191: Feng Fu's Ambition

An extra chapter for @maoyaoca@nameduolian de Qin Shaobai@Tianshifengyi and other great authors. Thank you all very much for your support.

Wang Yuan was the oldest and had the best conditions in the entire dorm. Although he hadn't graduated yet, his family had already arranged his future path. He could go to work at his family's company after returning. "Brother Feng, if you can't muster the courage to possess something you like, don't you worry that you'll waste more time being lost in things you're not satisfied with or don't want?"

"After accepting this money, at least you'll have a clearer goal, and you'll have to work twice as hard for that goal."

"I firmly believe that CEO Feng will stand on the world stage in the future!"

A transfer, right on Feng Fu's phone, could be received with a single click, but Feng Fu didn't dare to accept it.

He knew very well that the F code was at its most valuable right now. If he chose to use it, it would be worth tens of thousands of yuan.

"What's wrong, Brother Feng? Have you lost your ambition and courage before even leaving school? Who was it yesterday who said they were going to Red Star to make a phone that could be worn on the wrist?"

"Do you really not believe in your own future?" Wang Yuan said, maintaining a smile.

Do you really not believe in your own future?

This sentence made Feng Fu pause.

Since childhood, whenever he liked something, he would silently hide it in his heart and never actively strive for it. His family had also taught him from a young age to always be frugal and diligent.

He had never wasted any time at one of China's top universities. Did he really not believe in his own future?

Feng Fu gritted his teeth and clicked to confirm receipt one by one.

Damn it, what's there to be afraid of!

He never expected to go completely crazy in his last few years of college.

It's just tens of thousands of yuan! You have to go a little crazy for something you want.

The sponsorship from the entire Dorm 304, plus Feng Fu's original 3,000 yuan, totaled 8,849 yuan. Feng Fu remembered it particularly clearly.

At ten o'clock on the morning of the 31st, Feng Fu and the entire Dorm 304 participated in the flash sale, and the result was as expected: no one managed to get one.

Before the sale, an F code was being resold for 50,000 yuan on a certain trading platform, instantly snatched up as soon as it was listed. Various forums were filled with wealthy individuals who didn't care about money, waving cash around, wanting to buy a unit.

Even the Apple phone had never seen such a frenzy.

"Damn it! Was that even one second?" Guan Liang yelled in frustration. As soon as he refreshed the page, it was already sold out.

"One second? You wish. I don't think it was even 0.1 seconds. Those Scalper dealers probably used automated software to grab a lot of them."

"Sigh, it feels like we're back to when we first started university. Guan Liang, you were trying to get the mi 1, and the rest of us were trying to get the red star 1, but none of us got one."

"Haha, I remember you, Wang Yuan, were so angry you threw your keyboard back then."

Feng Fu clicked to use the F code with a slightly trembling hand. Soon, a minimum-spec Red Star X appeared in his shopping cart.

"Brother Feng, don't hesitate. Didn't you see there's only a 15-minute lock-in period after using it? Pay quickly."

"Anyway, Red Star has a warehouse in the Beijing, so it might arrive tomorrow."

"Then you'll have to let your brothers get a good feel of it, haha."

After paying, Feng Fu seemed to have let go of something. The usually dull Feng Fu was gone. "Touch, touch all of them. Our plan for tonight remains unchanged; we're still going out for beer duck."

"Did anyone get the white limited edition? Buying for 50,000, immediate payment!"

"White limited edition, serial number 9, bring your price, no cheapskates."

"128G regular model, seeking to buy one. I'm a student, please offer a discount."

"Seeking to buy the white limited edition with serial number 'Leopard 8'. As long as you have the goods, money is not an issue."

"What are you all buying? I don't understand." (Image: Red Star X White Limited Edition Payment Successful.)

"The guy upstairs should hurry back home and check, smoke is coming from his ancestral grave."

"Are you selling,OP? Price is negotiable."

"Stop talking nonsense, Xing Family has stock, just a few units, those who need it hurry up."

The starting price of 6999 yuan was expensive for the Chinese market in 2014, but not outrageously so. In fact, many digital phone enthusiasts considered it quite cheap.

If Fruit or Samsung were to release the same phone, the price would definitely not be less than five digits.

But even selling at 6999, Red Star could still earn excessive profits. The most expensive OLED screen for other manufacturers was procured by Red Star from LG at almost cost price, as was the Yangtze River Battery.

Of course, it wasn't without expensive parts. The chip alone cost over 700 yuan, along with the custom earpiece, ceramic body, and pop-up module. However, these costs would gradually be amortized as shipment volumes increased, spreading out the mold and R&D expenses.

For example, Chen Chen's statement at the press conference that a ceramic body cost over 1,000 yuan, you can just listen to it. In the initial experimental stage, it definitely cost more than 1,000 yuan. After large-scale production, the combined cost of the ceramic buttons and back cover was less than 500 yuan.

There's no shortage of clever people in this world. Some could tell from Red Star's continuous opening of Xing Family stores in the first half of this year that Red Star's strategic goal for this year definitely included expanding offline.

So, they didn't bother to rush for the first batch of goods, but instead arrived early at the Xing Family stores and waited. They literally followed the store manager wherever he went, even to the restroom, just afraid that a spot might suddenly appear in the manager's hands and be snatched away.

As expected, the 10 o'clock flash sale was gone in seconds.

But less than half an hour later, the store manager, who had been followed all morning, received a message and turned around, saying, "Brother, you've been following me for three hours."

"You even followed me to the restroom."

"Now the company policy is out: each store gets 5 units, regular models."

"Can't I just give you one? Please stop following me."

The store manager almost pleaded, as anyone would be a bit fed up after being shadowed all morning.

"Um, I want the 256GB one."

"Alright, alright, I'll give you a 256GB one. Give me your Red Star account. I'll make a registration here and take down your phone number. I'll notify you to pick it up when it arrives."

Red Star's offline expansion plan in 2014 was relatively successful. In July, a "Hundred Stores Opening Simultaneously" event was held, attracting a large number of fans and onlookers.

At the same time, due to the high SKU of Red Star's offline Xing Family stores, while bringing a high sales-per-square-foot ratio to the entire store, it also brought traffic to the shopping malls.

Therefore, the expansion in cities proceeded very rapidly. Some shopping malls even contacted Zhang Jianhui, offering reduced or discounted rent to have Red Star open stores in their malls.

In Zhang Jianhui's plan, Red Star was to open over 200 directly operated stores and more than 500 authorized franchise stores nationwide in the second half of the year.

The plan for opening stores in towns and townships would begin in the first half of 2015, with an estimated total of over 1,500 authorized stores and exclusive stores opening throughout the year.