Liu Hongsheng had thought about it before, but if he simply sold it to cement factories, firstly, there are not many manufacturers nowadays, and secondly, they might not be willing to buy it, and even if they did, the price would never satisfy him.
And what about setting up a cement factory by yourself? This is not realistic either.
The capital required to set up a cement factory is very huge, and ordinary people simply cannot afford to run it alone.
But things are different now. With a wealthy president behind him to support him, the funding problem will naturally be solved!
Wang Hengyue lit a cigarette and took a puff: "I will provide the funds, and you will handle other aspects. I don't care, but I hope you can handle it well. Nowadays, the cement on the market is made by the British. I hope we can make it domestically."
Cement can defeat them and occupy the domestic cement market!"
"Yes, President!" Liu Hongsheng said confidently.
With the full support of the president, everything will be easier to handle.
Liu Hongsheng left with the support of the President. Chiang Kai-shek smiled and said: "The President supported Wu Yunchu to deal with Japanese businessmen, and now he supports Liu Hongsheng to deal with British businessmen."
"I hope Liu Hongsheng will not only become the king of coal, but also the king of cement." Wang Hengyue said thoughtfully.
It has always been his dream to become an industrial power, and now this dream is making great strides forward...
...
With the expectations of the president, Liu Hongsheng returned to Shanghai and quickly began to take action.
He learned immediately that Li Yijing, the manager of a raw manganese mining company in Shanghai, was very knowledgeable about cement production and had long had the ambition to set up a factory. However, he was still stuck with financial problems.
Liu Hongsheng quickly found this person, hit it off with Li Yijing on the spot, and immediately started preparations.
In terms of funds, with the support of the president, there was no need to worry about it. Liu Hongsheng started intensive activities to investigate the market and familiarize himself with the business. Soon everything was ready and clear. However, he felt that one major condition was still missing.
: Cement is an emerging large enterprise in the country. It must have someone with seniority and high status to preside over and take charge of it in order to open up the situation and stabilize the overall situation. He is young and junior and it is difficult to cope with the situation, but where can he find this person?
He quickly thought of Zhu Baosan.
Zhu Baosan, a native of Huangyan, Zhejiang Province, is a 40-year-old Liu Hongsheng who is now in his seventies. He was once a famous leader in Shanghai's financial and industrial circles. After the Revolution of 1911, he served as the Chief Financial Officer of the Shanghai Military Governor's Office in 1914.
From 1919 to 1919, he was the associate director and prime minister of the Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce. He was an ideal candidate in terms of qualifications and status.
After Liu Hongsheng became prosperous, he once met Zhu Baosan. So, after making some preparations, he paid a visit as a junior from his hometown.
When the conversation got to the point and after hearing Liu Hongsheng's intention, Zhu Baosan asked calmly: "How did you come up with the idea of setting up a cement factory?"
Liu Hongsheng did not say that this was actually what President Wang Hengyue meant, but replied in a dignified and well-founded way:
"After careful inspection by younger generations, the general trend of our country's architecture has become increasingly Westernized, and it will become more and more common and become the dominant form. And cement is the main material of Western-style architecture. Not only roads, bridges, embankments and other public buildings, even in the future
Residential houses and mansions also require a large amount of cement, so the demand for cement in the entire construction market is bound to increase day by day. Before the European War, domestic cement was all foreign goods, half of which came from its own country, and half from its affiliated countries and those located in our country.
Manufacturers. The outbreak of the European War caused a sharp drop in supply, and domestic production began. So far, there are only five manufacturers, and two of them are British-owned. In terms of annual output, the three Chinese-owned factories total about
One million barrels, the two British-owned plants total about 300,000 barrels, and the total volume is about 1.3 million barrels. According to careful calculations by Wan Sheng, the current domestic annual consumption has exceeded 2.3 million barrels, that is, one million barrels.
, the supply gap is nearly half of the quantity, and the demand is greatly increasing. Therefore, the establishment of a factory is actually needed by the market, and the sales must be very promising."
Zhu Baosan was very fond of Liu Hongsheng's extraordinary appearance and decent conversation, and had heard of his reputation in recent years, so he listened very carefully. He narrowed his old eyes, picked up a few thin beards, listened quietly, and nodded implicitly from time to time. with thumbs up:
"This son is well-deserved. He is really insightful and a rising star in the city. He is really a formidable person!"
But he still asked calmly: "Now that the European War has ended for more than two years, what will happen if cement enters the country in large quantities again?"
Liu Hongsheng replied confidently:
"Nowadays, foreign merchants who are rich in cement are thousands of miles away, and most of them rely on water transportation. Cement is heavy, and it is very difficult to get wet. The cost of transporting it across the ocean is very high. No matter how low the cost is, it will be several times higher. However, domestic products The advantage of local sales is that the cost is relatively low. As long as the quality is good, we will definitely win the competition with foreign products! Therefore, the momentum of establishment should be fast rather than late, and it should be firm rather than doubtful. Does Mr. Zhu think it is appropriate? "
Zhu Maosan unconsciously nodded and said: "What Xian Qi said is absolutely correct! There is a new cement industry, and there are no manufacturers in this town. It is really a big gap, but..."
After pondering for a moment, he slowly said:
"Because it is a new industry, as Xianqi knows, there are only three Chinese businessmen in the country. It can be seen that there are even fewer Chinese people who are familiar with this technology. If there is no quality, there is no way to compete. How can this quality be guaranteed?"
Liu Hongsheng had already prepared for this, so he also knew that Zhu Baosan would have this question:
"Senior's considerations are extremely critical to this move. How dare Wansheng ignore them? In recent days, Wansheng has tried his best to collect the cement production and sales situation and corresponding production technology data that could be collected, and has basically studied and mastered its essentials. There is another more beneficial one. The important condition is that there is a German named Ma Litai, who is a cement expert and is currently an engineer at the Huaji Cement Plant in northern Hunan. Both Wansheng and Liu Baojinjun have worked closely with this person and have agreed with him in advance that once we set up the factory, He applied to be an engineer, and could introduce us to his country for inspection and internship, and to purchase equipment. The juniors had already made corresponding preparations. Once Mr. Zhu agreed, he hired Ma Litai to purchase the best complete set of German equipment and learn about Germany. Technology, training your own technical foundation, can only be determined by Mr. Zhu’s words.”
Zhu Hesan twirled his beard and said with a smile:
"Okay! Although it's good, I'm just about to reach the age of seventy-three when the King of Hell doesn't ask me to go! My physical strength and energy are no longer able to bear the heavy responsibility, and my financial resources are insufficient. I'm afraid I will disappoint everyone's high expectations!"
Liu Hongsheng replied crisply:
"It's all easy to say, the younger generation has already planned it. Mr. Zhu is in good spirits, and more importantly, he is highly respected. He doesn't dare to bother Mr. Zhu with overwork. He just steps in to take charge and waits for the younger generation. All the chores will be handled by the younger generation. As for the funds, I have prepared them in place. Wan Sheng made a preliminary estimate that it will cost 100 to 1.2 million yuan to set up a cement factory. My account balance has reached 1.5 million yuan, which is more than enough. All I need is a word from Mr. Zhu , Wansheng will go all out immediately!"
Zhu Baosan was overjoyed after hearing this and immediately agreed.
Thanks to Zhu Baosan, a high-status celebrity, all preparations for the cement plant, including registration, etc., went smoothly.
"Finding the right person saves you so many things and how much money you save!"
Wang Hengyue couldn't help but sigh after hearing about this.
But even so, the inducements and interference from British businessmen caused some troubles, and since Wang Hengyue did not come forward directly, Liu Hongsheng had to face it alone.
Liu Hongsheng wanted to preside over and take the lead in setting up a cement factory in Shanghai, and it quickly became known to everyone.
Among them, Jardine Matheson & Co., a British company based in Shanghai, was the most shocked. Because in recent years, this foreign company has been almost exclusively selling the "Qingzhou" brand cement from the cement factory in Hong Kong in Shanghai. If Liu Hongsheng had set up a business in Shanghai,
He started a cement factory, and he was very good at business management, which would inevitably affect the interests of British businessmen. Therefore, several entrustees and even British businessmen personally came forward to persuade him, and also baited heavy profits: asking Liu Hongsheng to exclusively underwrite the "Qingzhou" brand cement.
, in exchange for Liu Hongsheng not to set up a cement factory.
Liu Hongsheng kept the president's instructions in mind, and politely declined each time, but he was busy with preparations.
There is nothing the British can do.
On the one hand, he has a stake in Liu Hongsheng, so it’s hard to break his skin, and Liu Hongsheng is not easy to get along with. On the other hand, with Zhu Baosan’s big sign sticking there, he can’t use force...
The British businessmen could only watch helplessly as Liu Hongsheng prepared the cement factory with great enthusiasm.
Liu Hongsheng is indeed a genius in business!
At the preparatory meeting when deciding on the factory site, Liu Hongsheng made an incisive and original analysis:
"The choice of a company's location depends on two conditions: proximity to the origin of raw materials or proximity to the product market. Based on the situation in Shanghai and the characteristics of cement products, I suggest that the factory be located in Shanghai. The reason is derived from the value difference.
. I carefully calculated that the main raw material of cement is white stone. One hundred tons of white stone can produce 70 tons of cement. White stone is cheap and easy to ship, but cement is not only expensive but also difficult to ship. The freight is even higher than that of white stone.
More, and you have to pay for moisture-proof means. The price difference between transporting 70 tons of cement and transporting 100 tons of white stone to Shanghai is more than double?
In addition, most of the cement is transported by water. When transporting cement to Shanghai for a long distance, it is inevitable that there will be leakage and moisture return. Any damage will be huge, but there is no such risk for white stone. If it accidentally overturns into the water, the price difference between a ship of cement and a ship of white stone will be equivalent to
Which one is more expensive and which one is cheaper? In view of this, if the factory is not located in the white stone production area but is located in Shanghai, it will not only save worry, but also save money and naturally generate profits!"
With such an incisive statement, how could others not follow it? Therefore, the Shanghai Cement Company’s factory was located in Longhua, Shanghai.
The address was chosen in Longhua, and in order to thank the president for his help and the "Hualong Coal Company", Liu Hongsheng also named the cement plant "Shanghai Hualong Cement Company".
Wang Hengyue laughed when he found out.
Liu Hongsheng took a big step towards becoming the real "coal king" and "cement king"!