This wholesale market was open for business 360 days a year (the first day of the New Year was closed to the fifth day of the New Year). Usually, there were no rest days. Ever since I started working in the shop, I had to get out of bed every morning at six o'clock. First, I would pour the leftovers that I had deliberately left behind from the previous night into the rice cooker and add water to boil them into rice soup. After getting up, everyone would have a bowl of rice soup. Then, they would ride a broken bicycle (the new bicycle would soon be stolen by thieves) to the market to open the shop (not far, it would take ten minutes by bicycle). At this time, it was just after seven o'clock. The first thing they did when they opened the store was to move the cardboard boxes that had been put into the store the night before out of the store one by one, and then display the product samples on the cardboard boxes. In order to attract the attention of the customers, the new products were placed at the forefront as much as possible (the businessmen in the villages and towns were willing to sell the newly developed varieties. The new varieties were competitive, and they could sell them at a higher price before others, making a lot of money).
Jun's shop sold a variety of products, including milk powder, malted milk extract, oatmeal, milk cake powder, fruit juice, yogurt, and more. Each category was further divided into dozens of different products according to price, composition, and age. Take milk powder for example. There were more than ten sub-categories such as whole milk powder, skimmed milk powder, high calcium milk powder, sugar-free milk powder, and baby milk powder. Each sub-category was divided into multiple price levels. It was really difficult to remember the prices of these products one by one. When customers asked for the price, it was not easy to say it without stuttering.(To prevent competitors, the price of the products was not marked on the sample.) In every shop in the market, the boss would look up to those who remembered the price of the goods (because the price often changed, the boss himself could not remember). When the customer asked for the price, he could quickly and fluently report the price of the goods asked, which could give the customer a good impression that the price was true (such as the price was hesitant, which would easily cause the customer to worry). Not every shop assistant could become an expert at bidding, but every shop would have a shop assistant who was fluent in bidding. Earlier, he mentioned Xiao Yang, who had been working in the shop before Jun took over. He was a good quote. Not only was he fluent in bidding, but he also knew how to read people's fortune when bidding. He would give a price to regular customers (repeat customers) and another price to passers-by (no possibility of returning). One price for a fierce-looking customer, and another price for a kind-looking customer. There was no business without treachery. There was a lot of knowledge in this.
The quoted price of a product was an extremely sensitive issue that involved the profit of the product. If the quoted price was high (even if it was five cents or ten cents higher), the customer might run to another store. However, the offer was too low and the opportunity to make more money was lost. Moreover, the businessmen who came to the market to purchase goods were all shrewd. The purchase price was what they cared about the most. They would not rush to make a purchase before they were completely clear about the price. When they entered the market, they would first follow the street stores in the non-staple food marketing area to understand the market price. At this time, they generally wouldn't stay in front of a store for too long, but they wouldn't leave in a hurry either. This way, they could calmly compare. After they had visited all the stores that sold the same products and had a good idea of the variety, price, and quality of the products, they would look for the stores that they liked to discuss the purchase.
Every day, when customers were observing the market, these shops were not idle. They racked their brains to think of ways to beat the other shops in the same industry. They would send out their "inconspicuous"(not too eye-catching) assistants to follow the customers who knew the market price and secretly listen to the prices of similar products (a bit like a thief). Once they found that there was a big difference between the prices in their own stores, they would immediately return to inform the store and make adjustments. Just the competition in terms of price alone made you feel that the way of business was really unfathomable.
The tricycle was the most important transportation and delivery tool in the shop. The few of them could ride the tricycle through the crowded market. Their freedom was really like no one's land, which made me very envious. I felt that it would not be difficult to ride a tricycle, so I always wanted to find an opportunity to ride a tricycle to deliver goods, but the guys stopped me, saying that it was not easy to control a tricycle. I thought that if I could ride a bicycle, I might not be able to ride a tricycle. If the two wheels of the bicycle were not properly controlled, it might fall over. If the tricycle fell over, it would not fall over. It was definitely easier to ride than a bicycle. The opportunity came. At noon, when the two guys in charge of delivery were eating, a customer was in a hurry to send the goods to the long-distance bus. The two of them replied that they would send it after eating. The customer was a little unhappy. I stood up and said that I would send it over. I rode on Old Yang's tricycle that was already loaded. Old Yang came over and stopped me, saying,"No, you've never ridden a tricycle before. Something will happen to you.”I didn't listen to him so much. I pedaled and left. Unlike what he said, I just stepped on it a few times and the tricycle sped up. At this moment, a small four-wheeled car came from the front. I quickly pressed the brakes, but it didn't work at all. The car still rushed towards the car. " Quick brake, quick brake!" The person beside me screamed. But my hand had been holding the brake handle all this time. How could it not work? The driver was so scared that he stopped. Seeing that I was about to rush into the car, I suddenly turned the faucet and the tricycle crashed into the wall beside me. I was thrown off and the goods were scattered all over the ground. At this moment, Old Yang and a few of his men ran up to me and shouted," Why didn't you brake?”"I braked. It was useless." "Where did you stop?" I got up and pointed at the brakes on the car. "You're really stupid. That's empty. The real brake was between his legs.”Only then did I see a large iron handle fixed to the handle of the car. Cough, I've been in the shop for half a month, but I didn't notice that the brakes of the tricycle were installed on the handle. How stupid. Since then, the guys never allowed me to touch their tricycle again, and this matter became a joke in the market. In this district, when I walked past someone's shop, someone inside pointed at me and said," Look, look, this is the person who crashed into the wall on a tricycle.”
Every day, the shop would send in and out hundreds of goods, all of which were in boxes or bags weighing 20 to 30 kilograms each. I also had to carry the goods onto the bus or help the customers send the goods to the station to take the long-distance bus. Due to the fatigue, my lumbago acted up seriously, and my entire upper body became crooked due to the protection of my muscles. Although they were friends, they were working for a private boss after all. It was not appropriate to mention that he was sick, so he could only endure it. The strange thing was that two months later, his lumbago actually healed without treatment. Sometimes, people's affairs were really hard to explain. Sitting in the office had caused the problem of the keyboard protruding. Now, doing physical work had cured the problem.
Jun gave me a salary of 700 yuan a month. He deliberately added 100 yuan to my expectations (I once told him that I expected 600 yuan). I was very satisfied. He only gave Xiao Yang 600 yuan a month, while the other employees were paid 400 to 500 yuan (slightly higher than the average market wage). At that time, he could live on 600 to 700 yuan a month in the provincial capital. Although he had been the head of a company for more than ten years, he had never been willing to buy a box of beer to drink. Now that he had money, he dared to go to the street night market and drink a few bottles of beer (the local old-fashioned glass bottle of beer was 1.20 yuan per bottle). When I was working as a shop assistant, my children had already made a living for themselves. I took off the burden of being the head of the farm and had a part-time income. I felt that the pressure was suddenly relieved and my mood became relaxed. The real turning point for the improvement of material living standards was when he started working in the shop. My heart is filled with gratitude for Jun. Although I still needed to get used to the market environment, I was still quite happy with the life in the shop. I had the intention to continue working in the shop.
The wholesale market business had a clear seasonal nature. There would be one or two months of off-season in the first and second half of the year. In order to prevent the shop from incurring losses due to the off-season after the Spring Festival, Jun asked me to bring my men into the city to sell goods in the street shops. We can earn some income by doing a little, which is better than waiting for food in the shop. We each rode a bicycle full of fruit juice, yogurt, and other products. We walked along the street to find shops that were willing to sell them. It was the rainy season of spring, and the temperature would drop to about five degrees when the cold wave came. It was really torturous to push the bicycle in the wind and rain. At this time, I wasn't young anymore, and my physical strength couldn't be compared to the young guys. They took the goods and quickly rode away. I could only follow behind the old cow pulling the broken cart. I didn't have the skills nor the courage to run through the red light at the intersection. When the green light lit up and I looked at the intersection again, they ran so fast that even their shadows disappeared.(I couldn't afford a cell phone at that time, so I couldn't contact them when I got separated.) When I caught up with them, my clothes were soaked inside and out. The wind and rain blew outside, and my fingers were numb from the cold.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。