Chapter 133: Everything is Ready

  Four people had specific business talks about the work they would be doing in the near future.

  Zhang Dong can't quit his job recently, because Qiu Ye's store has just been bought and hasn't been taken over yet. It's now a bare shell that can't be lived in. They'll have to stay here for about another month until the decoration is done, then they can officially move in.

  So several people discussed and decided that Zhang Wu would temporarily not rush to resign from his teaching job, but instead take sick leave and occupy the public's benefits for a few months.

  Then he will officially start working on Qiu Ye's side tomorrow, and there is a lot of work to be done on Qiu Ye's side. The store decoration needs to find workers, someone needs to supervise the construction site at all times, and the Administration for Industry and Commerce and the Taxation Bureau also need to go through the procedures. The store also needs to recruit several service staff, and finally, it is necessary to contact suppliers.

  Zhang Dong listened to Qiu Ye's words about the work that was going to be done, and only said one sentence: "I have never been in contact with these things before, but please rest assured, I will start from scratch and do my best to open our barbecue shop and supermarket well."

  The supermarket is a project that Qiu Ye came up with, and she bought five stores at once. Now, the barbecue store only needs two storefronts, and the remaining three storefronts can't be left empty. The situation there now makes it unlikely to rent them out. Even Shida University had a hard time renting out two or three houses, and the other stores are still empty with no one asking about them. If Qiu Ye hadn't bought the stores so quickly, handling all the procedures and whatnot, she must have had some conditions that Shida University agreed to. That's how desperate Shida University was, leaving the stores dry and unattended, desperate.

  So now it's unlikely to rent out the remaining stores and collect rent, so we have to think of a way to make use of them.

  Qiu Ye thought for several days and finally decided to merge the remaining three stores into a medium-sized comprehensive supermarket.

  At this time there was no supermarket, only small retail stores, so Qiu Ye wasted some words and explained the structure and operation of supermarkets to Zhang Weng again.

  Now both stores rely on Zhang Du to manage them, so the workload is even greater than before. There are many things for Zhang Du to do and they are very miscellaneous.

  Qiu Ye handed over her work and no longer disturbed Zhang Weng, then walked home with Fang Haibo in a light and quick pace.

  Fang Haibo couldn't understand where Xiao Ye's confidence came from, as if her store had already opened successfully. He was worried while watching from the side, but this little girl was relaxed and smiling all over her face.

  "Xiao Ye, are you so sure about your Uncle Zhang? What if he can't handle it?" Fang Haibo asked.

  "Dry dad, of course I'm at ease. Uncle Zhang is a talent, as long as he's given time, he'll definitely handle everything well. And besides, I've paid such a high salary and bonus, if I still have to worry about everything myself, then why bother hiring someone? It's better for me to do it myself, isn't that right?" Qiu Ye said bluntly, in this aspect she was also a bit naive, she didn't believe how Zhang Dong would handle things, nor did she know how to deal with it. Moreover, she knew the saying "doubtful people don't use people who are not doubtful", so she completely entrusted everything to Zhang Dong, only looking at the final result, without caring about the process in between.

  Fang Haibo was at a loss with this careless and sometimes meticulous child. Fortunately, he also trusted Zhang Gong's character, so there should be no problem.

  After that, Qiu Ye also started to focus on her own small business. During school hours, she drew illustrations for foreign publishers and earned some extra money. After school, she continued with her lamb skewer business. On weekends, she no longer went to the Xizhai market to set up a stall, but instead went to her family's store to supervise. The decoration of the three stores was designed by her, so it was most suitable for her to be in charge. If there were any dissatisfactions, she could communicate with the workers in time.

  Why are there three shops now? Because Fang Haibo also rented his shop to Qiu Ye, which was enforced. Fang Haibo said he listened to Xiao Ye's words and followed him to buy two more shops. Now Xiao Ye has to take responsibility for renting them out. If they can't be rented out, then Xiao Ye will have to rent them himself.

  Fang Haibo and Xiao Ye agreed that every year, they wouldn't have to pay rent, as long as they helped pay the annual heating fees, property management fees, water and electricity bills, etc., he wouldn't have to spend any more money.

  Qiu Ye reluctantly accepted, but she knew that her father was actually trying to get her to use the two shops for free. The heating fees and property management fees had already been negotiated with Shida when they bought the house, and these costs would be borne by Shida for the next five years (Shida has its own boiler room, it's just not making money from this part). So if no one rented these shops, Fang Haibo wouldn't have to pay any fees either.

  Qiu Ye was deeply moved by his godfather's trust and care, so he also decided to think of a good project, operate these two stores, and earn some pocket money for his younger brother.

  Finally, Qiu Ye decided to open a cake shop in a store, specializing in bread and cakes, plus fresh milk. For this reason, she also persuaded Zhao Shuyan, the best cook in her family, to take a leave of absence to study pastry-making in the provincial city for over a month, planning to let Zhao Shuyan be in charge here when she has no classes after the official opening.

  In the last semester of Qiu Ye Primary School, she was busy with illustration, booth arrangement and supervision, spinning around like a top all day. Of course, she practiced "it's more fun to have others join in", when she was busy, she didn't forget to bring her brother along, as long as her brother had time, she let him follow Zhang Dong's side, wanting him to learn more experience.

  Zhang Dong is indeed a talented person. Although he had never been in contact with business before, he was willing to think and speak out. When he encountered problems he didn't understand, he would always find someone to ask and clarify. For many things, he would first think them through in his mind and consider them feasible before implementing them.

  For example, handling the store's license and decoration, if it were up to Qiu Ye, would be done one by one, first decorating the store and then going to handle the license. After all, he is just one person. However, after considering for a day, he thought that both things could be done simultaneously, so the store can open earlier.

  Qiu Ye listened to Zhang Dong's suggestion and also felt that Zhang Dong's approach was much better than his own plan, so he completely delegated the power and let Zhang Dong decide for himself.

  In about two months' time, Zhang Gong completed a lot of work.

  First, all the certificates for the store have been issued. Zhang Wei has visited key places such as the Administration for Industry and Commerce, Taxation Bureau, and Health Bureau, and successfully dug up connections (as Shi Da is the only university in Oil City, most graduates are assigned to various positions in Oil City after graduation, so alumni are easy to find).

  Secondly, the decoration of the three stores has been fully completed and has passed Qiu Ye's acceptance. The three stores are all designed by Qiu Ye with distinctive decorations, at least in this era in Oil City, it is the first of its kind.

  The barbecue shop is mainly decorated in red and black, with a grand overall decoration. The tables, chairs, benches, bowls, and plates in the store are all custom-made by Zhang according to Qiu Ye's design. The black tabletops and red chair backs combine to give people a passionate and mysterious feeling. On the first floor, a small house is separated out at one corner, used as a kitchen, which is also equipped with an ice cabinet and a disinfection cabinet that Qiu Ye spent a lot of money on. Upstairs, there are six separate rooms of different sizes, prepared for student gatherings and other activities. The menu was personally designed and written by Qiu Ye, a beautifully crafted modern-style menu.

  The supermarket is mainly in green and white tones, giving a very down-to-earth feel. Right after entering, there are two opposite cash registers, inside are four rows of shelves, divided into snack zone, daily necessities zone, fruit drink zone and grain oil zone (only a few rice barrels, selling some small millet, corn, sorghum etc. from rural areas). On the second floor, there is a large public area, mainly for selling clothes, hats, shoes and socks. Near the wall, two small fitting rooms are specially set up, with a large mirror outside.

  The small half at the back which was not open was Zhang Wu's home, and they had also moved over early.

  The cake shop is mainly in warm yellow and white tones, giving a cozy feeling. Upon entering, there are customized yellow and white tables and chairs, with glass-covered display cabinets on both sides for cakes and bread. In front is a workshop, where the upper part of the wall is made of glass windows, allowing outsiders to clearly see the work process inside. Inside the workshop, there is a large worktable, various tools for making bread and cakes, all purchased by Zhao Shuyan from the provincial city. The most expensive item is a large oven, next to which is a sterilization cabinet containing one-liter glass bottles custom-made at Qiu Ye's suggestion for storing fresh milk. The milk source has been contacted with Shi Da, and a large bucket of fresh milk will be delivered every morning.

  The space upstairs in the cake shop is used as a warehouse.

  There are three shops outside with a unified brand, called Hǎo Yùn Lái Kǎo Diàn (Good Luck BBQ Shop), Hǎo Yùn Lái Chāo Shì (Good Luck Supermarket) and Hǎo Yùn Lái Dàn Gāo Fáng (Good Luck Cake House).

  Third, the recruitment of service personnel has been completed, and a total of nine people have been found. They are all from nearby rural areas, relatively clean and agile young girls. Each person's monthly salary is 100 yuan, and they will also receive bonuses based on the specific situation of the store. For now, three people are assigned to the barbecue shop, four people to the supermarket, two people to the cake shop, plus Zhang Dang couple and Zhao Shuyan, which should be enough for the initial opening period.

  Fourth, the source of goods. Qiu Ye took a few days off and went to various wholesale markets in the provincial city with Zhang Du to make some money. After comparing, they selected several wholesalers as suppliers for their supermarket, and all they had to do was pay the corresponding transportation costs, and the other party would deliver the goods to their doorstep. The mutton and beef for the barbecue shop were purchased directly by Fang Haibo from a large breeding farm in Shida Nan, who delivered fresh milk together with the goods every morning. As for flour, Zhang Du purchased it from a nearby flour factory through a classmate who was a department head, which saved them a lot of money.

  It can be said that opening a store is now fully prepared.