Zhang Wei's eyes shined as he grinned at his rewards. He had completed the first mission, and he knew he had to work hard for it. However, given his position, he controlled his emotions and first focused on work.
"Now that we've signed the contract, let's discuss business," Zhang Wei said, stretching his hands.
When Xie Ai heard this, she showed a surprised expression, but later smiled and listened to what Zhang Wei had to say.
"Miss Ai, what does your shop mainly focus on?" he asked.
He knew that Starflex was a combined cafe and sweets shop. Grandma Ruo sold both, as she had been in the business for a long time.
"Our shop mainly focuses on sweets. Coffee is our second priority. It attracts customers, but our main sales come from our sweets," she replied honestly.
"Actually, I have an idea on how we can exponentially increase the sweets sales. But for that, I need to taste and see all the sweets and delicacies the shop makes," Zhang Wei said, mentioning his idea and asking to see the inventory of the shop.
"We can show you!" Xie Ai said. She got up and asked Zhang Wei to follow her to the kitchen. Starflex shop had four rooms, two of which were big size rooms, while the other two were small. The kitchen and main shop were the two big size rooms, while the office and shop ingredient storeroom were the other two small rooms. Overall, the shop was organized.
Xie Ai showed him the kitchen, which had a large oven, industrial refrigerator, and other electronic items.
"Our shop mainly makes monthly Chinese and Japanese sweet dishes. This is the month of April, so we make Feng Li Su (Chinese-style donuts) and Sakura mochi (cherry blossom rice cake). We also make some chocolate sweets like Chocolate fudge, brownies, and cookies. We also make cakes on pre-orders," Xie Ai said as she showed Zhang Wei each dish and cookie.
She gave him Sakura Mochi (cherry blossom rice cake) to eat as a sample. Zhang Wei opened his mouth and ate the Mochi. Soon, his mouth was filled with warm rice and sweet flavors.
"It's delicious!" he said, not knowing he was smiling with its taste.
"I'm happy you liked it," Xie Ai said.
"So, who makes the sweets?" Zhang Wei asked.
"Grandma Ruo and I make all the sweets together. We also have two employees who work permanently in our shop," Xie Ai said, mentioning the two employees who were currently on leave due to the shop's condition.
"Now that I've tasted the dishes and sweets, I have a brief of the shop's taste. Let me tell you my plan on how we can expand this business!" Zhang Wei said, taking Xie Ai to the office and explaining his plan.
"Has your shop done any large orders for delivery?" Zhang Wei asked upon entering.
"We have done it, but only twice a year," Xie Ai replied.
"Hmm... Okay, listen, have you not thought of mass-producing your sweets so you can sell them to a large number of customers?" Zhang Wei asked.
"Large number of customers? Honestly, I never thought about it. If we get a large order, it takes months of preparation to complete, therefore we can take two orders twice a year," Xie Ai replied. She showed the two orders they had completed last.
"I know it takes time, but not from today. We're going to install industrial production equipment and mass-produce our sweets. We're going to take them to all stores in different bodies, like supermarkets, shops, vending machines, office stores, school canteen, etc, " he said revealing a smile.
"What!?" Xie Ai's mouth hung open as she curled up, hearing Zhang Wei's words.
"Don't be shocked, I already planned on doing this from the start," Zhang Wei said, moving his eyebrows.
When Zhang Wei received his first mission, he racked his brain on how he could make something unique yet successful. That's when he remembered a company that sold season-inspired sweets and made profits.
Their business model was simple: pack all sorts of sweets in a single box and name it a particular season box. Make a few versions of the box, market them as their brand, and sell them in the market. They became successful as their clients were mainly people from high-end societies.
The people with abundant money could buy anything they liked, so they targeted that market and became a luxury brand that valued traditional sweets.
Zhang Wei searched to see if this world had the same business or anything similar, and surprisingly, he only found a few that had a similar model, but they were not in the sweets market. So, if he managed it successfully, his business would be the first of its kind.
"Miss Xie Ai, have you ever sold your sweets to someone from a high-end society?" Zhang Wei asked.
"Yes, we have! A few customers take our sweets to Southern Jiang City households," Xie Ai replied.
"That's it! Listen, that's what I want to achieve with our business," Zhang Wei said, opening his mouth. He asked for a notebook and explained to them how they were going to change the whole production line and packaging of sweets. He showed them how much they should charge for each box.
Xie Ai and Grandma Ruo nodded as they heard his explanation. Their expressions showed variations. From the start, they keenly heard what he was saying.
"But how are we going to maintain the product quality?" Grandma Ruo asked. If machines are introduced, their handmade touch will be lost. Most people buy because of them.
"Grandma Ruo, we will only be introducing machines for basic tasks, like making batter, dough, and storing food. We'll basically speed up the making process by providing upfront assistance to workers. By doing that, if one worker can make 100 sweets per day, it can be turned into 500 per day. The machine would automate every other process except for making sweets," Zhang Wei said, drawing the whole plan on the paper of the notebook.
Xie Ai and Grandma Ruo's eyes shone as they saw the fully detailed plan. Even Munki was shocked as Zhang Wei explained everything in micro-detailed sentences.
"That's an excellent plan! If everything goes right, it could work!" Xie Ai said, with her mouth curled in a smile. She was enthusiastic and most excited about this project.
"Yeah, it will be. Therefore, I want Miss Ai to personally supervise this. Can you do this?" Zhang Wei asked. Xie Ai was still 17 years old. She is one year younger than him and is in her second year of high school.
"Yes, I can!" Xie Ai replied. She sensed Zhang Wei's worries and explained, "Mr. Zhang, you don't have to take note of my school. I go to a school where your attendance is not required. I can study at home and only go for examinations."
"But still, don't you want to attend school like any regular girl? I will also be going to school soon. I can't avoid it," Zhang Wei asked. It was normal for girls her age to have the wish of a regular school and romance. He also had to attend school because of his father's restrictions.