On May 26, 1977, Chen Zhiwen returned to Hong Kong from the United States, but not as Cathay Pacific. Instead, he leased a Taiwanese G.1159 and departed from New York back to Hong Kong.
However, this type of small aircraft can only fly three to four thousand kilometers at a time, so it took two and a half days to refuel and perform maintenance at airports in Los Angeles, Anchorage, Alaska, and Tokyo before arriving in Hong Kong. Compared with flying directly Riding on a Boeing 747 takes much longer and feels uncomfortable because the plane is too small and the air turbulence makes it extremely bumpy.
The current type of private jets are suitable for entrepreneurs who often fly short distances. For example, they often stay in the United States and Europe. They are very suitable. They do not need to go to the airport to wait for flights. They can just find a small airport for takeoff and landing, but it is obviously not suitable. Chen Zhiwen has stayed in Hong Kong for a long time and rarely visits nearby countries.
The one Chen Zhiwen is optimistic about is naturally the Boeing aircraft. In fact, he has sent people to ask about it before, but Boeing seems to be indifferent to this order. Of course, the order will be accepted, but it will take two or three years to wait.
During this period, the global economy began to recover, and all countries had a strong demand for aircraft. A large number of orders went to Boeing, the only company that could fly aircraft across continents. First come, first served, and since I only had one, I naturally had to queue for a long time.
After much thought, Chen Zhiwen still gave up placing the order because he knew that in less than two years, the second oil crisis would break out, the price of oil would rise from US$10 to over US$30, and the global economy would once again suffer A critical hit, and most airlines will suffer an avalanche of losses. Boeing's orders will inevitably be affected, and many airlines will default on the aircraft they built, and when the time comes, whether it is Boeing or other airlines, , you can buy new aircraft directly, and the price will be much cheaper. They are even in stock, and you can get them earlier than if you place an order directly now.
That night, when Chen Zhiwen returned home, a sumptuous dinner was naturally on hand. The family also hired several capable chefs to take charge of daily meals.
"Is the business in the United States going smoothly?" Chen Tianfu asked while drinking a small drink.
"It's okay. The chip production line has been obtained. It will arrive in Hong Kong in a few months. I didn't participate in the LCD production line, but there will be no problem." Chen Zhiwen replied, although the LCD thing is not the same as the chips of later generations. The industry is still the largest super factory in the electronics industry that requires investment, but now it is far behind.
Because before the emergence of LCD notebooks, the LCD industry was a very small industry, which could only supply products such as electronic watches, handheld game consoles, and calculators. These markets were not small, but they were not big either. Although countries and regions Major electronics companies are also working hard to develop this technology, hoping that LCD will enter the TV field, but obviously, the current LCD technology is still decades away from this goal.
Therefore, the current United States has no control over liquid crystal technology at all, as long as the money is in place, and although the liquid crystal industry was invented by the American RCA, Japan's research in this area began in the early 1970s. Currently, in the field of liquid crystal, Japan has Beginning to scorn their American counterparts, many American-related companies are preparing to withdraw from the industry. Because the current LCD industry is not important, it has not attracted the attention of the White House like chips a few years later.
"That's good. During this period, Hong Kong's real estate market is also very good, and real estate speculation has become popular again in many places." Chen Tianfu said.
"I don't know whether it's a good thing or a bad thing. If housing prices rise several times this time, Hong Kong's industry will not be able to sustain it." Chen Zhiwen smiled and shook his head. In fact, this is inevitable. The factory is so tiring, who would want to go in? How many countries have succeeded by relying on industrial development, and then began to hollow out their industries.
Unless industrial upgrading is carried out, this is very difficult. The middle-income situation in many developing countries is actually a failure of industrial upgrading. Without high-end industries, ordinary people who have enough to eat and drink are unwilling to work in sweatshops, and the economy will be completely depressed. After a period of time, there will be no chance of industrial talent generation.
"The general trend is unstoppable, and we can only let it go." Chen Tianfu said: "The real estate market can make money much faster than the industry. Many factory owners in the 1960s have also come to speculate in houses. Those who have the ability He even opened his own real estate company.”
"Anyway, our family is not losing money. We can still make money in the real estate market. If it is not possible in the industrial sector, we will move out." Chen Zhiwen said nonchalantly.
Even if you prepare early now and acquire cheap land in advance to avoid having your own factory unable to bear the cost of rent in the future, labor costs will rise rapidly with housing prices. Even if Midea or Red Bull don't care because of their huge profits, other factories can No, you have to know that in many industries, especially low-end and low-value industries, there is a limit to the labor costs they can bear. Once it is too high, they will inevitably lose money.
And if all these factories leave, Hong Kong's industrial chain will be completely broken. Maybe beverage factories like Red Bull with simple supply chains can stay, but Midea's electronics industry will inevitably leave together. Let's talk about the most common fan, Midea. It is impossible to produce all of them by ourselves, let alone more complex home appliances.
His goal is to build a top-notch industrial company. Production does not necessarily have to be in Hong Kong, but the management or technology research and development levels can be placed in Hong Kong. Considering Hong Kong's population and future housing prices, this direction is feasible.
"It's a good idea to have this idea. People like us must not go against the trend." Chen Tianfu smiled and said: "But recently, fewer and fewer people come to our fund company to save money. It is estimated that there are many People are using their funds to buy houses again.”
"It's normal. Now that the real estate market is improving, who doesn't want to buy a house if they have money? Many of those who don't have money are people who don't dare to invest, let alone put money in our fund. After all, it's not a bank. The credibility It’s still much lower.” Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.
Many people can't afford to buy a house. It's not that they really can't afford it, but they don't dare to take on a lot of debt. They're afraid that they'll owe a lot of money in the future and won't be able to pay it back, or that the house price will plummet after they buy it, and they're afraid that they can get it themselves, and then hesitate. , I missed the opportunity to buy a house, and the down payment that could have been 120 square meters turned out to be only 80 square meters. If my mentality collapsed, I would not buy it.
This type of people are also the least likely to take risks. They dare not touch other investments at all. They live frugally in their daily lives and deposit their money in banks, and then the banks lend the money to more wealthy people for real estate speculation.
"Yes, but even if no money is received, these shops cannot be closed, otherwise it will cause uneasiness to those who have invested, which will be troublesome." Chen Zhiwen continued.
"I know that. The shops are all mine, so I'll open them over there." Chen Tianfu nodded and said, "The most important thing for me now is to develop the property at the subway entrances in Central and Admiralty."
"Yes, if you do it well, you will become famous in the entire Hong Kong real estate industry, and the MTR Corporation will be more willing to cooperate with you." Chen Zhiwen said, there is actually a limit to what you can earn from a subway station, but if you can cooperate with the MTR Corporation Build a good relationship and that's the long-term profit.
"Your Galaxy Real Estate has been quite active recently and has acquired a lot of new land." Chen Tianfu added.
"I don't pay much attention to this area anymore. Basically, they handed over the information. I took a look and found that there was no big problem and I agreed." Chen Zhiwen shrugged and said. Now that Hong Kong's real estate is on the rise, basically where to invest? They can all make money, and I am not a real estate professional. Basically, I don’t ask too much, just look at where the place is.
In 1975 and 1976, when there were too many golden opportunities, he would personally order something to be done. But now, after two years of self-development, Costco and industrial companies in Hong Kong have all gone up. level, he needs to prepare for industrial expansion again. Unless something like the acquisition of Wharf happens, otherwise, just look at the earnings of real estate companies every quarter, even including Hutchison Whampoa. Although Hutchison Whampoa's business It also involves other businesses, but for now, the real estate market is still the mainstream, because only with the huge profits earned from the real estate market can Hutchison Whampoa be able to develop other industries.
"You feel quite comfortable. One day my company will be big enough, maybe I can do this too." Chen Tianfu said with a smile.
In Hong Kong, in the southeast corner of Midea Industrial Park, more than ten container trucks are working hard to load. A large amount of Red Bull drinks and Very Coke are being loaded into the containers. Dozens of employees are working and chatting when they suddenly see a group of people dressed in very strange clothes. A group of people in work clothes walked over and immediately stopped talking. When the group of people walked past, a worker pushing a forklift said: "That was Factory Manager Dai just now. He seemed to be fawning over the young man in the middle? Then Who is it? The customer?"
"How can it be a customer? Our products are all exported, so the customer should be a ghost." Another person said.
"Could it be the boss? The big boss?" Another person said.
"It's really possible. No wonder my waist is almost broken due to all the cleaning I've been doing these days."
"You must have handed in too much homework, hahahaha."
"The hygiene is pretty good, and there are no make-up classes?" Chen Zhiwen asked with a smile after walking around the factory.
"One thing, but not much, is that we attach great importance to sanitation work on a daily basis. We also hired two Chinese from a Japanese food company to be responsible for the management of this area." Qin Zhihao said.
"Okay, paying attention to food safety is the most important thing, otherwise, one incident can destroy the entire company." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.
"Our inspections are carried out by professional laboratory sampling. We have invested millions of Hong Kong dollars in testing equipment alone. Chen Sheng is absolutely assured of this." Qin Zhihao said with assurance that Red Bull's profits are very high. , naturally he is willing to spend money for the required investment.
"Okay, just keep it under control." Chen Zhiwen added: "Coming to Red Bull today to see the factory is secondary. There is another thing. Over at Costco, Pierce wants to make more products in-house. It used to be very cola, but now it focuses on food. That is, ordinary snacks. I discussed it with him and planned to make potato chips in Hong Kong."
"Potato chips?" Qin Zhihao thought for a while and said, "There are several small factories in Hong Kong that produce potato chips, but they are basically inferior brands, or they are OEMs for foreign brands. If we make them, we will get them from them. You can’t learn anything, so you basically have to start from scratch.”
"This kind of small food brand can basically only be found in rural markets. Food is related to safety, and big supermarkets attach great importance to it, so we either don't do it or do it well, and Costco is just a starting point. In the future, If there is an opportunity, we will also supply products to other markets." Chen Zhiwen continued.
"Of course, you have to make it bigger. The raw material of potato chips is potatoes. The potatoes in Hong Kong are basically supplied from the mainland. It is easy to buy high-quality potatoes from China Resources, but if you want to make them good, taste is the most important. "High-quality taste is the biggest selling point. In this regard, we have no reserves at all. I'm afraid it will take some time to build this team." Qin Zhihao thought for a while and said.
"I have also considered the aspect of taste. In Hong Kong, there is a company called Taohua Datong. They have been established for more than 50 years. Their main specialty is making sauces and soy sauce. You can poach people from them." Chen Zhiwen said .
When Pierce suggested making food in Hong Kong, Chen Zhiwen was already thinking about the taste, because the main raw materials of all snacks are the same. If you are willing to spend money to buy good ingredients, there will be no difference between them. For example, the raw material for potato chips is potatoes. As long as he is willing to spend money, the potatoes Chen Zhiwen can buy are not necessarily worse than Lay's, unless there are regional differences that lead to different crops.
In addition to the main ingredients, there is also the control of taste. There is a lot of metaphysics here. It is not high-tech, but it depends on the combination. It requires long-term experience to promote it. It can also be seen from the annual reports of many food companies in later generations that R&D investment may not even include sales. Less than 1 point, a stable product basically does not require research and development, but it is very troublesome when it is newly launched.
In the whole of Hong Kong, Taohua Datong is the company with the deepest research on seasoning. This company, founded in 1908, has been researching in this area for sixty or seventy years, although it is not researching the taste of snacks.
"Taohua Datong? My soy sauce is also from theirs." Qin Zhihao thought for a while and asked: "Chen Sheng, as far as I know, Taohua Datong also owns a large amount of land. Otherwise, you arranged for Hutchison or Galaxy to acquire it. It, it will be a lot more convenient for me here?"
"Buy them? Are you also interested in real estate?" Chen Zhiwen asked.
"No, I just considered that the progress of recruiting people is still too slow. Even if we recruit people with high salaries, many of the ingredient patents that these people are familiar with are also in the hands of Taohua Datong. I don't know how long it will take to develop research and development from scratch. The wait The time is too long. Since Costco made this request, they probably hope that we can supply it as soon as possible. Moreover, with Taohua Datong, based on their experience, in addition to potato chips, many other snacks may be made quickly. Come out." Qin Zhihao continued.
"Although Taohua Datong is a listed company, it was acquired by a Malaysian company very early, with a shareholding ratio of more than 45%. I can't force the acquisition here. I can only talk about it. I will entrust Duoli to try it. Give it a try." Chen Zhiwen thought for a moment and said, "It's just that Taohua Datong Group also has a lot of food businesses, such as frozen dumplings, glutinous rice balls, moon cakes, and rice dumplings. Are you looking at these?"
"If we can acquire it, just let them continue to operate on their own. These markets are too small, and they are only for Chinese people. The market is limited." Lei Shengli shook his head and said, "I only like their seasoning department."
"Okay, then wait a little longer. If you can't get more profits there, just spend money to recruit people from there." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
Taohua Datong does have some land, but it is not irreplaceable, but the seasoning department is indeed of great help to the entire food business.
(End of chapter)
