At 1 PM, Fang Bai arrived at his own shopping mall.
Looking around, the area outside the mall was bustling with people, incredibly lively.
Inside the entire mall, throngs of customers filled every corner.
More and more customers gathered, forming a surge that continuously poured into the mall. Security personnel had to control the flow of people, which Fang Bai had clearly instructed yesterday: if the mall became too crowded, crowd control was necessary.
At this time, the interior of the mall was bustling, with salespeople in various appliance display areas busy explaining products to customers.
At the cashiers, some customers were already queuing to pay.
Many people were looking, but few were buying; most were just there for the excitement.
Outside the mall, Li Meng had already begun her performance, with three to four hundred spectators gathered around the stage, waiting for candy or gifts.
Fang Bai curiously went to take a look but still couldn't squeeze into the inner circle, though he could hear several older women occasionally shouting praises.
"Sigh, the performers' skill level is still a bit lacking."
Fang Bai sighed. These older women didn't know when to applaud and even joined in the scramble for gifts; two catties of eggs simply couldn't satisfy their appetite.
However, with the scene so lively, Fang Bai's goal had been achieved, and he didn't dwell on the small amount of eggs.
After watching for a while, Fang Bai walked into the mall to check the sales situation in each area. The best-selling item was still gas stoves.
With the Spring Festival approaching, everyone didn't want to burn firewood, and families with some means set their sights on gas stoves.
Fang Bai had purchased four brands: Yuli, Huowang, Weili, and Kaixuan, with single or double burners, priced from over two hundred yuan to over a thousand yuan. The purchase price was only half of the selling price.
Fang Bai guessed these would sell well and purchased nearly a thousand units. He asked the salesperson, and over a dozen units had already been sold.
Around 2 PM, a truck parked outside the mall; it seemed the goods had arrived.
Some goods arrived relatively late; this was the last shipment, which wouldn't affect overall sales.
The most popular sales area was still the used television section. Everyone was looking for a bargain, and many citizens specifically came to buy inexpensive televisions.
The old stall hadn't been set up for a long time, so Fang Bai's mother had someone put up a sign there, stating that they had moved to the new mall.
Near the pier, Fang Bai also rented a spot to put up an advertisement board promoting the appliance mall.
The opening of the appliance mall today also attracted a few competitors who came to scout for information. Seeing how popular the mall was, they felt a bit envious. They never expected that the owner had connections and backing, with a high-ranking official from the Industrial and Commercial Bureau personally coming to cut the ribbon, and many robust security guards wearing professional security gear. Hooligans wouldn't dare cause trouble.
Looking at the cashiers, robbers who wanted to steal money would likely cry upon seeing the security measures there. They couldn't even reach their hands into the counter, and the doors were all internally locked.
The mall's areas were clearly divided, with advanced and luxurious decor. The mall was bright, like a shopping paradise.
Customers who entered couldn't help but exclaim in admiration at the mall's decor.
They never expected that the owner of this mall was so meticulous and had such strong financial resources, completely incomparable to an ordinary appliance store.
By past 2 PM, the popularity was even more explosive.
The mall employees were sweating profusely, constantly restocking, organizing, and cleaning, with no time even to drink water.
At the cashiers, more and more people were queuing to pay.
At the main entrance, customers carried their newly purchased goods, waiting for the security guards to verify tickets before they could leave the mall.
All sold items were packaged and stamped, so checking only took a moment.
If there was no stamp, it certainly hadn't been sold, and it might even be a thief.
Indeed, at 3 PM, which was also the busiest and most crowded time for the mall.
At the security gate, an older woman carrying a 14-inch color TV box was leaving the mall when she was stopped by a security guard and started arguing with him.
"Madam, please show your purchase ticket?"
The older woman, with an arrogant expression, shouted discontentedly, "What purchase ticket? I've paid for it! Are you saying I can't take what I bought? How can your mall be like this!"
"Madam, perhaps you haven't understood. Ask other customers; all sold goods have a stamp on the packaging box and an invoice. If not, they certainly cannot be taken out the main door."
"Hmph, you didn't stamp it for me, and you blame me? Anyway, I've paid, and I'm taking my stuff."
The security guard still blocked the older woman, explaining, "That's impossible. Customers must first pay at the counter and get a payment slip. Our cashiers keep records, which can be cross-referenced."
Fang Bai heard the commotion at the main entrance, saw the security guard arguing with an older woman, and walked over to understand the situation.
The security guard briefly explained the situation to him, and Fang Bai nodded, praising the security guard for doing a good job.
"Who are you, young man? Can you make decisions here?"
"Auntie, I am the person in charge of the mall. Please check if you forgot to pay. We can cross-reference our records and also ask the salesperson who assisted you if they issued a receipt.
Furthermore, we have cameras installed here. We can check the recordings to see if you paid.
Perhaps Auntie doesn't understand what a camera is, but it's like filming a movie; it can monitor everyone's actions on site.
Auntie, do you want to cross-reference the records and the surveillance together?" Fang Bai showed a professional smile. Dozens of spectators were watching the show, and as the person in charge, he definitely had to handle such petty theft with a smile.
It was a new opening today, and Fang Bai didn't want to cause trouble; he just wanted everything to go smoothly and bring good luck.
But if this older woman didn't know better, he would directly call the police and send her to jail.
Of course, he hadn't installed cameras. He couldn't buy camera equipment yet, and he guessed people wouldn't understand what a camera was.
The surrounding spectators probably understood what was happening. Hearing Fang Bai's words, it seemed possible to clarify the past situation.
Some customers who were picking up goods, finding it not lively enough, said, "That's right! When I bought goods, the mall stamped them and gave me an invoice. The salesperson even reminded me. This madam probably wants to get something for nothing."
"Yes, boss, you're young and inexperienced. Don't let people like this steal things from you." A spectator interjected, implying the matter wasn't big enough.
Fang Bai just smiled, looking directly at the older woman in front of him.
"Hmph, I paid anyway. I'll go talk to your salesperson." The older woman panicked. Hearing everyone around her say the same, she had no advantage at all. She quickly moved the TV back and retreated from the main entrance, then moved it back to its original spot, leaving the mall dejectedly.
Through this incident, Fang Bai still had Jing Tian prepare some signs stating "Mall under camera surveillance" to deter petty thieves, which would be useful.
Time passed quietly, and it was soon 7 PM. Some customers were still selecting goods, so Fang Bai announced that shopping hours would be extended. At the same time, he informed the security guards that people could only exit but not enter anymore.
Meanwhile, Fang Bai's mother began to reconcile the accounts.
Around 8 PM, the mall finally closed.
Today, everyone had only hastily eaten lunch and hadn't had dinner yet.
Fang Bai booked a table at a restaurant, and all mall staff had dinner together.
At 9 PM, Fang Bai and his parents returned home, carrying two large bags of cash.
Liu Fengqing had already reconciled the accounts; today's total revenue was 345,000 yuan.
Among them, 151 used televisions were sold, 11 new televisions, 45 gas stoves, 19 washing machines, 16 refrigerators…
About one-third of the customers who purchased appliances signed up for membership and topped up their accounts, with over 30,000 yuan remaining in their balances.
Overall, today's marketing event was a success.
Used televisions had the highest gross profit, while other appliances generally earned half the profit.
In other words, today's gross profit exceeded 200,000 yuan.
This gross profit was indeed exaggerated. If it were thirty years later, a gross profit of seventy thousand yuan from this sales volume would be quite good.
Liu Fengqing had been smiling all day seeing the mall's booming business. Now she was tired of smiling and didn't want to talk anymore after speaking all day.
The whole family was tired. After chatting for a while, they showered and went to bed.
The next day, the event continued as usual.
Only dozens of used televisions were sold, but sales of other appliances increased.
Mainly, many customers yesterday hadn't brought cash, and those who had already planned to buy used televisions had waited so many days and finally got to continue snatching them up when the mall opened.
There even appeared a phenomenon of reselling refurbished televisions, meaning buying them and then selling them to unsuspecting people for a profit.
21-inch color TVs, purchased for 1,100 yuan, could still be sold for 1,500 yuan, and people would buy them.
There were only about one hundred and several dozen refurbished televisions left in stock, which would definitely sell out during the Spring Festival.
On this day, the revenue was also 250,000 yuan.
On the third day, February 12th, it was already the twenty-eighth day of the lunar year.
The popularity was slightly lower than yesterday, and revenue dropped to 186,000 yuan.
On the fourth day, revenue plummeted, with only 125,000 yuan left.
Fang Bai understood. Tomorrow was New Year's Eve, and citizens were busy purchasing New Year's goods.
Indeed, the fifth day was New Year's Eve, and not many people were buying appliances. Fang Bai announced that the mall would close at 5 PM.
When reconciling accounts at closing, that day's revenue was only 85,000 yuan.
Fang Bai felt it was still good. If it weren't for the Spring Festival period, a daily turnover of twenty to thirty thousand yuan would be considered good.
After all, in those years, families with money to buy appliances were still a minority. The mall seemed lively, but fewer people were buying compared to those just looking.
In five days, the total turnover reached 991,000 yuan, with a gross profit exceeding 500,000 yuan, mainly from used televisions.
Of the two batches of televisions, only over fifty units remained in stock.
Fang Bai didn't meticulously calculate the exact profit, but his personal wealth had increased to 1.57 million yuan. This was his wealth before tax, which would be slightly less after taxation.