Xu Bin, who had received the news, hurriedly brought a group of people to the capital, each with a thick book of franchise regulations in their hands. This thing had been improved many times since they returned from their study tour in the United States, but it had never been put to use.
It is true that when Yijia was not yet well-known, it was quite difficult to expect others to join the chain.
Now, finally, there is a chance to put this into practice.
However, during the formal talks, only Xu Bin can go on stage, because there are only two people from the other side, and it is not good for a large group of people to surround them.
Huang Guanfang, in his fifties, is not the lean physique commonly seen in Yangcheng, medium height, a bit fat, fortunately, the belly is not too prominent, but the dark circles under his eyes are very obvious.
Behind him was his daughter, in her early thirties, similarly short, dressed exquisitely, giving an overall impression of being soft and gentle.
Haha, perhaps it was her round face and fair skin that made Feng Yiping think of the word 'gentle'.
'Hello, Mr Feng!' Huang Guanfa was quite happy to see Feng Yiping waiting downstairs with his entourage, and extended his hand from afar.
In theory, it was Feng Yiping who had come to the door, as he was in the office.
However, Feng Yiping had always been a grassroots figure, so he didn't have those kinds of pretensions. He didn't feel that sitting in his office and waiting for people to come to see him was a way to satisfy his vanity.
It was probably also influenced by his parents, who believed that a visitor was a guest from afar. Feng Yiping had just walked a few steps from the office to the elevator, and then to the door. In total, it was not a long walk, but it gave a good first impression, so why not?
Don't underestimate these few steps taken by Feng Yiping. Many people, after years of hard work, strive to make people take a few extra steps to see them.
Sure enough, although they only had a brief encounter at the Zhongmin Association last time, Feng Yiping's behaviour today made Huang Guanfang very happy.
Feng Yiping became famous at a young age, but he is still so humble, which gives him a very good impression.
After the introductions were over, Feng Yiping learned that Huang's daughter, Huang Yujin, had always been his right-hand woman.
To be honest, Feng Yiping's favourite thing to hear was the way girls from Guangdong and Guangxi speak Mandarin. How should I put it? Their voices are soft, the rhythm is slow, and they always turn a phrase in unexpected places, just like the Mongolian and Tibetan folk songs he likes to listen to. It's very fresh.
Feng Yiping remembers that when he first arrived in Yangcheng and was contacting the middlemen down there, he would inexplicably think of cotton candy whenever he spoke to the girls in the shop on the phone.
The girls who spoke Trump, although mostly pretty, were always very fierce and domineering, while those from the Jianghu region, although they spoke the soft Wu dialect, had a faster pace and were not soft enough.
However, since she is the right-hand man of her father, she is definitely not as weak as she looks. She should still be a decisive woman at heart. Feng Yiping gave her a rating.
'President Feng, President Jin, President Xu, I presume you know the reason for my presumptuous intrusion today. In Yangcheng, I currently own four hotels under my name, and the software and hardware are quite good, and business is also going well. However, after learning about your company's Yijia, I feel that there is still much room for improvement.
So, I would like to know if you and I can establish some cooperation in the hotel sector. I admire your vision, Mr Feng!' Right from the start, Huang Guanfa came straight to the point.
'Thank you for your support, Mr Huang, and for your confidence in us. We originally planned to start opening outlets in the south early next year, so if you have this idea now, that would be great,' Feng Yiping said with a smile.
'Mr Huang, these are the two business models we use at Yijia in addition to direct operation: one is franchising, and the other is leasing. You can have a look,' Xu Bin handed the two folders to the father and daughter.
For the Huang family, who are veterans in the industry and based in Guangzhou, both models are easy to understand. Huang Yujin is still carefully reading the terms and conditions – don't underestimate these, there is a lot packed into them.
Huang Guanfang, on the other hand, has only flicked through a few pages. 'Your company has a factory in Shenzhen, and I assume you have all been to Guangzhou before. We have a lot of meetings one after the other, for example, at the moment, because of the Autumn Fair, it is really difficult to find a room in the city.'
'Yes, we participate in the Canton Fair twice a year, so I'm sure you've had a lot of business these past two days!'
'Well, it's not bad, but I can't compare with you. I went to the Yijia website and found out that in less than a year, you've already opened more than 20 branches, and the average occupancy rate is over 90%. That's really not easy!' Huang Guanfa praised again.
'In fact, it's not difficult to achieve this occupancy rate as long as we use our management, our experience, plus our free reservation hotline and online reservation system, as well as the operation of the customer club,' Xu Bin dutifully introduced and promoted, 'The group's requirement for us is to reach above 95%. We also believe that with hard work, we can still achieve it,'
The most difficult thing about opening new Yijia stores is finding properties in good locations with comprehensive supporting facilities. If the four hotels owned by Huang Guanfa are in good locations, whether they are franchised or leased, it will really give them a good start in developing the southern market.
'Yes, that's why I approached you. As I said, I trust in Mr Feng's vision,' Huang Guanfa said. 'However, opening so many stores a year, are you sure you have the funds?'
'We're still very well-funded,' Feng Yiping says with a smile.
'We're currently operating entirely on our own funds, without even taking out a loan. And we've bought the property rights to three more stores,' Xu Bin adds, to demonstrate the company's strength.
'Oh, buying them out, that's really a big move. You really are strong,' Huang Guanfa gives a thumbs-up. "Mr Feng is really something,'
he seems to be quite interested in the topic. "What are the current rental standards?'
'At the moment, the rent for this store in the capital is the highest because of its good location, nearly 1 yuan per square metre per day,' Xu Bin answered these questions.
'What about the payment method?'
'After signing the contract, a deposit will be paid, but according to industry regulations, the rent will be paid in a lump sum at the end of the contract period, which is one year. And after signing the contract, there will be a six-month renovation period, so the rent will not be charged for that six months,'
Xu Bin simply sat over, flipped through the terms and showed them to Huang Guanfang only.
'Oh, it takes one and a half years to collect the rent,' Huang Guanfang nodded.
'So, Mr Huang, if you are interested, I personally recommend that franchising is good. You can look at the relevant processes and costs. It is really a win-win situation,' Xu Bin still diligently advised.
Huang Yujin, who had already browsed through the information, said, 'After becoming your franchisee, the manager must also be appointed by you?'
'Yes, but this is for our mutual benefit. Our branch managers have all undergone professional training, and I think it's also a good thing for you, Mr Huang, to not have to worry about trivial matters anymore,' Xu Bin explained, thinking that Huang Yujin was worried that in this way, she would have no real power.
'I trust you on this one. Although Yuk-kan is very experienced, she hasn't had any systematic training. The managers you send will definitely be more competent,' Wong Koon-fook interrupted their conversation. 'My daughter is also helping me run another business,'
Oh, that's good, I'm just afraid that Huang Yujin is someone who likes to hold power.
'But,' Huang Guanfa pondered for a moment and said something that surprised everyone, 'have you considered buying some more property rights? To be honest, two of my four stores are in really good locations,'
This is quite a big turn of events. Could it be that Huang Guanfa's original intention was to buy a hotel? Xu Bin felt really hurt. He had prepared so much in the hope that someone would join him, only to find that it would be of no use?
'Well, Mr Huang, generally speaking, our directly-managed stores all adopt a leasing model. As you know, we at Yijia want to set up outlets in first- and second-tier cities across the country. Although we have sufficient funds, it is impossible to buy each store. The capital investment would be astronomical, and we would not be able to expand,' Feng Yiping explained.
'Mr Feng, you know, I really regret not noticing your magazine when it was first published in Hong Kong,' Huang Guanfa made another big turn.