Selling clothes in reverse?

Some ideas flashed through Chen Xiliang’s mind, but they moved too quickly for him to grasp.

“Have someone wear your clothes for magazine covers. Audiences love actresses like Jiang Lili. You could find a handsome male actor, give him your coat to wear, or directly sponsor fashion magazines like ‘Fashion’ for their cover shoots. Provide the coats for free and let the magazines choose – no matter which male actor they use, you won’t lose out.”

After all, wasn’t fashion guided by the “fashion circle”?

In the early 1980s, although China’s fashion circle was sparse, it wasn’t completely barren. Local fashion magazines like “Fashion” had been publishing for several years, and magazines like “Popular Cinema” often featured male and female stars on their covers. The clothing worn by leading actors in hit shows typically led to trends. Even in later years, professional models remained human mannequins for displaying fashion items, but it was still the more familiar celebrities who made certain pieces go viral among the general public.

Xia Xiaolan’s words opened a new world for Chen Xiliang. “Advertising? You mean advertising?”

Advertising wasn’t anything new, at least not in Yangcheng where it was commonly seen. However, among all the clothing factories in Yangcheng, while everyone was studying what would be popular next year, no one had thought about “dictating” trends from the source.

“It’s similar to advertising, but not as direct, and it won’t cost as much.”

Chen Xiliang muttered, “What if the magazines don’t want our clothes? And male actors won’t follow our ideas…”

Magazines and actors were far removed from Chen Xiliang’s world as a small wholesaler. Magazines like “Fashion” were Chen Xiliang’s study “bibles,” and asking him to suddenly shift from worshipping these “bibles” to changing their content made him hesitate.

Xia Xiaolan rolled her eyes at him. “Of course, you’ll need to put in effort and pay some compensation. You’re not short on money! But how much stock did you hold back?”

Chen Xiliang was a clothing wholesaler, and Xia Xiaolan wasn’t sure how much wealth he had accumulated by 1984, but it was certainly more than her small individual business that had only been dealing in clothes for a few months.

In later years, a clothing wholesaler like Chen Xiliang couldn’t dream of hiring male stars of Jiang Lili’s caliber for promotion. Using future terms, Jiang Lili was the “National Sweetheart” of the 80s, and her male counterparts would be “National Heartthrobs.” Thirty years later, these heartthrobs’ fees would be calculated in tens of millions, with popular idols’ annual income easily exceeding listed companies’ yearly profits… But now, in ’84, most male and female actors were on salaries. How much did they make per film? Did they even earn a thousand yuan?

National sweethearts like Jiang Lili might not even be worth as much as Xia Xiaolan.

Actors hadn’t learned to monetize their fame yet. Those brave enough to do advertisements only charged one or two thousand yuan.

Even if you threw money at them, how much could such “advertising” cost when actors didn’t need to vouch for product quality? Just wearing Chen Xiliang’s clothes for photos – Xia Xiaolan personally thought that coat looked quite good, and though expensive, it would sell in Shangdu. If a male actor wore it on the cover of “Fashion” or “Popular Cinema,” no matter how much stock Chen Xiliang had, it would likely sell out.

Xia Xiaolan was just curious – how much stock could a small wholesaler like Chen Xiliang have of the same style? Maybe a few hundred pieces at most?

Xia Xiaolan’s wholesale price was 70 yuan, and Chen Xiliang still had his profit margin. Yes, several hundred men’s wool coats would still cost tens of thousands of yuan, making it worth Chen Xiliang’s effort to secure a fashion magazine cover.

After much consideration, Chen Xiliang also thought Xia Xiaolan’s method could work.

It was too late to find someone for photos now, and Chen Xiliang needed time to connect with male actors. It was already mid-February, and even getting on next month’s magazine covers would be too late – who would buy wool coats in mid-March?

This strategy could be used at year’s end.

Or perhaps they didn’t need to wait until year-end; they could try it earlier with different styles!

Chen Xiliang’s heart was racing. If this worked, it could be a huge money-maker. Many profitable ideas weren’t difficult – it was just a matter of who thought of them first. Chen Xiliang’s expression turned strange:

“Sister Xia, this idea is worth more than a pile of magazines. You’re just giving it to me so easily?”

If it were someone else, Chen Xiliang would have happily taken the idea without guilt – they just wanted some magazines in exchange, fair trade!

But Xia Xiaolan wasn’t just anyone. He hadn’t even figured out her background yet. Last time, the person she brought in had intimidated even Ko Yixiong. Chen Xiliang knew he wasn’t as capable as Old Ko, so why should a small business owner try to compete with Sister Xia? Better to do honest business and be content with whatever benefits came his way.

Xia Xiaolan finished counting the magazines. “Of course my idea is valuable. Once you master one method, you can apply it everywhere. It’s not just about those stockpiled men’s wool coats. Mr. Chen, I’m looking for long-term cooperation. If you do well, everyone benefits, right?”

Xia Xiaolan had only heard that the clothing business was profitable before, but only after getting involved did she understand how it made money.

She wasn’t satisfied with just running a small clothing store. If Chen Xiliang could grow from a small wholesaler into a clothing mogul, why couldn’t she? However, she still had to attend school, and universities were strict about attendance – they wouldn’t let her miss classes week after week. Xia Xiaolan wanted to roll up her sleeves and start her own business, but she’d have to wait until she finished her four years of university.

Until then, she could only keep accumulating capital. With Chen Xiliang charging ahead on the front lines, Xia Xiaolan could follow behind and pick up the benefits. If she didn’t properly equip Commander Chen, it might take until the millennium – over a decade later – for him to become a mogul. For Xia Xiaolan, that would be far too late!

Xia Xiaolan didn’t propose investing right now.

If Chen Xiliang tasted success and kicked her aside, then this person wouldn’t be worth long-term cooperation.

Whether Chen Xiliang would repeat history and appear on another legal program was none of Xia Xiaolan’s concern.

People change constantly, and at least for now, Old Chen still had some conscience, repeatedly saying, “This is a huge help, I’ll remember it.”

The grateful Old Chen recommended many spring styles to Xia Xiaolan.

“At this time, not many wholesalers in Yangcheng can get spring styles. Many factories haven’t even started work after the New Year – where would they get stock?”

Not only were factories not operating, but those street vendors weren’t doing business either. No matter how good Chen Xiliang’s goods were, Xia Xiaolan couldn’t get all her stock from just one place. She selected goods worth over eight thousand, settled the extra payment Chen Xiliang had advanced before the New Year, and Chen Xiliang took her to several colleagues’ places where she selected another ten thousand worth of goods.

This time, Xia Xiaolan took twenty thousand worth of clothes in total.

Still focusing on women’s wear, for men’s clothing she took shirts and western-style trousers. Her account originally had 29,800 yuan, minus the 2,000 yuan renovation fee advanced to Liu Yong, leaving 27,800 yuan. After settling the 5,000 yuan extra payment to Chen Xiliang from before the New Year, and taking this batch of goods, only about two thousand remained in the account. But Xia Xiaolan wasn’t worried – she couldn’t speak for other wholesalers, but at least with Chen Xiliang, owing a few thousand in payments wasn’t a problem.

“Here’s to successful cooperation, Boss Chen!”

Being a sponsor dad had great potential – keep at it, Boss Chen!