Reborn in 08, Public Enemy of Competitors

Pudong, Ouku.com office.

Chen Lei, the CTO, frowned deeply. "Fruit and vegetables plus e-commerce? Lao Huang, April Fool's Day isn't here yet."

Huang Zheng said helplessly, "It was Shen Mo who told me this himself."

"Doing fruit and vegetable e-commerce at this time is simply a dead end."

As the sales director, Wu Mei stated bluntly: "Our Ouku.com sells mobile phones, which already has stringent requirements for logistics, and the requirements for fruits and vegetables are even higher in terms of logistics and cold chain technology."

Chen Lei added, "Exactly, continuing with Ouku.com is more reliable than this."

Huang Zheng said, "I have also investigated. The country did introduce a policy this year to exempt agricultural products from toll fees, but it currently only covers the 'five vertical and two horizontal' trunk lines. Regional supporting facilities have not yet caught up. The general direction is correct, but it will take time to implement it."

"What about the cold chain?"

Wu Mei questioned, "The technology in this area is almost non-existent in China. The vast majority of agricultural products are still transported across provinces using temperature-controlled vehicles. Even express delivery companies like STO Express, YTO Express, ZTO Express, and SF Express don't have the capability to do this."

"If we really want to do this, we have to build a cold chain logistics system from scratch."

Chen Lei said, "Building our own warehouses, fleets, and delivery network will definitely burn more money than Ouku.com's self-built logistics."

Huang Zheng rubbed his eyes. "But Shen Mo said he doesn't need cold chain logistics and forward warehouses, and he can still manage it."

Chen Lei shrugged: "What can he do? Even if the King of Heaven himself came, he couldn't make this happen!"

"Although I haven't had many interactions with Shen Mo, based on my understanding of him, he's not the kind of person who can't keep his word."

Huang Zheng was silent for a moment: "If he dares to say that, he must really be confident."

"How about this, let's sign a confidentiality agreement first and hear what Shen Mo is up to."

Wu Mei suggested, "If what he says is unreliable, just don't invest. There's no harm in it anyway."

........................

The online trade fair lasted for two days. Backed by Ali, YiTao quickly attracted a number of factories, brands and enterprises.

Some even signed exclusive agreements on the spot.

EtaoGO is not to be outdone. As the home appliance trade-in program continues to gain momentum, brands such as Gionee, Bird, and Tianyu have taken the initiative to approach them, all hoping to join EtaoGO and vying for cooperation.

Shen Mo, in particular, allowed Lu Wenbin and Yuan Hua to subtly spread rumors within the meeting room.

EtaoGO plans to hold a brand sale focusing on mobile phones, home appliances, and 3C digital products during the 618 shopping festival. Places are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

The news was like a drop of water falling into a pot of oil, instantly causing the entire venue to boil over.

Many merchants who were initially hesitant immediately pulled aside YiTaoGO staff to discuss the details, fearing that they would miss out on a spot if they were a step too late.

As evening fell, Shen Mo stood in the exhibition area, drinking mineral water to moisten his throat.

Zhong Xue walked over quickly: "Boss, in just the last two days, 37 first- and second-tier brands have been added to the CRM system."

Shen Mo put down his water glass: "How are the data for YiTao GO right now?"

"With a cumulative registered user base exceeding 2800 million and daily active users remaining stable at around 241 million, 6% of new daily users come from social sharing through group buying, discounts, and cashback programs, while 4% come from external advertising channels..."

Zhong Xue replied, "The launch of YiTao has not yet had a significant impact on us."

"Wenbin, Fengzi, we need to build a team for the new project. You two already have experience in manpower, so we'll leave it to you."

Shen Mo's expression turned serious, and he changed the subject.

Lu Wenbin pressed further, "Brother Mo, are there any specific requirements? Or are they the same as the investment promotion team's?"

Shen Mo shook his head. "The YiTaoGO business development team doesn't need face-to-face meetings. New projects require direct contact with manufacturers. They need to be able to go to the fields and workshops. I suggest you prioritize recruiting people with backgrounds in Ali's 'China Supply Iron Army'."

"China Supply Iron Army?"

Qin Feng scratched his head.

"It's the ground sales team for Ali's B2B business, called the 'China Supplier Sales Team'."

Shen Mo explained succinctly that this group of people were Ma Yun's elite troops.

Around 2000, small and medium-sized enterprises in China did not know how to do foreign trade. These people relied on their mouths and their legs to go door to door to promote their products and services, which helped Ali's B2B business open up the market and even take it public.

It can be said that the China Supply Iron Army is the Whampoa Military Academy of the Ali Group.

The reason why Meituan, Didi, and Pinduoduo were able to rise to prominence later was largely because they recruited key personnel from the China Supply Iron Army.

"Hehe, Ah Li sent Yi Tao to challenge us, so we won't hold back."

Lu Wenbin grinned: "Let's just poach their players!"

Shen Mo offered a reminder: "The biggest role of the China Supply Iron Army isn't in on-the-ground sales, but in teaching us how to do on-the-ground sales!"

Qin Feng nodded repeatedly: "Brother Mo, shouldn't you give this new project a code name?"

Shen Mo casually suggested, "Let's call it 'Pinduoduo'."

"Pinduoduo?"

Qin Feng and Lu Wenbin exchanged a glance and pondered carefully.

Just then, Zhong Xue answered a phone call, covered the receiver, and looked at Shen Mo.

"It's from Ouku.com. They said that Mr. Huang has made up his mind and wants to meet with you as soon as possible."

"Then let's make the arrangements!"

Shen Mo showed neither excessive surprise nor excitement, as if everything was under control.

………………

The next day, Shen Mo, Huang Zheng, Lin Qingyan, Wu Mei and others arrived at the agreed-upon tea room.

After signing the confidentiality agreement, Huang Zheng eagerly asked, "President Shen, can we reveal the mystery now?"

"How exactly do you plan to bypass the cold chain and forward warehouses?"

"My method is very simple: place orders in advance and purchase in advance."

Shen Mo put down his teacup. "For example, with ginger, we can initiate a 24-hour group purchase. By evening, the backend can summarize the total number of group purchases for the day, complete the accurate estimate, and immediately provide the information to the purchasing staff."

"Purchasing personnel are responsible for negotiating prices with fruit farmers, vegetable farmers, rural cooperatives, and agricultural bases."

"Because we purchase in large quantities, we can get relatively lower prices."

"This is the C2M you were talking about!!"

Huang Zheng's eyes lit up immediately.

Shen Mo said, "Orders come first, then harvesting. Users can form groups and make centralized purchases, ideally bypassing middlemen."

Huang Zheng understood immediately. This way, there was no need to store the goods; all that was needed was to deliver them promptly.

Wu Mei suddenly interjected, "What about transportation and storage?"

"Of course, we need to build transit warehouses for centralized sorting and unified distribution."

Shen Mo said, "The goods are shipped directly from the place of origin to the transit warehouse, where they are sorted and packaged before being handed over to a third-party courier company for shipment."

Huang Zheng gasped. This asset-light model doesn't require cold chain logistics, forward warehouses, or large amounts of inventory backlog.

"So, how do we control the losses?"

"Direct shipping from the place of origin will inevitably result in losses, and the pre-sale quantity and the actual quantity cannot be completely matched."

"Of course there will be losses, but my solution is to take advantage of the bargaining power that comes with bulk purchasing."

Shen Mo frankly stated, "Some products are sourced directly from the production area, while others are obtained from primary distributors. The profits saved through price negotiations can fully cover losses and shipping costs."

Everyone was shocked and speechless for a moment.

Huang Zheng, in particular, was filled with mixed emotions, his eyes brimming with admiration.

While everyone was agonizing over cold chain logistics and forward warehouses, Shen Mo bypassed the issue altogether.

"Mr. Huang, if we add this and that, will we be able to get the project going?"

Shen Mo smiled confidently.

Huang Zheng picked up his teacup, drank it all in one gulp, swallowed back what he wanted to say, and asked, "May I ask, Mr. Shen, who exactly are you?"