Rebirth of the Industrial Tycoon

Chapter 121 The Millionaire Li Weidong

In the previous life, Li Weimin ended up working in a department store. After moving goods for a few years, he became a small cadre in logistics by giving gifts to leaders, but he was finally laid off. Of course Li Weidong didn't want his younger brother to follow the old path of his previous life. The Xijiao Department Store was originally a supply and marketing cooperative, but it was later expanded and turned into a department store. In the early 1990s, two floors were added to the original foundation, and it became the Western Suburbs Department Store. In the mid-1990s, the state-run department store industry ushered in the first wave of closures, and the western suburbs department store was also restructured and acquired by a large enterprise, and was no longer a state-run unit. After entering the 21st century, large chain supermarkets appeared one after another. Carrefour, RT-Mart, Suning, Gome, etc. settled in Qinghe, which once again suppressed the living space of department stores. At this time, the department store can only survive, relying on some traditional old customers to survive. The emergence of large shopping malls has become the last straw that overwhelms department stores. Wanda Plaza and the like, all are one-stop shopping, eating, drinking, entertainment, and many brands, the shopping experience is much better than traditional shopping malls. In terms of price, department stores are not as competitive as e-commerce. People who want to buy cheap goods go to e-commerce platforms. Even the elderly, they rarely go to department stores. In the end, the Western Suburbs Department Store had to go down the road. The owner of the department store made hundreds of millions from selling the land, but Li Weimin, who was in his forties at the time, became a laid-off worker. He was laid off in his 40s, he had no skills, and there was no hope of re-employment. But Li Weimin was not willing to endure hardships. It would be shameful for him to set up a street stall, so he stayed at home and paid for it. The next step is the rich brother, who will help the poor brother from time to time. Li Weidong "loans" Li Weimin 108,000 yuan every year. Of course, Li Weimin never repaid the money. It is precisely because of knowing these circumstances that Li Weidong objected to his younger brother going to work in a department store. He did not want Li Weimin to follow the old path of his previous life. However, Li Weimin is very interested in going to work in department stores. So Li Weidong persuaded: "A department store is nothing more than a place to sell things, and it's such a big place, its development potential is not as good as a power plant, and it's not as good as a construction company." Cai walked in and said at the same time, "Weidong, I think the department store is pretty good. Think about how popular it was to work in a supply and marketing cooperative before!" "The supply and marketing cooperative used to be popular because of insufficient material supply. It's different now. The supply of materials will become more and more abundant, and there will be more and more places for people to buy things. If nothing else, let's talk about the market west of the station. There are all kinds of small commodities, and the prices are cheaper than the supply and marketing cooperatives. "Li Weidong paused, then continued: "For example, people used to go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy pork, but who still goes to the supply and marketing cooperative now? When you go to the small vegetable market, you will always meet a meat vendor. In the future, this kind of stall There are more and more hawkers, and there is no need for ordinary people to go to supply and marketing cooperatives to buy things." "How can those street stalls be compared with department stores! Department stores are state-run, they sell good things, and the quality of products is guaranteed. Besides Now, even if the department store doesn't sell meat, it sells other things, and the business is booming. During the festivals, bicycles are parked in front of the department store." Li Chunyan, the second sister, said. "Second sister, we have to take a long-term view of this matter." Li Weidong continued: "In the past, the supply and marketing cooperatives used unified purchase and sales. The supply and marketing cooperatives have mastered the procurement channels. If there are some good products, of course they all go to the supply and marketing cooperatives. But now it is different. Now, it is all self-purchasing and self-selling. The things that you can buy in department stores in the western suburbs can also be purchased by street vendors, and the operating costs of others are lower, so the things can be sold cheaper. Not to mention our Qinghe City, There is more than one department store in the western suburbs. There was originally a Baiyun department store in the center of the city; the supply and marketing agency of the Electric Power Bureau has now become a Kyushu Department Store; and the supply and marketing agency of our transportation company, I heard, also Change it to a transportation department store. There will be more and more competition in the department store industry, and maybe foreign-owned department stores will be opened in the future.

At that time, Americans, Europeans, and Japanese will all come to open department stores. How intense is the competition pressure! "No matter how big the competition is, ordinary people always have to buy things!" "Li Dengke said from the side: "The key is that Wei Min is willing to go to work in a department store. After all, that construction company and power plant are too hard work, and I don't want Weimin to go! The old man still spoiled his younger son, and was reluctant to let him suffer. Mother Zhou Yunxiu also came over and persuaded him, "Wherever Weimin wants to go, let him go, the key is to have a formal job. It's not that you don't know your brother, he has been naughty since he was a child. If you find him a job that he doesn't like, it will take three days for him to be a pick! "When it comes to where Li Weimin should go to work, other family members feel that the department store is a good unit, but Li Weidong is against it alone, which is obviously difficult to support. Materials were still scarce in the 1980s, and department stores were definitely in short supply. The common people at that time could not have expected that the department store would go bankrupt one day.... In Jicheng, the provincial capital, Ma Dexing brought Li Weidong to the newly established foreign exchange swap center. Before 1994, China implemented the Under the dual-track exchange rate system, the government will announce an official exchange rate, and when exporting companies conduct foreign exchange settlements, it will be another exchange rate. For example, in 1980, the official exchange rate between the US dollar and the RMB was 1 US dollar to 1.5 yuan, while the exporters earning foreign exchange For enterprises, when they make foreign exchange settlement, the exchange rate they get is 1 US dollar to 2.8 yuan. The reason for this is that the actual exchange rate of RMB is not as high as the official exchange rate announced. If foreign exchange companies settle foreign exchange according to the official exchange rate , that is selling one piece and losing one. Even if the export-earning enterprise has another exchange rate, this exchange rate is much worse than the real exchange rate, that is to say, if the settlement is based on the real exchange rate, the enterprise can earn more Yes. In 1986, in order to encourage enterprises to export, the state decided to establish a foreign exchange swap market. The so-called foreign exchange swap market is a market where enterprises and institutions trade and receive foreign exchange quotas with each other outside the official market. Therefore, this foreign exchange swap market The price of the market is floating. There are also many restrictions on transactions in the foreign exchange adjustment market. Buying foreign exchange is not something you can buy or sell if you want to. Enterprises that want to buy foreign exchange quotas must be approved by the foreign exchange administration before they can buy. Enterprises that sell foreign exchange quotas also have to go through a series of approvals. It is precisely because of the need for approval that Zhu Shicong had no way to obtain foreign exchange to buy imported knitting machines. The foreign exchange adjustment markets in various places are run by the Foreign Economic and Trade Bureau. Even if the bank wants to enter into an agency transaction, it must be approved by the foreign exchange management department. The foreign exchange quota sold by the export-earning enterprise is actually sold to the local foreign economic and trade bureau; the same reason requires foreign exchange enterprises to buy foreign exchange It was also bought from the local foreign trade and economic bureau. In those years, the more foreign exchange in the hands of the local foreign trade department, the greater the right to speak and the greater the power, so after the foreign exchange adjustment market appeared, all localities began to work hard China's foreign trade has quickly turned from deficit to surplus. Today, Li Weidong came to Ma Dexing to exchange the foreign exchange quota earned by the garment factory into RMB. The foreign trade and economic department of course has both hands for enterprises to exchange foreign exchange quotas. Welcome, Ma Dexing personally entertained Li Weidong, and took Li Weidong to the foreign exchange adjustment center of the Foreign Trade Department to handle business. "Director Li, you see, the current official exchange rate is 1 US dollar to 3 yuan, 7 cents and 1 cent. Come here. We exchange at the exchange center, I can exchange 4 yuan and 2 cents with you according to 1 dollar! This is already the highest price. Ma Dexing paused, then continued: "In October last year, the state announced the maximum price for foreign exchange transfers, which is 4 to 2 cents, so there is really no way for us to increase it for you. "I understand, thank you, Director Ma. "Li Weidong said. According to the exchange rate of 4.2, Li Weidong's four million foreign exchange can be exchanged for 16.8 million yuan. After deducting various costs of the garment factory and paying personal income tax, Li Weidong can get at least 10 million. That is It is said that the current Li Weidong has successfully become a multi-millionaire! In 1987 and 1988, there was no fluctuation in the exchange rate of RMB against the US dollar. The exchange rate of 1 US dollar to 4.2 yuan has not changed. It was not until 1988 that the state announced the cancellation of the maximum price limit in the foreign exchange swap market, and the exchange rate of the renminbi against the US dollar began to fluctuate. Therefore, the 4 yuan and 20 cents given by Ma Dexing is already the highest stipulated by the state. The price is gone. Li Weidong continued: "Director Ma, do you think it is possible for our factory to apply for foreign exchange retention? Ma Dexing thought for a moment, then shook his head in embarrassment: "The state controls foreign exchange so strictly now that it is impossible for you to keep foreign exchange. As far as I know, the foreign exchange retention policy is a policy that can only be enjoyed by enterprises in the special zone and foreign-invested enterprises. Foreign-invested enterprises can enjoy a foreign exchange retention of 1 yuan of RMB for the export of 1 dollar of goods. State-owned enterprises do not have this treatment either. "Sure enough, we still have to wait another year!" Li Weidong sighed lightly. After all, the policy in 1987 was relatively strict. After 1988, when the policy was loosened a little, companies that earned foreign exchange from exports could obtain foreign exchange retention.

Ma Dexing went on to say: "Director Li, although I can't get you foreign exchange, I might be able to help you with other policy matters, such as if you need any raw materials that are not easy to get, our Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Bureau is still If you can solve it for you, even if it is the raw materials controlled by the state, our Foreign Economic and Trade Office can think of a way." "Can you get the materials controlled by the state?" Li Weidong was slightly surprised, he did not expect that the energy of the Foreign Economic and Trade Office would still Not small. "Of course, if you ask me to enrich uranium to make an atomic bomb, we can't get it." Ma Dexing said half-jokingly. "Director Ma, I really have something to ask for your help." Li Weidong went on to say, "Can you help me approve a car?" "Aren't you the third-product of the transportation company? Why do you need me to give it to you?" Approval?" Ma Dexing asked with a smile. Li Weidong immediately replied: "I don't want a commercial vehicle, but a small car that I drive myself." "Is it a sedan?" Ma Dexing asked. Li Weidong nodded: "Yes, if you have a car, it will be much more convenient to go out and talk about business." "No problem." Ma Dexing thought for a while, then asked, "Can you wait?" "I can't get it in the hall. Is the car now?" Li Weidong asked. "There are existing cars, but they are not very good. The only ones I can get now are the Ford Sierra." Ma Dexing replied. "Fort Sierra? To be honest, it's a bit ugly." Li Weidong said with some disgust. The Ford Sierra is a car launched by Ford specifically for Europe. As an American car, the 2.6-meter wheelbase is also considered a small size in a B-class car. The performance of the Ford Sierra is still very good, especially the 2.8-liter displacement, equipped with a V6 engine, which is very powerful on the B-class car. And this car also has a perverted model, which was listed in South Africa, equipped with a 5.0-liter V8 engine, and dares to compete with the Porsche 911. However, this car has a relatively big disadvantage, that is, it is ugly! The front design of the Ford Sierra is called "avant-garde". In fact, it is ugly, which is completely inconsistent with the aesthetic vision of the time, so after this car was introduced to China, most of it was made as a taxi. Li Weidong felt that Ford Serra was a bit ugly, so he asked, "Director Ma, if I wait, how long will I have to wait?" "Then we have to wait until next year. According to the plan of the department, in the first quarter of next year, the department will have to wait. Introduce a batch of Nissan's big bluebirds, with high-end models with electric windows." Ma Dexing said, lowering his voice: "I'll tell you this news, don't spread it out, otherwise, if the units come to ask for the car, they will be able to get it. I'm so sick of it!" "That should be the seventh-generation Bluebird, this is the originator of the front-wheel drive car, and it's a good car!" Thinking of this, Li Weidong said: "Director Ma, then I'll wait a few more months. Come on. You have to keep one for me." "Don't worry, as long as the car comes, I'll give you a ticket first, and then you can choose any color!" Ma Dexing promised, patting his chest.