svetikya Chapter 36 Counterfeit Factory
Chapter 36 Counterfeit Factory
After leaving the police station, Chen Fan found a place to chat with Chen Tianyi about how to deal with counterfeit goods and how to avoid potential legal problems as much as possible.
With the money in place, Chen Tianyi did not show any professional discrimination; on the contrary, he answered questions in great detail.
All counterfeit goods involve issues such as intellectual property rights, unfair competition, and copyright infringement. Chen Tianyi's statement leans more towards the method of obtaining a lighter sentence after going to court.
However, this was enough for Chen Fan. He dealt in counterfeit goods because this industry was most suitable for people involved in illegal activities. It was a quick way to make money, and he could later transform into his own brand. He would first use other people's well-known products to gain brand recognition, and then launch his own brand.
As long as the quality is good, consumers will definitely buy it.
Big brands, unless it's a custom order, are basically just harvesting韭菜 (a metaphor for exploiting consumers). In 30 or 40 years, a certain international brand will be able to lead the trend with its plastic bags. Just put a piece of unused transparent tape on your hand, and it costs only a few dollars to produce, but it will sell for thousands. The key is that there are still idiots who buy it.
I don't know if this is money laundering or a decline in aesthetic standards.
Chen Fan also had to admit just how much money he could make by owning a major brand.
In 83, the counterfeit market on Hong Kong Island had not yet been completely divided up by those triads, so he still had a chance to get in. He was determined to get a piece of the pie no matter what!
"Brother Fan, that lawyer is fucking expensive."
As soon as Chen Tianyi drove away and disappeared down the street, Ahua couldn't help but complain.
"There's a reason why it's expensive. Didn't you see how he berated those cops like they were quails?"
"Tomorrow, send him another vase with an intrinsic value of 100,000 yuan as a proper thank you, and also remind him to pay more attention to the complaint from earlier."
Having been subjected to a scolding for no reason, Chen Fan was extremely angry. If he didn't vent his dissatisfaction, where would his pride be?
Besides, if you're going to put on an act, you might as well go all the way. He's a hotshot in the underworld right now, one of the "Ten Outstanding Young Persons" that the police are watching. Even if he gets arrested, he can still get bail out by a barrister. If he doesn't file a strong complaint now, what if he's accused of being an undercover agent?
"An intrinsic value of 100,000?" Ahua asked, puzzled. "Brother Fan, where do you get this thing?"
"A vase isn't just for holding flowers; you can use it as a chamber pot if you want."
"Oh, I understand!"
Ahua suddenly realized.
I learned something new!
"If you need bail or legal proceedings in the future, just ask him."
"You get what you pay for. The triad's hired lawyers are only useful for their licenses. In front of the police, they're just gangsters in lawyer's clothes. They have no deterrent effect. The complaint letters these people write are no different from waste paper."
Chen Tianyi had also handled many cases for some triad bosses and was quite famous in the underworld. Asking him to bail out his underlings who had committed crimes was a bit expensive and was seen as a great injustice by other triads, but it was a different story in the eyes of the person being bailed out.
Only by being willing to spend money on his underlings can he win people's hearts.
To thrive in the world of gangsters, you need plenty of brothers.
Back in his own territory, before he could even sit down, Jimmy immediately came over, carrying two bulging folders.
"Brother Fan, this is the information I've compiled from the shoe, clothing, bag, tape, and even food factories I've visited over the past few days. I've also learned about the production and sales process of counterfeit goods."
"You're quite ambitious."
Chen Fan finally understood why Jimmy was widely recognized as a tool in Hong Kong variety show business.
Such ambitious young people are indeed rare.
Come to think of it, this guy was willing to audit classes at the University of Hong Kong in the movie, which is comparable to a certain drug lord surnamed Lu.
Jimmy scratched his head and explained, "There are quite a few people in Hong Kong who deal in counterfeit goods. Most of them have the support of triads. I actually have the idea of dealing in counterfeit goods, but I don't have the start-up capital and I don't have anyone to protect me."
"It's good to have ideas. Tell me what you know about counterfeit goods."
"Most of the 'A-grade' products on the market are inferior imitations. The clothing, shoes, socks, and bags are far inferior to the genuine products in terms of both craftsmanship and materials."
These goods are mainly concentrated in Women's Street and Sneaker Street, and the price is less than one-tenth of the genuine product. However, their costs are kept very low, and the profit margin is quite large. It's just that it's a one-off sale, and there are few repeat customers.
Chen Fan nodded slightly in agreement. It's normal that there are no unified standards in the current A-grade market and the quality varies. As it develops, A-grade products will form specific quality levels, such as super A-grade, A-grade, B-grade, and C-grade.
So-called "super A grade" products are produced on the same production line as genuine products. However, when the brand owner sells them, they are genuine products, but when others sell them, they are labeled as A grade products.
Of course, some OEM factories produce "super A" grade counterfeit goods that are even better in quality than the genuine products.
The quality of counterfeit A-grade products is quite high. Some factories with better craftsmanship can make them so realistic that they are indistinguishable from the real thing. Some brand stores even sell A-grade products, which is comparable to selling dog meat under the guise of mutton.
It got even more outrageous with the rise of e-commerce. First-tier cities would ship genuine products, second and third-tier cities would ship a mix of genuine and counterfeit products, and smaller cities would ship only counterfeit products.
The craftsmanship and quality of B-grade and C-grade goods need to be further reduced, and the prices are also low, following the strategy of small profits and quick turnover.
To put it bluntly, they're all drawn to that brand.
Jimmy continued, "Brother Fan, if we have a factory, it's not actually that difficult to handle counterfeit goods. I'm confident that I can get everything from production to sales sorted out within a month, and then we can sit back and wait for the money to come to us."
To produce counterfeit goods, you only need to focus on the best-selling products on the market, spend some money to buy one or two samples, and find two craftsmen to disassemble them to obtain the blueprints. The only difference is that the materials may be different from the genuine products.
With the money in place, Jimmy didn't even need a month.
Chen Fan patted the two folders and said, "Let's talk about the factory first. I have high requirements for the quality of the A-grade products. These are just transitional products. We need to build our own brand to make big money in the future."
"Some of these factories are in Kwun Tong, and some are also located in Sha Tin and Sai Kung. I think the better factories are in an industrial building in Kwun Tong, where garment, shoe, and bag factories are all gathered. I heard that they are all owned by one boss."
The other party wants to immigrate abroad, and the production line and raw materials can be sold as a package. The factory has skilled workers who have worked there for at least a year, and there is room for expansion.
As Jimmy spoke, he proactively opened the folder to the corresponding content.
The data was compiled in great detail, including actual photos, factory performance reports, and basic information on long-term employees who had worked there for more than five years.
Finally, there was the valuation of the factories. The total value of all the assets of the three factories was $2.5 million, which is equivalent to 15 million at an exchange rate of 6 yuan.
It was only mid-March 1983, and the Hong Kong dollar was not yet pegged to the US dollar. This exchange rate system would not be implemented until October, after the Black Saturday incident in September. Therefore, it was still a floating exchange rate system at that time.
"Go talk to him and see if he'll accept the two million dollars. Also, find out from the employees whether the boss owes them any wages. I don't want to take over the business and have to pay his employees' wages."
It would be best to have someone check if these factories are mortgaged to banks. Otherwise, we'll just take over the properties, and then the banks will come and seize the factories, leaving that bastard boss pocketing both sides and managing to escape with millions – a huge loss.