Rebirth of the Industrial Tycoon

Early in the morning, Li Weidong received a call from Zheng Jianan from Hong Kong Island.

"Lawyer Zheng, did you go to work so early?" Li Weidong asked sarcastically.

"It's not to find you!" Zheng Jianan continued: "I have consulted experts in the field of patents. The patent of your egg steamer cannot be registered as an invention patent, but can only be registered as a utility model. With the electric steamer, your egg steamer just proposes a new technology solution based on the electric steamer."

"If you use the new type registration, do you have a PCT patent certificate?" Li Weidong asked.

"Yes." Zheng Jianan continued: "Although the concept of utility model is not stipulated in the Paris Convention, the PCT organization's interpretation of patents includes utility models. Therefore, there are still PCT patent certificates."

Li Weidong nodded: "Something is better than nothing!"

Zheng Jianan went on to say: "I have to remind you that some countries do not regard utility models as an independent type of patent protection, while some countries regard utility models as an independent type of patent protection. Therefore, utility model patents are encountered in disputes. At times, it is more difficult to protect rights than invention patents.”

"I see. In fact, patents are meant to guard against gentlemen and not against villains. But it belongs to my rights and interests, and I can't give up! Those who should register patents should continue to register."

Li Weidong went on to say: "One more thing, help me to check, where is the Hong Kong Island office of Nippon Nippon Electric Appliances, and whether there is a person named Takakura Wentai in it."

Li Weidong was a little unhappy that the egg steamer did not get the invention patent, but it is normal to think about it. After all, electric steamers have been on the market for many years, and the principle of egg steamers is similar to that of electric steamers. A look, just add a shelf for eggs.

Even in later generations, many countries classified the egg steamer as a type of electric steamer, and in the import and export directory, the egg steamer was marked as an electric steamer.

Although the electric steamer was invented a long time ago, it has never been popularized. Because countries that can afford electric steamers do not eat steamed things; and countries that often steam things and eat them cannot afford electric steamers.

Due to dietary habits, Western countries hardly use the method of "steaming" to cook food. In fact, except for the Chinese, almost no countries can steam food. Even Japan and South Korea, which are influenced by Chinese food culture, rarely use the cooking method of "steaming".

In China in the 1980s and 1990s, many places still used firewood to steam steamed buns! How can you buy an electric steamer in a place where there is no electricity?

Therefore, as long as the Chinese people don't buy something like an electric steamer, there is almost no need to expect it to be sold in other countries.

...

Li Weidong took the egg steamer that was just developed,

Came to Ma Dexing's office.

"Director Li, what new products have you developed?" Ma Dexing asked with great interest.

"This thing is called an egg steamer, which is specially used for steaming eggs." Li Weidong handed the egg steamer to Ma Dexing.

"Is there a special machine for steaming eggs?" Ma Dexing looked at the egg steamer and said, "Is this sold to foreigners again?"

Li Weidong nodded: "That's right, we Chinese people can just boil the eggs in a pot."

"I said, Director Li, you are really ambitious, and you are thinking about earning money from foreigners! The foreign trade situation this year is so severe that many foreign businessmen can't keep their orders. Your toaster has also been delayed in delivery. What? I estimate that at the Canton Fair in October, there may be a significant reduction in foreign businessmen from Europe and the United States." Ma Dexing said.

"The egg steamer was not developed for the European and American markets, but for the Japanese market. The eating habits of Japanese people are still different from those of European and American countries." Li Weidong said.

"The Japanese market? This is a good idea. According to the data from the customs, Japan is our second largest export destination after Hong Kong Island. This year's exports to Japan will account for about 10% of our total foreign trade exports. % or more." Ma Dexing said.

Li Weidong went on to say: "Director Ma, I encountered some difficulties in the production of this new product, so this time I came to you for help."

"Oh? Is there anything else that can be difficult for you, Director Li?" Ma Dexing asked.

"The main reason is that the raw materials are hard to find." Li Weidong said, opened the egg steamer, pointed to the stainless steel disc inside, and then said: "Director Ma, I use stainless steel here, and stainless steel is not easy to find now. , if it is mass-produced, I also hope that the hall can coordinate the raw materials of stainless steel."

Ma Dexing frowned: "Stainless steel! This thing is really not easy to handle."

"Director Ma, if it's easy, I won't find it in the hall." Li Weidong said.

"As far as I know, there are only a handful of domestic companies capable of producing stainless steel. This item is still a planned material. You have to ask the State Planning Commission for approval before you can get it." Ma Dexing replied.

"Director Ma, I developed this product for the purpose of exporting foreign exchange, after all, the raw materials for the export products should be given priority to supply in the hall!" Li Weidong asked.

Ma Dexing nodded: "We will definitely give maximum protection to products that earn foreign exchange by exporting. The difficulty now is that only a few companies such as Taiyuan Iron and Steel, Anshan Iron and Steel, and Baosteel have the ability to produce stainless steel.

At present, the iron and steel enterprises in our province do not have stainless steel production lines. I can't manage this out-of-province enterprise. So I can only coordinate some stainless steel materials through ministries. "

"That's fine, just trouble Director Ma and ask the ministries if they can give me a batch of stainless steel raw materials." Li Weidong said.

After Li Weidong waited for two days, Ma Dexing finally got news.

"Director Li, I have reported the stainless steel material to the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, and the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation has also communicated with the Planning Commission, and the answer is not very optimistic!" Ma Dexing said.

"How did the ministries respond?" Li Weidong asked.

Ma Dexing sighed and said: "Our country's production of stainless steel is very limited, and the stainless steel production capacity of several major domestic steel plants has been divided up as early as the beginning of the year. In the second half of the year, I want to find stainless steel outside the plan. A very difficult thing.

Originally, it was possible to import stainless steel to meet domestic demand, but this year's foreign trade environment is not good, foreign exchange is still relatively short, and imported stainless steel has also encountered difficulties.

At present, the production capacity of stainless steel is insufficient, and the stainless steel produced by several major steel plants must be given priority to meet the needs of military industrial enterprises and the project of the 863 plan, followed by key domestic enterprises. It is difficult for other companies to get stainless steel! "

"Isn't the order for export earning foreign exchange not enough?" Li Weidong asked worriedly.

"It's not impossible, it's very difficult." Ma Dexing continued: "If you can really get the order to earn foreign exchange through export, I will report it to the leaders in the department. Even if I go to the ministry, I have to find a way to corrupt the stainless steel raw materials. It's just that this kind of thing, it's hard to say when it comes to specific operations!"

"I understand, thank you Director Ma." Li Weidong nodded, thinking to himself, it seems that Plan B is going to be implemented!

...

The Canton Fair in October was held as scheduled.

In this session of the Canton Fair, there are indeed a lot fewer foreign businessmen, especially foreign businessmen from white-skinned European and American countries, many did not participate. Looking around, foreign businessmen in Southeast Asia and Africa have become the majority, except for Hong Kong businessmen who speak Cantonese.

At that time, nearly 40 percent of the goods exported from China were shipped to Hong Kong Island, a small part of which was consumed by Hong Kong Island itself, and most of them were used for entrepot trade.

Li Weidong passed by the tea exhibition area and heard only a few exhibitors selling tea, discussing foreign trade orders there.

"The British foreign businessman who originally bought our black tea transferred all the orders to Kenya a few days ago."

"Is there also tea in foreign countries? I'm because we only produce tea in China!"

"Of course, foreign countries also grow tea, such as India, Kenya, Sri Lanka, all have tea, and the British also grow tea themselves."

"How did you know that the British diverted tea orders to Kenya?"

"Kenyans said it! Just now there was a Kenyan foreign businessman who wanted to inquire about the tea-making process from me!"

"Did you tell him?"

"Of course not. This is something left by our ancestors. It's the guy we eat. How can you tell others at will."

Li Weidong visited a few more exhibition areas, and the situation was similar. Most of the buyers came from Southeast Asian, Middle Eastern and African countries. The consumption power of these places is obviously not as good as that of developed countries such as Europe and the United States. .

The situation in the exhibition areas of various raw materials is better, but the situation in the exhibition areas of industrial products is much worse, especially for industrial products with some technical content, few foreign businessmen stop.

The home appliance exhibition area is more like this.

Although China's home appliance industry has developed rapidly, it was mainly based on assembly at that time. There were small-scale home appliance assembly enterprises scattered all over the country, but there were only a handful of manufacturers that could produce key components.

In this case, China's home appliance industry has an advantage of cheap labor. If the cost of imported parts and shipping costs are included, China's home appliance industry does not have a clear advantage in price.

The product price advantage is not big, and the brand is not as loud as foreign brands, so naturally no foreign businessmen come to order.

As a result, in the desolate home appliance exhibition area, one kind of exhibitor could only stay there bored, watching the model ladies and sisters walking back and forth with billboards.

Cai Qianjin and Jiang Aiguo walked over from a distance, posing as a leader inspecting, and walked into the home appliance exhibition area.

"Oh, why are there no foreign businessmen!" Cai Qianjin said loudly.

"Yeah, the home appliance exhibition area in previous years was very lively!" Jiang Aiguo said, and deliberately walked up to Li Weidong, pretending to have just seen Li Weidong, and said in surprise: "Oh, this is not Li Factory. How long! Long time no see!"

Cai Qianjin also came over: "Director Li, you must have signed a big order again, right? Is it 10 million US dollars or 20 million US dollars?"

"Old Cai, this year's market, let alone 10 million US dollars, even 1 million US dollars, it is difficult to sign up!" Jiang Aiguo said gloatingly.

"Director Li is different from others! People come to the Canton Fair to eat meat! A mere one million dollars is equivalent to half a bowl of soup. Director Li can't look down on it!" Cai Qianjin said sarcastically.

"One million dollars is also a big order!" Jiang Aiguo also said with a sarcastic expression: "But Director Li has seen it through his eyes, even if it is an order of millions of dollars, Director Li also regards it as a standard sale. head!"

This humming second general has been pitted by Li Weidong several times before. Now that the home appliance exhibition area is crowded, the two of them didn't hurry to take this opportunity to mock Li Weidong.

Li Weidong looked at the two of them singing in harmony, and smiled coldly.

"These two broken reminders are really natural villains, and they come from being uncomfortable! Isn't it good to stay honest? You have to show your face and let me fight!"