In ancient Japan, a year was divided into two parts: January to June and July to December.
July is also the first month.
The festival from January to June is repeated from July to December.
Although the influence of this habit no longer exists, July is still regarded as the "Zhongyuan" by the Japanese.
It can be said that this is a festival that has been indifferent to our countrymen and has almost been forgotten, but it is still quite prosperous in Japan.
For the Japanese, Nakagen was a religious activity in the past, in which food such as rice, rice cakes, and fish offered to gods or Buddhas were given to those close to them.
But now it has evolved into the habit of giving gifts to those who take care of you every day to express your gratitude.
Not only among individuals, it is also popular among companies to give gifts to each other, and the level of importance is equivalent to that at the end of the year.
The gifts given are usually food or daily necessities, which are really diverse.
For this reason, every year at this time, Japanese department stores and other stores as well as large supermarkets will open special counters, display a variety of seasonal products, and hire temporary workers to carry out large-scale promotions Activity.
People don't even have to send gifts directly to each other's homes; most of them are delivered directly to doorsteps from department stores or other places.
Needless to say, as Japanese people’s wallets become increasingly bulging, they will naturally spend more money on gifts during this year’s Ghost Festival than in previous years.
Not to mention the endless supply of high-end products, even the packaging is unique.
Merchants do not hesitate to use precious materials such as gold foil, and put gold and silver utensils, crystal products and other small gifts into the gift boxes to increase the value of the gifts.
In Ning Weimin's view, the business atmosphere of the Japanese is quite similar to the previous Mid-Autumn Festival in China, where "bath crabs" and sky-high-priced mooncakes were once popular. This is simply a precise targeting of the Japanese. I just got my winning business plan this year.
From this point of view, the Japanese people who are treated like leeks by Japanese retailers have some sympathy with the Chinese people who will buy high-priced mooncakes and "bath crabs" in the future.
However, although Japanese people are full of calls to "abolish this habit" and many people are miserable because of the high cost of gifts, there is no sign of this in reality.
After all, Ghost Festival gifts are given to bosses, elders, or people who have taken care of you to express gratitude.
This gift-giving custom has a considerable social effect, especially for people with social anxiety.
From a certain perspective, without this custom, many unsociable Japanese would be at a loss as to how to ease conflicts among colleagues and smooth out interpersonal relationships.
Therefore, because of this, some department stores even take the initiative to lobby foreign-funded companies, hoping that they will "do as the locals do" and comply with Japanese customs, saying that doing so can help them consolidate their business foundation and improve customer relationships more smoothly.
(Tokyo, Japan, 1987)
Needless to say, after returning to Tokyo, whether it is Ning Weimin or Matsumoto Keiko, the first problem they need to solve is nothing else but the collection Issues of gifting, returning gifts, and giving gifts.
The higher the social level of people, the more they understand that giving gifts to each other is a science, a gamble of taste, and a manifestation of the ability to cater to people's hearts.
Especially for a nation like the Japanese who often give gifts and like to give gifts, there are numerous taboos and rules when it comes to gift communication, making it even more difficult to be impeccable, just right, and able to To the point of touching people's hearts.
If nothing else, just talk about returning the gift.
The principle of returning gifts is to give the same gift to subordinates or juniors, and to give half the value to superiors and peers.
This standard is determined by habit. If you get it wrong, you may cause others to gossip behind your back.
This is the same as tipping in European and American countries. How much is considered appropriate is very confusing.
Especially for people like Ning Weimin and Matsumoto Keiko, who have extensive contacts and complex social relationships, not only did they receive so many gifts, they could almost open a store.
Moreover, they are not familiar with the preferences of many gift givers, and it is difficult to estimate the value of many gifts delivered to their doorsteps, which makes this matter even more difficult.
For example, no matter how valuable they are, the practical daily necessities received by Ning Weimin and Matsumoto Keiko.
Such as: mobile phones, PC laptops, Sharp CD player, home karaoke, microwave oven, oven, electronic watch that can store phone numbers, Yamazaki whiskey, Suntory whiskey, Vittorio Phoenix, Rémy Martin brandy, Moët & Chandon, French red wine, pink beer, oolong tea, Gyokuro tea, Western snacks , ham, roast beef, dried herring roe, jelly, fruit, loose-leaf books, mouthwash... and so on.
These things all have standard market prices, and it’s easy to estimate the price. Even if many of them are new products that have just been launched, it doesn’t matter. You just need to make some effort to find out.
But for different products of imported luxury brands such as Rolex, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Chanel, Tiffany, Bulgari, and Gucci, as well as local or imported products such as Mibiki and Van Cleef & Arpels There are all kinds of jewelry of different styles sent by the jewelry store, but it is more difficult to find out the specific price.
Because the prices of these things vary greatly, the prices of products of the same brand and type can vary greatly due to differences in materials, craftsmanship, and styles.
And some special products are available in one store but not in that store. You may not even be able to find out the price.
Even the class who often consume these luxury goods cannot accurately judge the value of most gifts.
So it is even more difficult to make an accurate judgment.
This is nothing, like the "health-preserving Chinese medicine" that has just become popular in Japan recently, as well as the calligraphy and painting, tea cups, and Chinese antiques that someone took advantage of and sent specifically for Ning Weimin. , that is the most inestimable value.
The actual value of some things is no matter what, but if these people can buy them and give them to Ning Weimin, the value will not be too cheap.
God knows how much they spent on these things in Japan. Anyway, the probability of blood loss is relatively high.
How should Ning Weimin respond to this?
If ordinary people faced such a difficult problem, it would probably be like taking the college entrance examination all over again. They would think about it day and night, and even lose a lot of their hair.
But having said that, the good thing is that Ning Weimin is not an ordinary person.
First of all, he is an expert in giving gifts. In addition to understanding some Japanese customs and taboos about gifts, he also knows that the best gifts must have the following characteristics.
First, the best gift should be something that the recipient wants or likes.
Two, the best gifts are unexpected and surprising.
Three, the best gifts can reflect sincerity and kindness.
Fourth, the best gift should be something that is not vulgar in style.
5. The best gift will not exceed your financial ability and corresponding budget planning.
Secondly, in addition to the tasks that Ning Weimin has to shoulder when he comes back this time, in addition to opening branches of Tan Palace Restaurant in Kyoto and Osaka as soon as possible, he also has the task of further promoting "Dream of Red Mansions" in Japan.
So this time he not only brought back thirty carefully selected employees as the vanguard, but also asked these employees to use trolley suitcases to transport a large number of handicrafts with the theme of "Dream of Red Mansions" for him. , and a suitcase of panda souvenir sheets and panda stamps that Yin Yue purchased at 30% of the price.
In addition, Ning Weimin also obtained domestic authorization. Before leaving Japan, he had already asked the Japanese printing house to print 20,000 sets of the Japanese version of the "Dream of Red Mansions" comic strip, and also had A Japanese audio-visual product factory recorded 10,000 sets of "Dream of Red Mansions" video tapes.
So in this way, he has enough gifts of different grades, full of exotic sentiments and cultural atmosphere to solve this problem.
You know, not only do Japanese people generally like craft gifts, but also in Japan, whether they are video tapes or books, they are very valuable things. One video tape sells for 15,000 yen. Eighteen video tapes with the length of thirty-six episodes of the "Dream of Red Mansions" TV series are recorded, and the total price is 270,000 yen.
In terms of comic books, Ning Weimin took into account the reading habits of Japanese people and re-typed the 16 volumes of "Dream of Red Mansions" from the 1980 edition of "Shangmei" under the name of Huiwentang Bookstore. It was printed in a large two-volume format through a small printing house in Tokyo, with a total price of 4,800 yen for the hardcover edition.
These two things alone are enough for him to meet most of the needs of returning gifts and giving gifts.
(Japanese version of "Dream of Red Mansions" comic book cover)
(Inside page of the Japanese version of the comic strip "A Dream of Red Mansions")
As a Chinese businessman, Ning Weimin chose such a gift that is full of Chinese culture and is suitable for both refined and popular tastes. It is definitely a clever way to get the best of both worlds. choice.
Whether it is used as a gift to your subordinates, as a gift to your partners, or to impress those high-ranking figures, it can be just right and not cliché. effect.
Not to mention that there are silk figures, porcelain, glass lamps, various toys, round fans, incense fans, paper umbrellas, and purses as effective supplements, which can be made according to the status of the other party and the thickness of the gift. Make appropriate adjustments accordingly.
Even if it is slightly lacking in practicality, it doesn’t matter, because don’t forget that Ning Weimin also has Tan Gong Restaurant.
He also brought a lot of people from the capital. Now that the branch has not yet opened, they are all used to assist with gifts.
Get some pastry gift boxes, get some tea and candy gift boxes, and get some palace cake gift boxes, with your own packaged sour plum soup, rose dew, and "Dream of Red Mansions" and "Jinling Twelve Hairpins" On the surface, envelope-packed jasmine tea, chrysanthemum tea, and Chinese wine effectively make up for this shortcoming.
Not only that, what he did actually highlighted the cultural heritage of the big IP of Red Mansion, making it look more and more dazzling with gifts and decent scenery.
It must be said that China has a long history of culture and art, and its praise by the world is not in vain.
Ning Weimin can achieve the unique, elegant, exquisite and unexpected effects of a gift by just using one of the four famous works and randomly picking up one or two hands.
It makes social problems that are originally difficult to deal with easier, and it is even possible to gain a lot of favor from others through this matter, which will have a positive promotion effect on your career.
After all, he is used to many Japanese people being dissatisfied with their true virtues.
Just like Dan Gong Restaurant, there will always be Japanese customers who complain to the waiters because of their preconceptions.
"The taste of this Mapo Tofu is wrong? Why is it so spicy? It's not sweet at all?"
The waiter replied, "This is a traditional Chinese way of making it, it is different from the Japanese way. ”
The guest chewed, "It doesn't taste good..."
Chew chewed, still in a disgusting tone, "It really doesn't taste good, it's too spicy..."
Took a sip of ice. water, then chewed it and stuffed it with another mouthful.
As a result, next time I come, I will order this dish and eat it without fail.
What's more, China's labor is too cheap, but the art technology is extremely mature. This advantage is reflected in handicrafts, which is a big killer that sweeps away everything.
Things like utensils, silk and sandalwood fans, and embroidered uchiwa fans are considered by the Japanese to be valuable luxuries.
But the fact is that these gifts are very cheap, regardless of the external price tag.
When we come to Ning Weimin, the average cost of the things he brought from China is really not high.
For example, the traditional Japanese handicraft "Ningyo" is a doll made of clay, paper, wood and other materials.
This kind of puppet is very similar to a silk figure, but it is expensive.
The cheapest one costs 10,000 yen or 20,000 yen, and the most expensive one costs more than 100,000 yen, or even hundreds of thousands of yen.
However, the production cost of the silk figures brought by Ning Weimin was only five or six hundred yen for a small one, and only one or two thousand yen for a large one.
Ten thousand yen is enough for the ex-factory price of a set of silk figures with twelve gold hairpins. Where is the difference?
If he sends such a gift to the Japanese, then do we need to explain how the Japanese feel?
The standards for measuring value are completely opposite.
(Traditional Japanese dolls called "Ningyo")
In fact, for Ning Weimin, among all the gifts, I am afraid that the most expensive ones are the video tapes and books made in Japan, but the cost is also It’s only 20 to 30% of the selling price.
So even from the most philistine perspective, Ning Weimin has made a lot of money.
No one would have thought that this guy would even give gifts in a speculative way.
Through the Ghost Festival, he actually made a small business just by giving and receiving gifts, making a profit of no less than ten million yen, which is also an anomaly.
And this is still a little guy.
Ning Weimin not only delivers it himself, he also sells it, just like he once did at the Japanese cultural festival. He also printed the "Chinese-style Chinese" slogan at the Huibundang Bookstore in the Azabu area. The promotion banner "Yuan Traditional Gifts" has been specially displayed in the store with one or two long cases of samples, including various Chinese handicrafts and Chinese pastries, candies and snack gift boxes.
Even before the Ghost Festival, which lasted less than a week, we actually took advantage of the right time and location to sell more than 20 million yen in goods. We finally did not miss this business opportunity.
What’s even more surprising is that “Dream of Red Mansions” took advantage of it without even doing any publicity.
The just-published "Dream of Red Mansions" comic strip has also sold more than 600 copies due to the increase in customer traffic, which is quite surprising.
If we look at it objectively, in fact, the Ebuntang Bookstore, which was located in one of Tokyo's downtown business districts, already had a small status in the hearts of Japanese people in Tokyo who loved Chinese culture.
And because this is not just a place selling Chinese books and handicrafts, you can also taste Chinese tea, pastries and candies that are rare in Japan.
In fact, the business model here has already broken through the original plan of a literary cafe or teahouse designed by Ning Weimin, and has become a window that can truly promote Chinese culture.
Not only are there more and more customers coming here, but also the number of repeat customers is increasing day by day. Not only are there greedy customers who want to buy the Chinese pastries and tea they have read about in books.
There are also cultural scholars and college students who specialize in studying Chinese culture. They hope that the bookstore can help them purchase some books published in mainland China.
If we look at the prospects of the store, the existence of Huiwentang Bookstore is no longer dispensable.
Profit has also become the leader among most bookstores in Japan that are still losing money. It even has the unique resource of importing books from mainland China, which has allowed it to resume part of its publishing business.
It should be said that achieving the current effect is not only a clever move made by Ning Weimin unintentionally, but also stems from the poor cultural exchanges in this era. It stems from the five thousand years of Chinese culture. The unique charm accumulated over the years.
Unconsciously, Ning Weimin already had a small bridgehead in Japan's cultural front. God knows how far he can go in the future with the help of this bookstore. (End of this chapter)