I turned off the lights and left Mi Cai’s office. I went to the restroom and splashed cold water on my face. As I was walking through the staff passage, I happened to meet Jian Wei, who was just coming out of the break room. I slowed down my pace, while she quickened hers. Soon, we were walking side by side. I asked her, “Where is Fang Yuan?”
“He is still at the data center. I don’t think he will come out tonight.”
“No choice. This is an event where success or failure is determined by data… It surprises me that you also pay so much attention to this event.”
Jian Wei stopped walking and said to me seriously, “This event of Zhuo Mei has used more than half of our Sima Advertising’s premium advertising resources. Of course I am concerned. If this event is successful, it will be the most successful advertising campaign case since the establishment of our Sima Advertising. It will enhance our strategic position. Do you understand?”
“I understand, I understand. After this Christmas event of Zhuo Mei, your advertising resources will become hot commodities in the advertising market, probably doubling in value. President Jian, you are indeed a strategist with great strategic thinking.”
“Is that so? If that’s the case, then you are the only one who hasn’t benefited from this event, and you’re still carrying favors everywhere!”
“No choice, for my brother.”
Jian Wei gave me a look, “Hypocrite, is it really just for your brother?”
“For Zhuo Mei.”
“You can just say it’s for Mi Cai!” said Jian Wei, and then she walked toward the elevator with the special pace of a career woman. I followed her closely, and could already vaguely hear the deafening noise from inside the mall.
…
I took the staff elevator with Jian Wei to avoid the crowds and successfully arrived at the first floor of the mall. When the elevator door opened, the sight of the densely packed crowd in front of us made us instinctively stay in the elevator without moving… Until the elevator door was about to close, Jian Wei, who had regained her composure first, pulled me out.
Jian Wei looked at me and asked with emotion, “Zhaoyang, seeing so many people shopping crazily in the mall because of your plan, do you feel a sense of achievement?”
“To be honest, this is a small scene. When I worked at Baoli before, I could plan this effect almost every time there was a big event.”
Jian Wei was disgusted by my bragging and showed disdain, saying, “If you have such strong work ability, why did you stay at Baoli for nearly three years and remain just a small employee?”
“Don’t mind, it’s just a joke!”
Jian Wei sighed and said to me, “Do you know? Your long-standing idealism and blind pursuit of a free lifestyle have restricted your own talent. In fact, whether it’s working or starting a business, as long as you can correct your attitude and have the awareness of a worker or businessman, you will be more likely to succeed than others, and you won’t have to take so many detours.”
I replied, “Can we not talk about these hypothetical things?”
Jian Wei bit her lip and looked at me with a complex expression. But this complexity was mistaken by passersby as being resentful, and they looked at me with disdain, thinking that a scoundrel had broken a beautiful girl’s heart. However, their feet did not stop, and they continued toward the goods that were half price but limited in supply…
I felt a bit embarrassed and finally changed the subject, saying to Jian Wei, “There are so many discounted goods today. Do you want to buy something? If you do, I don’t mind accompanying you for a walk.”
“No need. I’ve already seen the effect of the event. The rest will be left to the staff to count. Now I’m going back to rest.”
“Okay… Drive safely on the way.”
“What about you? Are you going to stay here all night?”
“After this shopping frenzy passes, I will get the latest sales data and then go back to rest.”
Jian Wei nodded and turned away without further instructions, while I felt somewhat empty because of the sudden absence of someone to talk to. I ended up following the shopping crowd into the mall, wanting to see if there were any suitable goods to buy for Leyao as her wedding gift tomorrow.
…
It was already one o’clock in the morning. This shopping frenzy had lasted for an hour and still showed no sign of cooling down. I was holding the gift I had prepared for Leyao and, with Mi Cai’s work card, came again to the work area set up by Zhuo Mei on the top floor, then went to the data center to find Fang Yuan. At that moment, he was holding a cup of coffee, standing in front of the display screen, closely watching the real-time sales data, with excitement and excitement on his face, so much so that he didn’t immediately notice my presence beside him.
I nudged him, and he finally turned to look at me. He took a sip of the coffee that was no longer steaming and said with an excited voice, “Zhaoyang, have you ever seen the real-time data table rising almost vertically?”
“Is it that exaggerated?”
Fang Yuan nodded, switched the display screen, and a set of real-time sales data appeared before me. The data line kept climbing upwards. After 12 o’clock, it surged rapidly, and within just over an hour, goods worth more than 12 million had already been sold. And this was just the beginning, already matching half of the sales volume of the rival Baoli Department Store last year.
I asked Fang Yuan, “Has the sales data from Baoli Department Store come out yet?”
Reminded by me, Fang Yuan took out his phone from his pocket, opened the message page, and said to me, “My friends at Baoli have already sent news. As of one o’clock, the sales at Baoli Department Store have just exceeded 3 million, which is four times less than our data… This time we should definitely win!”
After comparing the sales data from both sides in the most intuitive way, my heart finally calmed down. Based on my years of experience working in the planning department of department stores, as long as there are no major accidents, following this sales trend, Zhuo Mei’s sales on Christmas should be 2 to 3 times that of Baoli. Although it can reach four times now, during the day, Baoli will also have a corresponding surge in sales, narrowing the gap, but this will not affect the overall situation at all. As Fang Yuan said, Zhuo Mei should be sure of victory this time… This confrontation with Baoli Department Store also fully illustrates the importance of resources. If it were not for Jian Wei’s Sima Advertising, and the strong support from Leyao, Cao Jinfei, and even Xiang Chen, Zhuo Mei would not have shown such an overwhelming advantage… At this moment, I have every reason to believe that after this battle, Zhuo Mei has already left Baoli Department Store far behind.
At this time, Xiang Chen, who had not appeared all along, was also led by the staff to the data center of Zhuo Mei’s office area. This unobstructed entry also made me feel the growing influence of Fang Yuan at Zhuo Mei. After all, this data center is a place involving commercial secrets, and Xiang Chen must have entered under Fang Yuan’s special approval.
Xiang Chen casually picked up a cup of ready-made coffee and came to the side of Fang Yuan and me, saying, “I just accompanied a few important customers, so I came late. How is the current sales situation?”
Fang Yuan gestured for Xiang Chen to look at the screen displaying the real-time sales data. At first glance, Xiang Chen’s face showed an expression of disbelief, then he sighed, “It’s even more intense than I imagined!!” After a pause, he continued, “Quickly check the sales data of our company’s liquor counter at Zhuo Mei.”
Fang Yuan switched the screen again, and the sales data of Xiang Chen’s liquor counter set up at Zhuo Mei were immediately displayed. At this point, they had already sold goods worth more than 500,000 yuan, accounting for nearly one twentieth of the total sales. This was also normal, considering he was selling high-end liquor and cigarettes. Except for those top luxury items, it was hard for other counters to have single items priced higher than his.
Xiang Chen was in a good mood and said, “It seems that choosing to cooperate deeply with Zhuo Mei this time was the right decision. At this moment, I am even more looking forward to our performance at the banquet tomorrow night. I hope that the sales of our counter this Christmas can break the historical record of 5 million yuan.”
Fang Yuan replied, “Maintaining this sales momentum, your counter breaking the sales of 5 million yuan should not be a big problem.”
Xiang Chen nodded and added, “This is the power after resource integration. To be honest, I hope that we brothers will have even deeper cooperation in the future. By the way, Zhaoyang, I heard that your company’s chain bars in various cities are doing quite well. Is there any possibility for my company to directly supply alcoholic products to your bars?”
I replied truthfully, “The alcohol your company produces is too high-end. Our consumer group may not have the purchasing power.”
Xiang Chen smiled and said, “Our company’s distribution channels should be the strongest in the Jiangsu-Zhejiang-Shanghai region. We can get the lowest prices through official channels for any grade of alcohol. At worst, we can even establish a subsidiary company to produce various mid-range wines, specifically targeting the bar market. This way, it won’t lower the high-end brand image of the headquarters.”
“We can discuss it in detail later, since we have already signed long-term supply contracts with several trading companies, which might be a bit difficult.”
Xiang Chen smiled and said, “I’m just suggesting. If there are difficulties, I won’t insist!”
…
It was already two o’clock in the morning. Xiang Chen left Zhuo Mei before me, and my spirit could no longer bear the strain. I then said goodbye to Fang Yuan and, with a tired body, walked toward the outside of the mall…
At the moment I stepped out of Zhuo Mei, a sudden gust of unbearable cold wind blew, causing my nerves to ache. I hurriedly tightened my clothes and took out a hat from my briefcase to put on. Under the bright lights of Zhuo Mei that shone all night, I vaguely couldn’t remember where I had parked my car. So I looked around somewhat lost, but the sight of so many parked cars made my memory even worse. I took out my car key and walked while pressing it, hoping to hear the sound of the car unlocking.
Suddenly, I saw a familiar figure on the other side of the street. He was gazing at the sleepless Zhuo Mei tonight, still with that lonely expression.
I stopped my steps, looking at Weiran… but I didn’t feel surprised, because I had already met too many familiar people at Zhuo Mei tonight, such as Mi Zhongde and Mi Lan, such as Xiang Chen and Jian Wei, such as Chen Jingming and Mi Cai’s assistant… This was destined to be a complicated night! Especially after midnight…
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