Hong Kong Island Old Events

Zou Huaiwen felt timid and said disappointedly: "Is the paper mill business hopeless?"

"No." He Dingxian firmly objected: "When the cost of every industry rises, it is an opportunity for new companies to emerge. To do business, you must know how to seize opportunities in crises, just like robbing a bank."

"If the new company can find a way to reduce costs, it will have a huge advantage in price, and it can quickly become bigger and stronger in the blink of an eye!"

The raw materials for the paper industry are bound to rise, and the extra costs will not be borne by merchants, but will be passed on to consumers.

The extra cost will either have to be borne by the newspaper company, or it will cause the price of the newspaper to increase. At present, newspaper companies are facing fierce competition and it is difficult to make a decision to increase prices. If costs rise too high or too fast, newspapers will directly import white newspapers.

The papermaking industry in Europe and the United States is developed, and costs have been compressed to a balance point. The advantage of Hong Kong Island Paper is only to reduce transportation costs. Once the price rise is higher than the transportation cost, the entire industry chain of Hong Kong Island Paper will be eliminated. Perhaps Hong Kong Island There would be no paper mills.

The intrigues in business, the law of the jungle and the strong preying on the strong, are particularly prominent in the role of money. Zou Huaiwen asked as if he was awakening from a dream: "Now the price of a white newspaper in Hong Kong is two dollars, the factory price of each is two cents, and the selling price of a newspaper is one cent." (Hong Kong Island currency unit: one cent is one cent, one cent is one cent), the raw material cost of production is 10 yuan and 100 dollars, and it is mainly made of miscellaneous wood pulp."

"Making white newspapers is already the cheapest in the paper industry. Mainstream paper mills have begun recycling old newspapers to continue pulping. Are there any other ways to reduce costs?"

White newspaper is cheaper than writing paper and toilet paper, but the market for writing paper and toilet paper in Hong Kong is not as big as white newspaper. At least white newspaper has a fixed seller, but toilet paper and writing paper are exclusive to wealthy people, so in the 1970s White newspapers have been the most mainstream paper industry in the world before the 1990s.

The manufacturing process of white newspapers is also constantly upgrading. In the early years, newsprint was made from pure wood pulp, but now it has progressed to paper making from mixed wood pulp.

Paper newspapers made from straw pulp in later generations will need to add a lot of chemical processes. At present, the newspaper industry has no relevant talents, and it is nonsense to want to reduce costs with technology.

He Dingxian did not have the scientific research ability to reduce costs through technology, but he had a business acumen. He tapped his temple with his finger and asked in a contemptuous tone: "Use your brain, rookie!"

"What is Hong Kong Island? It is a port city in East Asia. The most convenient thing about Hong Kong Island is its fast logistics and low shipping costs."

"When Hong Kong Island is short of raw materials, just find a way to transport them from abroad. In Southeast Asia, Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos, there is a large area of ​​virgin forest that lacks everything except wood."

Zou Huaiwen's expression paused, then his eyes brightened, and he clapped his legs and praised: "That's right! There is a lot of wood in Southeast Asia, just go to Southeast Asia to buy wood!"

"No, but why didn't other paper industry bosses think of it?" Shipping related knowledge involved his blind spot, and the fledgling businessman immediately became like a fool.

He Dingxian didn't look down on him either. He was a smart person if he could avoid being cheated on for the first time. How could he demand too much from his younger generation?

He explained with a smile: "People are like this, they want stability and are unwilling to seek change. This is especially true for businessmen. If there is a way to make money, it is not to think about changing a money-making model. The paper factory can be moved from Hong Kong Island to Kowloon. Kowloon To move to the New Territories, we just don’t want to find ways to open up shipping channels.”

"Of course, this is also due to the fear of being dominated by shipowners, and profits will continue to be reduced. After all, opening up relationships requires money and connections. Some factory owners may not have enough connections, but as soon as the news of the New Territories paper factory being burned came out, there must be The factory owners began to think of ways to sharpen their heads and start arranging the matter of imported raw materials." He Dingxian's expression immediately became serious: "It changes at the extreme. Don't underestimate those bosses. Even if they have not read as many books as you, they have seen a lot. The world is much better than yours."

"Rookie!"

Zou Huaiwen was listening with great interest and was greatly shocked, but when he heard the last curse, his face turned red and he refused to argue.

In terms of his views on the news and current affairs, the uniformed policeman in front of him was more sophisticated than him. No wonder he could become famous, and he would definitely be profitable in doing business with him.

"Then how to open up shipping channels? Go directly to the shipping company, or rely on connections." Zou Huaiwen asked.

He Dingxian found it funny: "Go to the shipping company and wait to be ripped off? Besides, who is the largest ship owner in Hong Kong now?"

"Boss Xu of Shunchang Aviation Industry, the most prominent family in Guangwan District! You and I have absolutely no relationship."

Boss Xu's name is "Ai Zhou". He prospered in Zhanjiang in his early years. He started from a grocery store, sold gasoline on a consignment basis, and produced peanut oil and edible oil. His products were exported to Europe and the United States.

At that time, Zhanjiang happened to be the "Free Port" designated by the previous dynasty. It was similar to today's Hong Kong Island. It relied on trade to soar to the sky. Everyone knew about the "Futai" trading company under its control. Everyone knew that it was the business born in the free port of the previous dynasty. Giant.

In the 1930s, he began to obtain "reclamation rights" to reclaim land from the sea and develop real estate in Guangwan District. The land under his control was counted as "streets" and "roads". Later, during the real estate subversion period, he resolutely transformed into shipping and purchased dozens of cargo ships such as "Gem", "Dabaoshan", and "Dabaoxing", making "Shunchang Shipping" the largest shipping company in East Asia, and also established a joint venture with others Four shipping companies including "Pacific International Shipping" and "Rentai Shipping" were established.

This businessman's forward sense of crisis and vision enable him to easily abandon the land and invest in the development of a new free port when the situation changes, and take the ship away to continue the family's prosperity. It can be said that Shunchang Shipping is very important to Boss Xu. It is a capital savings pool, a physical bank. After he accumulates enough cash flow in Hong Kong Island, he will enter a new round of land reclamation in Hong Kong Island and become the first real estate king in Hong Kong Island.

In addition, Boss Xu also had the influence of the Guangzhou Bay Chamber of Commerce in the previous dynasty, and he managed an unknown number of businesses to make a living. Until later generations, they were ranked among the four major real estate families in Hong Kong Island!

The current business climate in Hong Kong still bears the legacy of the troubled times. Big bosses are accustomed to living a turbulent life of licking blood with a knife and changing the world. No one values ​​land that cannot be taken away. They believe that doing business is "a matter of living rather than death". Big bosses are all If you like shipping but not land, who knows what will happen next year?

Perhaps the boss started to engage in shipping in the 1930s, and after relying on "living business" to keep his fortune, he gradually withdrew from the shipping industry in the early 1950s, and started to engage in dead business. He did not finish an industry, but never died. I will eat head soup for the rest of my life! This vision and courage are excellent!

Of course, the withdrawal of one generation of shipping kings will definitely lead to the birth of a new generation of shipping kings in the market, just as the frustration of one generation of gambling kings will allow the next generation of gambling kings to appear with a license!

The shipping kings, gambling kings, and real estate kings of Hong Kong and Macao are always replaced by new ones. Now the Haojiang gambling king "Fu Laorong" has been in charge of the Haojiang gambling industry for twenty years. How many times better has the scenery been? How many people will know about it in future generations? The name of "Lu Jiu", the first generation gambling king in the Qing Dynasty, has long been buried in history. Many things in ancient and modern times are all made up of jokes. It is difficult to achieve the glory of the Xu family in a hundred years, rarely!

"Then what should I do? I know a lot of people in the press, but in the shipping industry I really have a dark eye." Zou Huaiwen said.

He Dingxian said confidently: "If you don't know people, I have a way to know them. The key is, I provide the money, I think of the methods, and I find the people."

"You are only responsible for management, I'm afraid you won't get any shares."