Chapter 364 - 223: If Your Sister Won’t Beat You, I’ll Beat Her (2)

Chapter 364: Chapter 223: If Your Sister Won’t Beat You, I’ll Beat Her (2)

The mention of an opening bonus meant this store must have opened recently. Sure enough, Chen Xiao glanced ahead and saw a branded shop that had clearly just launched, with grand opening flower baskets still at the entrance.

Their grand opening coincided with the mall’s major promotional event. The business development manager for that brand really hit the jackpot.

"Honestly, this is our brand’s first time in the Hanjiang Region. We had a good deal worked out with Tianlong Square, but then we heard it was becoming Junxiao Square. We were shocked at first—we were even prepared to pull out!"

"After all, with new management running the show, it’s hard to say what the quality of the mall will be. It wasn’t until we heard Lin Ya was still in charge that we could relax a little."

"But once Junxiao Square reopened, we realized we’d truly hit the jackpot. I never expected Junxiao Business Management to be so willing to invest. This isn’t marketing—this is just throwing money around!"

"With this strategy, our rent hasn’t been paid in vain. It’s like they take from the people to give back to the people!"

That was all President Li, musing aloud. President Zhang chimed in, "That’s right. We were a little worried when we heard it had changed owners."

"President Li, let me tell you, we have three stores in Junxiao malls now—one here, and two in their other locations. Any mall that Junxiao Business Management takes over, they immediately start pouring money into marketing. The places are incredibly popular now!"

"Almost all the tenants have seen a massive increase in sales. It’s like a ray of warm sunshine in this economic winter!"

Chen Xiao listened to their conversation with a smile. ’This is exactly what a mall should be!’

The mall makes its fair share, the tenants make theirs, and the customers can buy what they want while enjoying the best deals and a premium shopping experience.

Gazing at the bustling Junxiao Square Second Store, a sense of pride swelled in his chest. He had brought a new vibrancy to the city, brought prosperity, and given hope to the merchants!

"President Zhang, Junxiao Business Management has really made a name for itself lately. Are you planning to deepen your partnership with them?"

President Zhang grimaced. "Goes without saying. My only fear is that we won’t even get a spot in line. Only an idiot wouldn’t want into a Junxiao Mall right now. Practically every store is profitable, and high-profit at that!"

President Li swore in frustration, "Fuck! Those morons at corporate!"

President Zhang looked at him, curious.

President Li said, vexed, "I just got a notice. Corporate headquarters is demanding a complete halt to our partnership with Junxiao Business Management. What the hell has gotten into them?"

President Zhang was bewildered. "Your company is really something else. Pulling out of all your profitable stores... Are you planning to go after money-losing ones instead?"

President Li gave a bitter smile. "Tell me about it. The key accounts department at headquarters negotiated three stores for me in Wansheng Square."

"Wansheng Square? Where does Wansheng even have any good locations left in the Hanjiang Region now? The rent is high, the foot traffic is awful, and the mall doesn’t invest a dime. You lose money on every store you open. We already pulled all of our stores out of the Wansheng Hanjiang Region. We had to—each store was losing hundreds of thousands a year!"

Chen Xiao shot them an indifferent glance and walked away. ’So, Wansheng is already making its move.’

’But what’s the point? It’s just like President Zhang said: merchants are driven by profit. As long as they’re making money with Junxiao Square, how could anyone possibly blacklist Junxiao Business Management? It’s impossible!’

’Besides, Junxiao Business Management doesn’t just have one mall anymore. It has six, and that number will soon grow to ten, or even more than a dozen.’

’For any single brand, that could mean over a hundred million in revenue and several million in profit. Who would walk away from that?’

’That’s why he completely scoffed at Wansheng’s tactics. They were utterly pointless.’

’Once Junxiao Business Management grows to a certain scale, it can be the one to apply pressure in the other direction.’

’With the way Junxiao malls operate, virtually every tenant can make a profit. If you’re still losing money, it’s because of your own incompetence and you’re just not a good fit here.’

’If there were a hundred Junxiao Squares across the country, and all of them were profitable for their tenants, then *he* could be the one to blacklist another management company.’

’As for Wansheng? Forget it. For years, their strategy has been to use one good mall to carry several bad ones. Rents go up by huge amounts every year. A lot of tenants are only there for show; when they tally up their accounts, they’re actually losing money.’

’The only reason they stay is that Wansheng is too big to abandon completely. A full withdrawal would cause their sales to plummet, and the parent companies couldn’t take that kind of hit.’

He continued walking. The best spots in the central atrium were prominently occupied by several brands from Four Seasons Clothing.

Four Seasons Clothing managed mid- to high-end brands. In the previous Tianlong Square, they had four brands on the first floor and three on the second.

Those three brands were Sa Mo, Ledi, and Erte.

Ledi had now been handed over to the Yinuo Hanjiang District, leaving only Sa Mo and Erte under the management of Four Seasons Clothing.

Moreover, they were set to leave when their contracts expired after the New Year.

Sa Mo and Erte were included in the current event, since they were tenants in the mall, but as for the cost-sharing ratio for the subsidy vouchers, Junxiao made Four Seasons Clothing cover 80 percent, the same arrangement as at the Junxiao Square Store.

As he was mulling this over, he suddenly felt a scorching gaze fixed on him. He turned to look.

Of course. It was that loser Xia Bin again. He was standing about ten feet away, glaring hatefully at him. Chen Xiao wasn’t sure if it was because of the old bad blood between them or because of that time with Lin Ya on top of him.

A fashionably dressed young man next to Xia Bin seemed to notice the strange look in his eyes.

He asked, "Brother-in-law, what’s wrong?"

’Brother-in-law?’ Only then did Chen Xiao pay him any mind. ’If I remember correctly, Xia Bin always refers to Lin Ya as his fiancée. For this guy to call him brother-in-law... he must be Lin Ya’s brother!’

’This kid is asking for trouble. His own sister won’t even acknowledge the engagement, yet here he is, eager to kiss up to the guy.’