Chapter 12: Competition (Please support with bookmarks, monthly votes, recommendations, and continued reading)

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The expressions on his mother’s and Gao Zhenhai’s faces made Chen Bingwen think that something serious had happened.

But when he heard that a new sweet soup stall had appeared, he smiled instead.

How could a normal market exist without competition?

Selling sweet soup through a factory-direct delivery model required almost no technical expertise. As long as someone saw money to be made, it would not take long for them to imitate it.

He had expected competitors to appear sooner or later. There was no need to make such a fuss.

Besides, in his eyes, this might even be a good thing.

“Ah Hai, don’t be nervous. This is a good thing.” Chen Bingwen patted Gao Zhenhai on the shoulder, a calm smile on his face. “The fact that someone is copying us proves that our business model is sound.”

Gao Zhenhai’s eyes widened. “Brother Wen, they’re stealing our customers!”

Wang Qiaozhen, standing nearby, was also pale. “It took so much effort for the business to finally improve…”

“Mom, don’t worry. How can anyone do business without facing competition?”

As he spoke, Chen Bingwen poured himself a cup of tea and drained it in one satisfying gulp.

“How many workers are there in Cheung Sha Wan and the Lai Chi Kok industrial districts? At least twenty or thirty thousand, right? With our current production capacity, how much sweet soup can we make in a day?”

Chen Kee sent twelve barrels of sweet soup to the factory districts every day, and each barrel held roughly one hundred and fifty bowls.

Even at maximum capacity, twelve barrels amounted to only eighteen hundred bowls.

There were twenty or thirty thousand workers across the entire industrial district. Even if only one in ten wanted a bowl of sweet soup, that would still mean two or three thousand bowls.

“We haven’t even satisfied half the demand yet. The market is enormous.”

Chen Bingwen set down his teacup and continued, “They can copy our business model, but they can’t copy our core advantages.”

“What core advantages?” Chen Guofu could not help asking.

“Three things.” Chen Bingwen raised three fingers. “First, our family’s sweet soup recipes have been specially adjusted to suit the workers.

“Second, our prices are affordable enough for workers to enjoy a bowl without feeling the pinch. If they want to start a price war, their costs are right there in front of them. How many days can they hold out?

“Third, our current production capacity allows us to respond to changes in the market at any time. They have only just started, so their production is limited, and so is the area they can serve.”

At this point, Chen Bingwen paused. Only after Gao Zhenhai and his mother had understood did he continue.

“Actually, I hope there will be more sweet soup stalls like this. That will make it easier to carry out my later plans.”

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“Why do you want there to be more of them?” Gao Zhenhai pressed.

“You’ll understand the exact reason after some time. For now, I have a task for you. Investigate that sweet soup stall and find out whether it is merely a single stall or whether it has a shop supporting it from behind.

“Also, go to the Labour Department and recruit a few more people for me. We need to speed up our expansion.”

Previously, Chen Bingwen had wanted to rent a food-processing factory, but he had lacked the funds.

Now that he had secured a loan of eighty thousand dollars, the plan could finally become a reality.

Chen Kee Sweet Soup Shop was simply too small. It had to leave enough room for dine-in customers while also accommodating production, and there was no space to work efficiently.

With financial support now in place, it was time to separate the production process from the shop.

Seeing that Chen Bingwen was completely unfazed by the appearance of the new sweet soup stall and instead looked entirely confident, both Wang Qiaozhen and Gao Zhenhai felt the tension in their hearts ease somewhat.

“All right. I’ll take care of it right away.” Gao Zhenhai agreed readily.

After assigning Gao Zhenhai his tasks, Chen Bingwen asked Wang Qiaozhen, “Mom, do you know whether there are any shut-down food-processing factories between here and the Cheung Sha Wan area?”

Wang Qiaozhen thought for a moment, then shook her head. “Go ask Uncle Fu at the street corner. He might know.”

“That’s right. Uncle Fu always has the best information. I’ll go ask him.”

At the newspaper stand on the street corner, Uncle Fu was wearing reading glasses and sorting newspapers.

When he saw Chen Bingwen approaching, he greeted him with a beaming smile. “Ah Wen, what newspaper are you buying today?”

“Uncle Fu, are there any shut-down food-processing factories around here available for takeover?”

As he spoke, Chen Bingwen handed him a pack of Double Happiness cigarettes.

Uncle Fu accepted the cigarettes, held them beneath his nose, and inhaled deeply. With a chuckle, he teased, “Young man, planning to open a factory?”

Chen Bingwen merely laughed without answering.

Uncle Fu did not mind. He slipped the cigarettes into his pocket and removed his reading glasses.

“My nephew works at the Cheung Sha Wan Road Food Factory. It shut down last month. His boss wants to emigrate and is preparing to sell the factory.

“My nephew says the factory is fully equipped. Even the steam-cooking boilers were bought only recently.”

Chen Bingwen’s heart lifted. “How big is it? How much is the rent?”

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“I’m not sure about that. I’ll call him over, and you can ask him directly.”

“Thank you so much, Uncle Fu.”

Uncle Fu waved his hand. “Sham Shui Po is a place that wears people down. Young people like you shouldn’t stay here.”

With that, he turned and walked into the small room behind the newspaper stand to make a call.

A short while later, Uncle Fu came out and said, “My nephew says he’ll be here soon. Sit down and wait for a while.”

Chen Bingwen sat on a small stool beside the newspaper stand and casually picked up a copy of the Industry and Commerce Daily.

About twenty minutes later, a young man in his twenties, dressed in work trousers, hurried over.

Uncle Fu introduced him. “This is my nephew, Zhong Qiang.

“Ah Qiang, this is Ah Wen from Chen Kee Sweet Soup Shop. He wants to ask about your boss’s factory.”

Ah Qiang wiped the sweat from his brow and spoke directly. “The factory is at 38 Cheung Sha Wan Road. It’s a little over twelve hundred square feet, and all the equipment was replaced last year. The boss is eager to sell, so the price should be negotiable.”

Chen Bingwen calculated the figures in his head. A little over twelve hundred square feet was close to one hundred and ten square meters. The space was not particularly large, but if it were used solely as a central kitchen for producing sweet soup, it should still meet his needs.

“Brother Qiang, can you take me there to have a look?”

“Right now is fine!” Ah Qiang agreed readily. “The boss gave me the keys and told me to bring anyone interested in viewing the factory over.”

The two of them soon arrived at 38 Cheung Sha Wan Road. When Chen Bingwen pushed open the factory doors, he saw three stainless-steel steam-cooking boilers arranged neatly in the spacious interior. Nearby were a packing machine, steaming racks, and various other pieces of equipment and tools.

Chen Bingwen walked over and examined the equipment carefully.

Although the factory had been shut down for some time, there was not a trace of grime on any of the machinery. It was clear that the previous owner had maintained and cleaned everything meticulously.

“These machines look excellent,” Chen Bingwen praised sincerely.

“This place used to make cured duck. The equipment was replaced just last year. If the boss’s son in Canada weren’t urging him to move over there, he would never have been willing to sell it.” Ah Qiang sounded proud as he explained.

“Brother Qiang, how much is your boss asking?”

“Thirty thousand a year, including the equipment. But the boss said the price could still be discussed if you’re genuinely interested.”

When Chen Bingwen heard the asking price, his heart sank. It was certainly not cheap.