Rebirth 05: From Coal Mine Owner to Mobile Phone Tycoon

Seeing the slight sympathy on Xu Xinjie's face, Lu Yuanzhi let go of her and then laughed loudly, asking, "Reporter Xu, it seems you think I'm finished, right?"

Xu Xinjie smiled slightly. Although she didn't say anything, her glance around the less than 20-square-meter office and the simple office supplies inside were enough to tell the whole story.

Lu Yuan wasn't in a hurry to reveal the purpose of inviting Xu Xinjie over. He first gestured for her to sit down, then made tea and poured water for her. Xu Xinjie didn't stand on ceremony. After sitting on a sofa, she finally couldn't contain her curiosity and asked, "Mr. Lu, why did you suddenly switch from the coal business to the mobile phone industry? Hehe, you're a businessman; you must have heard the saying 'a trade is like a mountain,' right?"

Lu Yuan sat in his office chair, holding a teacup, and said with a smile, "Reporter Xu, to be honest, although the coal industry is extremely profitable, you probably know a little about the situation these past two years. Besides, the coal industry is different from other industries; the mines will eventually run out. The brothers have worked with me for so many years, and they are indeed a bit tired now. So I'm thinking of switching to some easier business, and also giving the brothers who have followed me for so many years a way out, right?"

Xu Xinjie frowned slightly, a look of confusion on her face, and said, "President Lu, you don't actually think the mobile phone industry is easy, do you?"

Lu Yuan smiled and said, "Isn't that right?"

As a journalist, Xu Xinjie mainly writes about finance and economics, and she also has some knowledge of various industries. In particular, as a young person, she has a deep understanding of the mobile phone industry.

"Mr. Lu, if you only intend to run this kind of small company, to be honest, with your assets, you could occupy a market share in Huaqiangbei. But if you plan to expand in a larger direction, the difficulty will be extraordinary. In the mobile phone industry, brands are now paramount. Large brands like Nokia, Samsung, Lenovo, and Moira currently occupy two-thirds of the domestic market share. Although small companies like yours may occupy a certain share of the market, not to mention the whole country, just in Huaqiangbei alone, I'm sure you've already calculated how many small companies like yours there are."

In this situation, it's not simply a matter of throwing money at the problem and expecting to break through. You also need the right timing, location, and people. Without any one of these, it's very difficult to establish yourself in this industry, let alone develop your career.

Lu Yuan placed his teacup on the table, stood up, picked up a newly launched mobile phone from his company, handed it to Xu Xinjie, and said with a smile, "Reporter Xu, you can take a look at this phone."

Xu Xinjie took the box, opened it, and took out the phone. Examining it carefully, she smiled and said, "Hmm, it looks quite nice. It has a good weight to it, and it's made of pure metal, so it's durable." As she spoke, Xu Xinjie turned on the phone. As the startup ringtone sounded, Xu Xinjie exclaimed with some surprise, "This phone has pretty good sound quality!"

Lu Yuan began introducing the phone his company had assembled. After outlining its main features, he smiled at Xu Xinjie and asked, "What do you think of this phone?"

Xu Xinjie also shared her opinion, "Mr. Lu, you just mentioned the price of this phone, it's priced at over 1,800, right?"

Lu Yuan nodded.

Xu Xinjie continued, "Do you know how much a new Nokia phone that was recently released costs?"

Actually, Lu Yuan had discussed the phone's price with Lu Long and Zhou Liren. The cost price of this phone was only a little over six hundred yuan. After all, the phone uses a pure metal casing, and the system, chips, and battery are all high-end products. Including labor and facilities, the total cost was no more than eight hundred yuan.

At the time, Lu Long's suggestion was to price the phone at 999.

But Lu Yuan disagreed. If he were to enter the mobile phone industry, he had to go for the high-end product route. Price wars were the lowest-level tactic in business, and he no longer bothered with such tactics.

If he's going to fight, he'll fight based on quality, wording, and identity.

Just like fruit, it has become a leading representative in the mobile phone industry with its superior performance and continuous innovation.

"I know what you're going to say, Reporter Xu. Hehe, you probably think my phone is priced a bit too high."

Lu Yuangang was just getting to this point when Xu Xinjie said, "It's not just a little high, it's way too high. Most small companies in Huaqiangbei produce phones that cost around 500 or 600 yuan. Even the better quality ones, like the latest models from Puhui next door, only cost a little over 900 yuan. But you're pricing it at 1,800 yuan. For just 300 or 500 yuan more, you can buy a brand-name phone. Do you think anyone will buy it?"

Lu Yuan said to Xu Xinjie with a serious expression, "We opened yesterday and started selling our phones online. In just one day, all one thousand phones we produced were sold out."

Xu Xinjie exclaimed in surprise, "What? All these phones were sold out on the first day?"

Lu Yuan nodded.

Xu Xinjie was completely dumbfounded. Her mouth hung open as she stared blankly at Lu Yuan. After a long while, she finally smiled wryly and said, "Okay, haha, then congratulations, Mr. Lu. By the way, Mr. Lu, since your mobile phone sales are so good, why did you come to me? You don't mean you're planning to have me advertise for you in the newspaper, do you?"

Only then did Lu Yuan reveal his true purpose with a wry smile, "Reporter Xu, to be honest, on the surface it seems like sales are going very well, but in reality, I was set up..."

Next, Lu Yuan earnestly explained the risks he was currently facing.

After he finished speaking, Xu Xinjie asked, seemingly puzzled, "Now that it's already happened, why are you coming to me now? Also, you said you were set up, that someone tampered with your phone, do you have any evidence?"

Lu Yuan saw no need to hide anything from Xu Xinjie. He smiled and said, "Reporter Xu, the phones produced by our company are absolutely guaranteed in quality. If you don't believe me, you can try dropping this phone on the ground. If it breaks or malfunctions, you can leave now. But conversely, if my phone is fine, you must help me out this time."

Xu Xinjie had worked with Lu Yuan before, and he knew Lu Yuan's character.

Overall, in her mind, this young man was the kind of businessman with a conscience.

Holding her phone, Xu Xinjie hesitated for a few seconds before asking Lu Yuan earnestly, "Mr. Lu, please tell me how you want me to help you."

Lu Yuan smiled and asked, "Aren't you going to try out the phone?"

Xu Xinjie chuckled and said, "Forget it, I've known President Lu for a long time, there's no need for that. If there's anything I can help you with, just let me know."

Lu Yuan then told Xu Xinjie his plans in detail.