Rebirth in Hong Kong: From Dessert Shop to Industrial Empire

Chapter 71 Ground Promotion Iron Army (First Update! Please vote with your monthly tickets and recommendations!)
Mong Kok, deep in Temple Street.

Next to the freezer at Fu Kee Store, those few bottles of golden Chen Kee Mango Pomelo Sago have been replaced three times in just three days.

The shop owner, Uncle Fu, with his pipe in his mouth, watched as yet another regular customer picked up two bottles of mango pomelo sago and paid for them with practiced ease, his face beaming with joy.

"Uncle Fu, your Chen's sweet soup is selling out really fast!" a regular customer joked with a smile.

"Hey, this is good stuff!" Uncle Fu quickly collected the money and gave change. "It tastes great, it's convenient, and everyone in the neighborhood loves it!"

Especially the mango pomelo sago dessert, young men and women are scrambling to buy it!

Not far away, Old Zhang, the hot-tempered owner of Changlong Department Store, was unusually all smiles at this moment.

He was directing his staff to move two newly arrived boxes of Chen's Coconut Sago Pudding and Tangerine Peel Red Bean Paste into the shop.

"Mingzai! Clear out the most conspicuous spot in the freezer and put Chen's!" Old Zhang's voice boomed. "The ten bottles of coconut sago pudding we got yesterday sold out in half a day."

Several regular customers asked about the red bean paste!

Grid leader Li Guoming led Aqiang and Aping as they walked in.

Old Zhang greeted him warmly: "Team Leader Li, you've come at the perfect time! Give me another thirty bottles, fifteen bottles of mango pomelo sago, ten bottles of coconut sago, and five bottles of red bean paste."

Also, give me a few more of those posters about the buy-five-get-one-free deal!

"Mr. Zhang, business is booming!" Li Guoming smiled and handed over the registration book. "No problem! There will be plenty of posters. Our Chenji promotions will continue."

The same scene is playing out repeatedly in Sham Shui Po North District, Nathan Road area of ​​Mong Kok, and Temple Street area of ​​Yau Ma Tei.

The zero-risk product placement, settlement upon sale, and instant cash reimbursement model completely dispelled the concerns of convenience store owners.

Chen Ji Desserts' excellent quality and good reputation quickly won the favor of consumers.

The average daily sales per store quickly climbed from just a few bottles to more than ten bottles, with some stores located in high-traffic areas even exceeding thirty bottles per day.

The success of the three pilot areas demonstrates that, at this point in time, Chan Kee Dessert possesses an almost overwhelming competitive advantage in the Hong Kong market.

The zero-risk distribution model, combined with the convenience of bottled sugar water, created a combination that was virtually unbeatable in the Hong Kong retail market at that time.

Moreover, the grid-based team ground promotion model has maximized the power of this combination of tactics.

This model is like a gentle spring rain, which neither attracts the attention of beverage giants such as Swire Coca-Cola, Watsons, and Vitasoy, nor does it fail to penetrate every capillary-like convenience store terminal with precision and efficiency.

Team leaders like Li Guoming and Liu Wei, along with their team members, dressed in Chenji Dessert vests, pushed unassuming tricycles or simple carts through the narrow streets and alleys, chatting with shop owners like neighbors, offering cigarettes, and introducing products.

This low-key yet efficient penetration allowed Chen Kee Dessert to quickly establish itself in the grassroots retail market of Hong Kong Island before the giants could fully react, and it began to grow rapidly.

At the same time, Chen Bingwen did not become complacent because of the success of the pilot area.

Meeting room at Kwun Tong Food Factory.

Chen Bingwen, Ling Peiyi, and key members of the marketing department are summarizing the experience of the grid team's on-the-ground promotion.

"Mr. Chen, in the pilot area of ​​114 convenience stores, the first-day sales rate was 62%, and the three-day repurchase rate was 41%."

This result far exceeded expectations!

Ling Peiyi said happily after reading the field promotion report submitted by the marketing department.

Chen Bingwen nodded and smiled, "The grid team's on-the-ground promotion has been so effective, it has indeed exceeded my expectations."

His words elicited a suppressed laugh in the conference room, and several young key members of the marketing department wore expressions of pride.

Ling Peiyi added, "Mr. Chen, this proves your insightful vision. The grid team model is precise and efficient; it's simply a powerful tool for market expansion!"

In Chen Bingwen's deeply ingrained belief, competition in the fast-moving consumer goods industry is a battle for the terminal market!
It's all about penetrating lower-tier markets!
Back then, Alibaba's ground sales team would go door-to-door, visiting small shops one by one, and teaching shop owners how to use Alipay's QR code for receiving payments.

Meituan's sales representatives went door-to-door persuading restaurants to join the platform and helping them set up their printers.

Wahaha's "joint sales network" means that sales representatives will even help you organize the shelves in the convenience store neatly.

The "Golden Can Commando Team" of Dongpeng Special Drink carried whole cases of beverages, helped the small shop owner fill the freezer, and casually put up eye-catching posters.
A dedicated sales force that goes deep into small stores to provide comprehensive, hands-on service is a standard feature of almost all successful FMCG brands.

He subconsciously applied this "ground sales force" model to the beverage giant in Hong Kong in 1978.

In his mind, the names Swire Coca-Cola, Watsons soda, and Vitasoy are naturally associated with a vast, efficient, and ubiquitous ground sales network.

He subconsciously believed that these giants must also possess similar grid teams or even stronger terminal control capabilities, and Chen Ji's encroachment on the convenience store would inevitably be met with a strong counterattack from them.

Therefore, the pilot program in the three regions is essentially a training exercise for Chen Ji's newly established grid team model.

This is also a small test for the beverage giants.

The result was that giants like Swire and Watsons didn't pay any attention to small convenience stores in this era.

They relied on the traditional large distributor system and the bombardment of brand advertising. The kind of ground promotion model that requires a large investment of manpower, high frequency, and personalized service was neither heard of nor seen in this era.

Chen Bingwen realized that he had inadvertently seized a huge opportunity of the times, a "long tail market" opportunity that giants had not yet fully paid attention to, or rather, had not yet found an efficient way to cultivate!
Chen Ji's grid team model, at this specific historical juncture, has formed a unique, even "downward" competitive advantage for convenience stores—a type of terminal business that is decentralized, small-scale, but has an astonishing total volume.

It didn't rely on overwhelming financial resources, but rather on innovative business models and services that penetrated deeper into the blind spots of the giants' strategic vision!
"I see."

Chen Bingwen thought to himself, feeling both relieved and wary.

He would never be so naive as to think that the giants would ignore this market forever.

Chen Ji's encroachment on the convenience store business is like a pebble thrown into a calm lake; the ripples will eventually spread.

The real challenge will only arrive when the industry giants realize the value of convenience store channels and the power of the Chen Ji model.

"Boss, shouldn't we start expanding immediately? Take over all the remaining areas in Kowloon, as well as the Eastern District of Hong Kong Island and the New Territories."

At this moment, Li Ming, the marketing manager, excitedly offered his suggestion.

"Spread out?" Chen Bingwen nodded and said, "Of course we need to spread out! And quickly! Strike while the iron is hot and spread the network group all over Hong Kong Island!"

He stood up, pointed to the map on the wall, and emphasized the areas of Kowloon City, To Kwa Wan, and Hung Hom, saying:

"Li Ming, immediately organize manpower and, referring to the pilot model, divide the remaining area of ​​Kowloon into new grids."

Each grid covers 40-50 convenience stores.

Team leaders will be promoted from among the existing outstanding grid workers, or drawn from the core members of the marketing department!

"Their compensation will be 10% higher than the pilot program standards. Tell them the bigger the territory they conquer, the bigger the bonus!"

"Yes, Mr. Chen!" Li Ming perked up and immediately replied.

Chen Bingwen nodded, but then abruptly changed the subject, "However, the faster we expand, the faster the problems will be exposed!"
Li Ming, have any new issues been reported in the pilot areas? Especially regarding delivery?

Li Ming's smile froze instantly, replaced by a wry smile: "Mr. Chen, you are truly a prophet."

There were indeed some issues with the delivery.

With the increasing number of convenience stores and the frequent, scattered restocking needs of store owners, refrigerated truck delivery by logistics companies is both inefficient and costly.

"If the capillaries spread out but the arteries supplying blood can't keep up, the capillaries will die."

Chen Bingwen looked at everyone and explained, "If the delivery problem isn't solved, no matter how advanced the grid management system is, it's like a tree without roots or water without a source!"

Centralized distribution, long-distance round trips, low efficiency, and high costs are the fatal flaws of the traditional model.

We must change our thinking.

Break down the large operation into smaller, more manageable units and establish transit warehouses.

He picked up a pen and circled Kowloon City, To Kwa Wan, Hung Hom, Tsuen Wan and other places on the map.

“At these key junctures,” Chen Bingwen tapped a circle with his hand, “we will rent small warehouses to serve as regional transit warehouses!”
Each transit warehouse covers grid groups and convenience stores within a five-kilometer radius!
As the central warehouse, the Kwun Tong factory conducts daily bulk distributions to replenish inventory based on inventory consumption forecasts and replenishment needs from various transit warehouses.

Each grid team no longer needs to travel long distances back to the Kwun Tong factory to pick up goods. They can simply collect the day's required goods from the nearest distribution center and then efficiently deliver them to their respective convenience stores!

He paused for a moment, then continued, "In this way, the delivery distance is greatly shortened and the response speed is increased many times over!"
Grid workers can focus their valuable time and energy on developing new customers and increasing sales per store!

Bulk transportation from the central warehouse to transit warehouses can also significantly reduce unit logistics costs!

"A transit warehouse?" Li Ming's eyes lit up. "It's like building a small supply station in the center of each region."

Grid workers no longer need to travel back to Kwun Tong!

After hearing this, Ling Peiyi quickly calculated the estimated investment in her mind. "Mr. Chen, according to this plan, the first batch of 5 transit warehouses will be set up to cover the core area. The initial investment budget for rent, refrigeration equipment, vehicles, and personnel is about HKD 5."

However, after operation, the benefits of improved logistics efficiency—reduced losses, increased sales, and enhanced brand image—far outweighed the investment!

"5? Worth it!"

Chen Bingwen affirmed.

After the meeting, everyone went their separate ways according to their assigned tasks.

As soon as Chen Bingwen returned to his office at the Kwun Tong factory, the phone on his desk started ringing incessantly.

He picked up the receiver, and Lin Wenxiong's excited voice came through it.

"Chen Sheng! It's me! Lin Wenxiong!"

On the other end of the phone, Lin Wenxiong's voice was like a firecracker that had been lit, completely lacking his usual refined and composed demeanor, "It exploded!"
It's completely exploded! The Singapore market has gone crazy!

(End of this chapter)