Back to 2008: I Helped My Dad Become the Richest Man

Having resolved both internal and external troubles, the Luo family's development accelerated.

Under Luo Xinde's personal supervision, the second phase of the project progressed rapidly. The new pigsty rose from the ground, and it was more spacious and brighter than the one in the first phase, with a more rational design.

Luo Xiyuan, on the other hand, devoted all her energy to the preparations for opening a pork shop.

She traveled alone, taking the bus, all over the town, with only one purpose—to find a suitable location.

When opening a shop, location is paramount. A good location can make business twice as efficient.

Luo Xiyuan's goal was clear: she wanted to find a bustling, high-traffic area in town.

Finally, she set her sights on the farmers' market in the town center.

The farmers' market is the town's preferred place for residents to buy groceries, bustling with people from morning till night. A shop located next to it has no shortage of customers.

After observing the area for several days, she discovered that there was a small grocery store at the main entrance of the market that was preparing to sublet because business was not good.

This is a fantastic location!

Luo Xiyuan immediately found the shop owner. The shop owner was a middle-aged woman who looked incredulous when she saw a child who looked like he was only a little over ten years old talking about renting the shop.

"Young lady, you must be joking. The rent for my shop isn't cheap."

"Auntie, please name your price." Luo Xiyuan was very direct.

"Twelve thousand a year!" The shopkeeper quoted a high price, trying to scare her away. In a small town in 2008, this price was already very high.

Luo Xiyuan considered it in her mind. This position was indeed worth the price. But she couldn't just agree to it like that.

"Auntie, 12,000 is too expensive." She started to bargain. "Look, your shop isn't very big, only about 20 square meters. Besides, if you sublet it, we'll have to renovate it ourselves, which will cost a lot of money. How about this, 10,000 a year, I'll pay it all at once. If you agree, we can sign the contract today."

The shop owner was surprised that this young girl actually dared to bargain, and so accurately at that. She hesitated for a moment.

Luo Xiyuan noticed her hesitation and emphasized her advantages: "Auntie, every day your shop is empty, you save on rent. I'm here with sincerity. If you miss out on me, the next tenant might not be as agreeable as me."

In the end, Luo Xiyuan managed to persuade the shop owner, who then relented.

"Fine, fine, ten thousand it is! I give up!"

Luo Xiyuan immediately took out 10,000 yuan in cash from her schoolbag and slammed it on the table. It was a "special fund" that she had applied for from her mother in advance.

The shop owner was very surprised when he saw the thick wad of money and no longer dared to underestimate the young girl in front of him.

The two signed the lease agreement that same day.

Having secured the storefront, Luo Xiyuan immediately began the renovation plan.

She drew the design herself, then went to the city and found a company that specializes in commercial shop design, instead of hiring the ordinary renovation teams in the town.

"What I want is a clean, bright, hygienic brand store that makes people feel at ease, not an ordinary pork shop," she told the designer.

As per her request, the designer quickly produced a solution.

The entire store is decorated primarily in white and green, representing cleanliness and ecology. The walls are covered with glossy white tiles, and the floor is made of non-slip tiles.

At the very back is a glass-enclosed, temperature-controlled pork cutting room, allowing customers to witness the pork processing firsthand.

Outside, there are several large refrigerated display cases where different cuts of pork are arranged in categories, with small labels indicating their names and prices.

At the entrance of the store, a large sign should be hung with several eye-catching neon characters: "Luo's Safe Meat".

This design is quite avant-garde and fashionable, not to mention in a small town, even in a city.

The renovation costs were naturally not low. Including the purchase of equipment such as freezers, air conditioners, and a point-of-sale system, the total cost was nearly 40,000 yuan.

Luo Xinde and Li Minxia initially felt sorry for the pork shop, thinking that it didn't need to be so fancy.

But when they saw the renovated shop, all their doubts disappeared.

It no longer looked like a pork stall, but more like a bright and clean boutique! It was a stark contrast to the dimly lit, damp meat stalls in farmers' markets where the meat was laid out directly on the cutting board.

"Wow, our store is really impressive!" Luo Xinde said, his eyes shining as he touched the brand-new stainless steel counter.

"Buying meat here will definitely cost more money, but it will make me feel more at ease," Li Minmin nodded repeatedly.

The store is renovated, and the next step is to hire people.

Luo Xiyuan didn't plan to have her parents manage the shop themselves. Her father had to manage the pig farm, and her mother had to handle finances and logistics. She needed to hire professional sales staff.

She posted a job advertisement at the shop entrance. The requirements were simple: female, under 35 years old, clean-looking, articulate, and able to speak Mandarin. The salary was a base salary plus commission, much higher than the wages of female workers in the town's textile factory.

As soon as the job posting was put up, a large number of people came to apply. Many young wives and girls from the town who were unhappy in their factory jobs came.

Luo Xiyuan conducted the interviews personally. Her interview questions were also quite unique.

Do you like to eat pork? What's your favorite cut?

"If a customer says our pork is more expensive than others, how should you respond?"

"What would you do if you encountered a very picky and difficult customer?"

After several rounds of selection, she finally hired two of her most satisfactory employees. One was named Zhang Lan, a woman in her early thirties with a cheerful personality and a very approachable manner. The other was named Li Yan, a young woman in her early twenties with delicate features and a quick mind.

Luo Xiyuan spent three days providing them with systematic training. She taught them everything from knowledge about different parts of pork, recommendations for different cooking methods, sales techniques, and etiquette.

She told them, "We sell a healthy and worry-free lifestyle, not just pork. You need to make sure that every customer who walks into our store feels our professionalism and sincerity."

Zhang Lan and Li Yan nodded repeatedly as they listened. They realized that working for this young boss would not only earn them money, but also allow them to learn a lot.

Everything is ready.

On October 1, 2008, National Day, the "Luo's Safe Meat" specialty store officially opened in the most bustling area of ​​the town center amidst a burst of firecrackers.

On its opening day, Luo Xiyuan held a grand promotional event.

"All pork dishes are 10% off!"

"Every customer who enters the store, regardless of whether they make a purchase, will receive a free eco-friendly shopping bag!"

"Spend over 50 yuan and receive a free pound of organically grown bok choy from our farm!"

The whole town was in an uproar.

The townspeople had long been curious about this pork shop, which was decorated like a "Western restaurant." With such a great opening and such generous discounts, everyone flocked in, eager to see what would happen.

When they saw the spotless, gleaming storefront, the neatly arranged, brightly colored pork in the refrigerated display cases, and the smiling staff in uniform, everyone was astonished.

"This...this is a pork stall?"

"My goodness, it's cleaner than the supermarkets I've been to in the city!"

"Look at this pork belly, layer upon layer of fat and lean meat, it's so beautiful!"

"Boss, how much are these ribs?" an older woman couldn't help but ask.

"Auntie, hello! Our premium spare ribs are 15.8 yuan per pound after the discount today. Look, the meat is thick and tender. It's especially delicious when you take it home to stew or braise!" Zhang Lan immediately greeted her warmly and introduced the ribs using her trained sales pitch.

Although the price was two or three yuan more expensive than in the market, looking at the environment and listening to the introduction, the woman hesitated for a moment, then gritted her teeth and said, "Okay! Give me two jin!"

Once there's a first one, there's bound to be a second.

People's consumption habits are subtly changing as they witness the quality and environment firsthand. They've discovered that spending a few extra dollars to buy safer, cleaner, and higher-quality pork, while also enjoying better service, makes it a worthwhile investment.

On the first day of opening, the store was packed with customers from eight in the morning until closing time.

Luo Xiyuan prepared a whole pig, with more than 300 jin of pork, and by 5 pm, it was all sold out!

That evening, after closing the shop, Zhang Lan and Li Yan tallied up the day's sales figures, their hands trembling slightly.

"Store Manager... no, General Manager Luo!" Zhang Lan, clutching the ledger, rushed to Luo Xiyuan, who was reading in her office, her voice trembling. "Guess... how much money did we make today?"

Luo Xiyuan looked up and smiled: "How much?"

"Five thousand three hundred and sixty yuan!"

One day! Turnover exceeded five thousand yuan!

This number not only excited Zhang Lan and Li Yan, but also surprised Luo Xinde and Li Minxia when they learned the news the next day.

They discovered that they were making money much faster than they had ever imagined.

The creators of all this, their fourteen-year-old daughter, are sitting quietly under the lamp, flipping through a book about "chain operations" and "brand strategy".

Her gaze had already crossed over this small town and was looking towards a much farther place.