Rebirth 1983: Building My Business Empire-Chapter 144 - 135: Grand Opening
Chapter 144: Chapter 135: Grand Opening
Per Lu Jiaxin’s request, on Friday and Saturday, they distributed flyers at the gates of factories with many female workers and at the entrances of residential compounds with good benefits.
On the day of the grand opening, after reaching Xiushui Street, Lu Jiaxin also placed a sign with discounts at the entrance, fearing that people might not notice. As the crowd gathered, she even had Xue Mao use a megaphone to call out at the entrance.
The clothes hanging in the store were all matched by Lu Jiaxin. Since the prices were relatively higher than other stalls, older customers would turn around and leave upon seeing the prices. The young pursued fashion and texture, staying to pick out clothes when they saw the good matches in the store.
Lu Jiaxin would also choose clothes that suited the customers’ skin tones and figures. She spoke very professionally, and the customers all thought her advice made sense and would usually buy. However, as a result, she lost her voice by noon.
Seeing her like this, Lu Jiajie said with concern, “Go back and rest; I’m here, I can handle it.”
Lu Jiaxin did not insist on staying tough, so she let Qian Xiaoxiao take her home, where she quickly brewed a cup of loquat syrup to drink. Since Xue Mao and Xiao Qiu were busy at the store, Xiaoxiao had to hurry back after dropping her off, so Lu Jiaxin prepared her afternoon medicine by herself.
Around five o’clock, Xiao Qiu came back and excitedly said, “Sister Xin, there were even more people this afternoon than in the morning, we couldn’t keep up.”
Lu Jiaxin felt this was normal. Her clothing store targeted young women, and with the weather being sunny today, unmarried girls and young wives who had slept in would eventually have time to go shopping in the afternoon.
As it was getting dark, Lu Jiajie returned riding a tricycle, accompanied by Lu Zhang and Lu Zhenzhen. As for Xue Mao, he rode a bicycle with Qian Xiaoxiao.
After parking the tricycle in the yard, Lu Jiajie handed his shoulder bag to Lu Jiaxin, “This is the money we took in today; you keep it safe.”
He was then ready to leave.
Lu Jiaxin said with a smile, “No hurry, let’s count it after dinner.”
Lu Jiajie didn’t dare to wait that long to go back, and said, “With so many clothes in the store, someone has to watch over them. Otherwise, if a sneaky thief takes them, our loss would be huge.”
“It’s just gotten dark; thieves aren’t that bold yet. The human body needs food like steel; miss one meal and you’ll be starving. Let’s eat and then go back.”
Lu Jiajie wolfed down a bowl of rice in a hurry and took off.
After dinner, Lu Jiaxin went inside to count the money. The largest denomination now was the Great Unity RMB, and it would take a person half a day to count a bag full of it. She picked out the Great Unity notes, counted them, and then bagged and stored them in a drawer, taking the rest of the money to the main room to count with Xue Mao, Xiao Qiu, and the others.
Once they had counted the money, Xiao Qiu excitedly said, “Sister Xin, we have a total of one thousand six hundred ninety-two Yuan and eighty cents here. Sister Xin, how much did we actually make?”
It was impossible to calculate the exact profit since each style of clothing had different buying and selling prices, and there were also gifts and discounts to consider.
Seeing that Lu Jiaxin didn’t reply, Xiaoxiao said with a smile, “It’s enough to know that we’ve made some money; we don’t need to know exactly how much.”
Since a precise calculation couldn’t be made, they could only estimate a rough amount. There were three thousand Yuan in Great Unity notes, and the daily sales were almost four thousand seven hundred. She felt there would be about a thirty percent profit margin, so they had made roughly around one thousand four hundred Yuan for the day.
With a previous experience in mind, Lu Jiaxin didn’t disclose the amount to them, “It’s better than what you guys make from the breakfast stall.”
Xue Mao said regrettably, “Sister Xin, if we could get our stock from Gao Di Street and sell it, the profit could at least double.”
Lu Jiaxin looked at him and asked with a smile, “My medication can’t be interrupted, so who will go to Yangcheng City? You and Fifth Brother? Do you know how to pick women’s clothing?”
The shop’s focus was young women, and she didn’t trust Lu Jiajie’s taste in fashion. If he chose fabrics or styles that looked too old-fashioned, they wouldn’t even make the current profit.
Xue Mao was at a loss for words.
Lu Jiaxin said, “Let’s take it one step at a time, no rush.”
If it wasn’t for her poor health, she would have directly opened a clothing factory in Peng City instead of a shop here. However, after more than three months of recuperation, her body was clearly better than before. Since her return to the Forty-nine City last year, she had caught a cold only once when the weather changed, so this time she was determined to strictly follow the doctor’s advice.
After the meal, Lu Jiaxin gave Lu Zhang and Lu Zhenzhen each a red envelope. Zhenzhen didn’t want it, saying she hadn’t been much help in the shop.
Lu Jiaxin patted Lu Zhenzhen on the head and smiled, “How can you say you weren’t helpful? You count faster than Xiao Qiu and have never once made a mistake.”
She had previously noticed that Lu Zhenzhen was good at mental arithmetic, and this became even more evident with a comparison. It was a talent that not even Xiao Qiu, who had a higher education, could match.
Lu Zhang had had his eye on a set of comic books, but unfortunately, his allowance wasn’t enough, so he reluctantly asked, “Aunt, could you please not tell my parents?”
Lu Jiaxin chuckled, “If your parents don’t ask, I won’t bring it up. But if they do ask, I can’t lie to them. However, I won’t tell them how much I gave you.”
Lu Zhang put the money in his pocket.
Upon leaving the alley, Lu Zhang couldn’t wait to open his red envelope. When he saw that it contained two Great Unity RMBs, he yelled out with joy, “Aunt is so great, giving such a big red envelope.”
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He thought receiving five Yuan would be a lot, and never expected his aunt to be so generous.
Lu Zhenzhen opened her red envelope as well, finding two Great Unity RMBs. She smiled, her eyes curving, “Brother, we need to give this money to Dad and Mom.”
Lu Zhang instantly bristled, his voice unconsciously getting louder, “No way, we can’t give it to Dad and Mom, or I’ll never get those comic books.”
Lu Zhenzhen said with a smile, “The comic books you like cost three Yuan for the set. We can hand over twenty Yuan and then ask Dad and Mom to give you three Yuan to buy the comics.”
“Why would Dad and Mom give me money to buy comic books?” complained Lu Zhang with a frown. His parents were against him reading extracurricular books, which he had to read secretly at school.
“Just read them at home and don’t bring them to school. They definitely won’t object,” she replied.
What could Lu Zhang do? If he didn’t agree, if she handed over the money, he wouldn’t be able to keep his either. Following her advice, there was a chance he might still get the comics, otherwise, he’d end up with nothing.
Qian Xiaoxiao saw his troubled expression and offered a suggestion with a chuckle, “Next time, don’t take money, just have Sister Xin buy it for you. Sister Xin is easy to talk to. She’ll definitely buy you any comics or toys you want.”
Upon hearing this, Lu Zhang immediately handed his red envelope to Qian Xiaoxiao and said, “Miss Xiaoxiao, could you give this money to my aunt to help me buy the comics? Keep the rest with her, and once I’ve saved up some more, I can buy a pair of roller skates.”
Lu Zhenzhen’s eyes also lit up at the mention of roller skates. She hesitated, then gave her red envelope to Qian Xiaoxiao, too. She wasn’t interested in toys or comics; she wanted to buy a skirt for her mother.
Qian Xiaoxiao readily agreed.
When Lu Jiaxin learned about the siblings’ plans, she said with some emotion, “That’s why I say it’s better to have daughters. They’re caring and filial. Sons keep you worried with their mischief when they’re little, and whether they’ll be filial when they grow up and marry depends on their wives.”
Her parents had married for love, and while they were initially affectionate and happy, they’d ended up arguing frequently before ultimately getting divorced. Both of them remarried and had children, and they still fought often. Thus, she felt averse to marriage, believing that even the most intense love could fade away and vanish amongst the mundanities of married life. That’s why her two relationships had both ended in breakups.
