Chapter 67 Going on Sale

"This is impossible!"

Hearing Li Dongling's words, Ning Wengke immediately said, "Ning's Trading Company has to cover the costs of tariffs, warehousing, promotion, publicity, public relations, and more. If the profit margin is only 20%, our final profit will simply be far too low!"

Looking at the resolute Ning Wengke, Li Dongling said to her, "If both sides reach an agreement, what Ning's will act as an agent for in the future will not be limited to just the Silver Marten mouse. The agency rights for Dongling Hi-Tech's other products in places like Hong Kong will also be handed over to Ning's Trading Company!"

Establishing direct-operated stores and laying out sales channels is a long-term endeavor that requires massive investment. In the short term—or rather, within the next three to five years—Dongling Hi-Tech can at most establish some directly managed stores domestically, leaving overseas expansion reliant solely on the distributor model.

To give a direct example: why have the seven major Hollywood film companies thrived for decades, remaining firmly at the top while countless other film manufacturers emerged only to eventually end up dependent on them for survival? The crucial factor is the distribution system!

When a film company produces a movie, it is impossible for them to approach cinemas one by one; they need a distributor. A distributor can enable a movie to premiere simultaneously in hundreds or thousands of cinemas across dozens of regions worldwide on the very same day.

However, that is merely the first step for a distributor. Simply getting a movie screened in theaters is not enough; subsequently, the distributor will have films manufactured into videotapes and discs for sale. This stage can generate even greater profits than the theatrical release itself.

Even if a movie loses money during its theatrical run, those losses can potentially be recouped through the distribution of videotapes and discs. Following discs comes licensing the film to pay-TV channels, and then to free-TV channels, earning yet another share of the advertising revenue.

If a production company relied solely on finding cinemas for screenings by themselves, they might only earn a single dollar, but with a distribution company, they could bring back fifty dollars, or even a hundred dollars when factoring in subsequent merchandise and the like. Even in the internet age, offline distribution channels could never be completely replaced.

In the future, Dongling Hi-Tech will definitely build its own sales channels. Even in the e-commerce era, offline storefronts remain among the most crucial assets—let alone right now. With powerful promotional and distribution channels, even a terrible movie can secure hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office, and a piece of scrap iron could be sold for massive orders.

Ning Wengke shook her head, already preparing to stand up and leave. If the Silver Marten mouse were a blockbuster product, that would be one thing. A 20% commission—even if it ended up as a mere 10% or even less in the hands of Ning's Trading Company—could still yield substantial earnings based on massive sales volume.

Yet right now, the Mechanical Silver Marten mouse was not an irreplaceable item. In regions like Hong Kong, its reputation exceeded its actual sales. Acting as an agent solely for the Silver Marten mouse felt like there was truly no money to be made, and she might even end up losing the agency fee in the process.

Seeing her expression, Li Dongling glanced at Yao Luoying, who retrieved an exquisitely packaged gift box and placed it in front of Ning Wengke.

"This is 'one' of Dongling Hi-Tech's new products. President Ning should take a look before making a decision!"

Having already pushed herself slightly upright, Ning Wengke looked at the gift box before her, hesitated for a moment, and sat back down.

The digital pet machine had a factory pre-sale price of 15 US dollars for Dongling Hi-Tech, which translated to one hundred and twenty RMB. With such a high price point, the packaging naturally could not be crude.

Unwrapping the gift box, Ning Wengke saw the digital pet machine inside. Aside from the instruction manual, it also included two spare button cell batteries.

At first glance, Ning Wengke couldn't help but pick it up. After reading the manual, figuring out how to power it on, and entering the main interface, just like Yao Luoying the other day, she lifted her head only to realize that several dozen minutes had already passed.

Rubbing her sore eyes, she noted that the digital pet machine's screen was only 1.5 inches in size. As someone whose business was running a trading agency, Ning Wengke possessed the most basic judgment regarding whether a product was good or not!

The item in her hands—could it become a blockbuster? Ning Wengke wasn't certain yet, but she was clear on one thing: this gadget would definitely sell, and it might even prove immensely popular among young people!

Ning Wengke's background meant she had been exposed to far richer material conditions than the average girl. Yet even she—someone accustomed to luxury goods and refined living—had just been sucked in effortlessly, let alone anyone else.

"Ning's Trading Company is willing to act as the agent for the digital pet machine and can accept a profit share of just 20%. Including the Silver Marten mouse, Ning's Trading Company is willing to offer an agency fee of 9.2 million Hong Kong dollars. This is the maximum agency fee Ning's Trading can provide while retaining sufficient working capital.

However, Ning's Trading Company must secure the three-year exclusive agency rights from Dongling Hi-Tech for future markets in Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, and elsewhere!"

Ning Wengke possessed a decisive and swift personality. Once she made up her mind, she held no further hesitation and directly laid down her biggest bargaining chip.

"Deal!"

After a brief, low-voiced consultation with Yao Luoying, Hu Zixian, and others, Li Dongling said to Ning Wengke, "However, Ning's Trading must join Dongling Hi-Tech in investing a sufficient amount of promotional funds for the digital pet machine!"

Ning Wengke agreed without the slightest hesitation. "I need to take a batch of prototype units back with me to distribute to distributors!"

At this point, any thoughts of a vacation vanished from Ning Wengke's mind entirely. Her sole focus was returning to Hong Kong immediately, contacting various distributors, initiating preparations for the digital pet machine's publicity campaign, and subsequently filling the sales channels.

"Dongling Hi-Tech must guarantee the timely supply of products!"

Before leaving, Ning Wengke did not forget to instruct Dongling Hi-Tech. The technical barrier for digital pet machines was not high; once promoted and genuinely popular, knockoffs and pirated copies would inevitably emerge. Large-scale distribution had to begin at the very first moment.

When Ning Wengke left, she was in far greater haste than when she had arrived. Before boarding her flight in the provincial capital, she even called the Hong Kong trading company to instruct them to begin contacting various channel distributors.

Following the partnership with Ning's Trading, every department across the entire Dongling Hi-Tech enterprise began buzzing with activity, and the Dongling Hi-Tech Electronic Industrial Park went into full throttle to manufacture digital pet machines.

When Li Dongling arrived at the industrial park, the site was already a scene of bustling fervor. Multiple construction crews were building the industrial park's office towers, residential buildings, activity centers, and more. Meanwhile, inside the temporary workshops, production lines had commenced round-the-clock, three-shift operations.

"What is our daily production output now?" Li Dongling asked Gao Peng, who was temporarily managing the industrial park.

In the future, the electronic industrial park would certainly need to recruit professional managers to run its operations, but for now, it could only be temporarily overseen by Dongling Hi-Tech executives. Not only Gao Peng, but Yao Luoying, Hu Zixian, Zhang Ao, and others would also frequently drop by to help out.

"The current daily output of digital pet machines is 7,000 units, and the production lines are still being expanded. If all lines go into full operation this week, the daily output is expected to reach around 15,000 units. Over at the warehouse, we already have nearly 300,000 units in stock!"

With dark circles under his eyes, Gao Peng reported to Li Dongling. During this period, he had basically lived at the industrial park, handling various issues to ensure the normal operation of the production lines.

"Still not enough!"

Li Dongling looked at Gao Peng. "We need to increase production capacity further. Before the digital pet machine officially goes on sale, the daily output must be raised to at least over 30,000 units!"

"Thirty thousand?!"

Gao Peng was startled. At that rate of production, within a month, the warehouse would be piled high with millions of digital pet machines—just hearing the number sounded terrifying.

"It might still not be enough," Li Dongling said, shaking his head as he watched the busy production lines.

In Japan, Bandai, one of the world's largest toy giants, was holding a conference call. President Makoto Yamashina of Bandai's second generation was listening as Bandai executives from all over the world continuously reported various "bad omens"—yes, not a single piece of good news!

"The Pinpin game console, co-developed in partnership with Apple, currently has global sales of fewer than 40,000 units, with over 460,000 units sitting as backlog inventory in the warehouse. If we can't sell them, the estimated direct losses will exceed 170 million US dollars!"

The executive in charge of Bandai's gaming console business spoke the sentence with a trembling voice.

Ever since Makoto Yamashina succeeded his father, Naoharu Yamashina, to become the second-generation head of Bandai, he had been unsatisfied with Bandai remaining solely in the toy and anime industries. Harboring fierce ambitions for the gaming console industry, he pushed forward.

This Pinpin game console was developed jointly by Bandai and the renowned Apple. As a result, Makoto Yamashina poured vast sums of money in, only to produce this catastrophic piece of junk. Setting aside whether this product would become a black mark in Apple's history, what gave Makoto Yamashina a headache right now was that because of this product, Bandai's revenue had directly cratered by 8%, with losses exceeding 15.6 million US dollars—setting the worst performance record in Bandai's history.

Misfortune never comes singly; the toy business, which had always provided Bandai with a stable cash flow, also began failing to sell. In the Americas alone, revenue dropped by 200 million dollars.

With the gaming console suffering a crushing defeat and toys failing to move, Bandai's financial performance slumped, causing its stock price to plummet accordingly. Voices expressing dissatisfaction with Makoto Yamashina and demanding his resignation grew louder by the day, with even Bandai's first-generation head, Naoharu Yamashina, expressing his displeasure with him.

Hastily ending the conference call, Makoto Yamashina covered his face with his hands, feeling a profound sense of exhaustion. If Bandai's performance did not pick up soon, the issue wouldn't simply be whether he stepped down or not—whether the Yamashina family could hold onto Bandai at all would become a question.

The Yamashina family's equity in Bandai had dwindled to just 10%. If Bandai's stock price fell any further, Makoto Yamashina might genuinely be driven out of the company his own family had built.

"President Makoto Yamashina, this is a trading company from Hong Kong wanting to partner with us to act as a sales agent for a new product!"

The office door pushed open, and an assistant walked in, placing a digital pet machine right in front of Makoto Yamashina.

Looking at the digital pet machine before him, Makoto Yamashina—who had never held much interest in toys—simply glanced at it. Seeing its plastic-molded casing and observing its simple gameplay, he instantly lost interest and said dismissively, "Have the marketing department handle it!"

Inside a large shopping mall in Hong Kong, it happened to be Sunday, and countless families had crowded into the mall, bringing their children along. The mall was bustling with activity, but the most lively area by far was undoubtedly the counter section selling toys and snacks.