea of becoming a millionaire was indeed tempting.

Li Dong wasn't exaggerating. If they could open all thirty branches this year, Sun Tao might very well become a millionaire.

After chatting for a bit, Li Dong stroked his chin and asked, "Brother Sun, are you really considering quitting?"

Sun Tao looked helpless and said with a wry smile, "Mr. Li, it's not about quitting; I'm just overwhelmed. It was manageable when the company was smaller, but now that I'm overseeing so many departments, I'm almost driven mad."

Li Dong laughed, recognizing the truth in Sun Tao's words.

Sun Tao was capable, but relying solely on him wasn't realistic.

Li Dong had been planning to address this issue but hadn't rushed due to the smaller number of stores. Now that Sun Tao himself had brought it up, it was even better.

Li Dong thought for a moment and said, "Alright, contact the headhunting company first. Once we find suitable candidates, we can arrange a unified interview."

Sun Tao agreed, then said, "Relying on headhunters isn't a long-term solution. Far East is growing rapidly, and we need our own talent pool. With the new batch of graduates about to emerge, should we organize a large-scale recruitment fair with some universities?"

This year alone, Far East would open more than thirty branches, and with other positions, they needed to recruit over fifty mid-to-senior level staff.

Initially, they could fill these positions with headhunting and recruitment, but for long-term growth, relying solely on this approach wasn't realistic.

To truly develop, building a talent reserve was a necessary step.

Since graduation season was approaching, recruiting and training a hundred or so people over the next couple of years would make it easier to find suitable store managers for the expanding branches.

Li Dong, who also worried about personnel matters, nodded and said, "That's a feasible idea. However, even if we hire graduates, they're not suitable for management positions. For this year's store management, we'll still rely on market recruitment and headhunters."

Sun Tao agreed. He knew well that recent graduates were often inexperienced and overly self-assured. Relying on them for management would likely lead to problems.

After discussing the recruitment fair, Sun Tao added, "Mr. Li, Manager Qin from the logistics company suggested buying ten heavy trucks. Should we approve this?"

Li Dong rubbed his temples, feeling the weight of so many issues.

After sitting for a long time, Li Dong felt his neck stiffen, so he moved it around and replied, "Not yet. I'm planning to set up a distribution center next year. For now, we'll make do. Heavy trucks are expensive."

Manager Qin's request for ten heavy trucks was indeed a big ask.

Even the least expensive heavy trucks cost several hundred thousand each, so ten would add up to millions.

Li Dong was already concerned about the funds for opening branches and didn't want to spend millions on trucks.

Moreover, the logistics company was only a temporary solution. Once the distribution center was established next year, buying trucks could wait.

Sun Tao was surprised by Li Dong's plan. "Mr. Li, that might be difficult. The Maqun Distribution Center that Su Guo opened last year cost over 200 million."

Li Dong waved his hand and said, "We don't need something that large. Su Guo supplies hundreds to thousands of stores. For us, a center that supports about a hundred stores should be sufficient. Three to forty million should be enough."

A distribution center was crucial for Far East's future.

By next year, with over fifty branches, the current Qinghua Logistics wouldn't meet the demand.

Additionally, Qinghua Logistics wasn't equipped specifically for supermarket deliveries, and many of Li Dong's current solutions were makeshift.

It was better to build a new center from scratch rather than expand Qinghua Logistics.

Sun Tao saw Li Dong's determination and, after some thought, didn't oppose it.

In reality, Sun Tao preferred to continue expanding branches. Delaying the distribution center by a year or two wouldn't be a major issue, and there was no need to rush.

Even investing just thirty to forty million was a significant expenditure, and given Far East's current capacity, it was challenging.

Li Dong didn't want to explain further. Some things were limited by Sun Tao's perspective, and explanations would be futile.

Looking at the time, Li Dong said, "Let's wrap up here. I have a class later, so I'll head to the school."

Sun Tao nodded, seeing Li Dong out of the office before returning to his own office to handle the matters discussed with Li Dong.