The birth of the Hong Kong Island family

At the end of the year, Cheung Kong Industries, Global Shipping, and Yangtze Industries (sales department) simultaneously moved into the Crocodile T-shirt Building.

The Crocodile Shirt Building has 16 floors and a ground floor. The Global Building has offices on the 15th and 16th floors. Cheung Kong Industries has offices on the 13th and 14th floors. The offices of Cheung Kong Industries (Sales Department), Uniqlo Clothing Company, and Doll Noodles are on the 12th floor.

In other words, if your own company rents a five-story office building, you will of course have to pay rent; 30% of the other eight-story office buildings are owned by overseas companies.

At 8:30 in the morning, Lin Zhichao came to Global Shipping. He did not enter the office directly, but did a patrol.

"Boss, morning"

"morning"

Everyone is in good spirits. After all, they have moved into a first-class Grade A office building, and they are all in a comfortable mood.

Lin Zhichao came to the 'Information Command Center', where there were four staff members. In fact, this information hub center was in operation 24 hours a day, and there were always people on duty.

"Is there any problem with the wireless signal?"

"No problem, all ships have confirmed their signals."

After receiving a satisfactory answer, Lin Zhichao left and returned to the office.

Through the window, you can still see Central and Victoria Harbor clearly. After all, there are not many high-rise buildings in Central, and the sixteen-storey building already has a very high view.

Who would have thought that in another twenty years, such a building would have been submerged in Central and become one of the inconspicuous buildings. Of course, the value has risen with the tide, reaching a terrible point.

Comfortable!

He likes to stand on tall buildings and look down, with a broad view.

Lin Zhichao returned to his office in a good mood. This office was only about 300 square feet, which was not very big. After all, the actual area of ​​this floor was only 7,000 square feet.

"Boss, I heard from Manager Wang that there are more and more second-hand ships for sale in the Gulf of Aden port. There are about two hundred ships, and those with 10,000 tons only cost $60,000. So I want to go and inspect it myself to see if I can You can’t just buy a large batch at once, you have to either dismantle it or keep using it!”

Feng Yongfa walked in and reported a situation.

This matter was still somewhat important, and it was a way to achieve multiple goals with one stone. He would not be reassured until he went to see it in person.

After thinking for a while, Lin Zhichao said: "I think it's feasible! Remember to arrange for the cargo ship to load the goods from the Gulf of Aden and sail back to Indonesia, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and other places when it comes back. This way you can earn more freight. After returning, Dismantle as much as possible, leaving only the better ships to operate.”

Although it is a cold winter for shipping in Europe and the United States, Asia is a new economy after all, and there is always business. The main reason is that there are not many merchant ships in Asia.

Moreover, Lin Zhichao said that dismantling as much as possible is to try not to leave these cheap second-hand ships to competitors, so as not to affect the market after joining the market.

Feng Yongfa also understood what Lin Zhichao meant and said: "Don't worry, boss, I will try my best to select better ships, and then open up more scattered businesses, use them almost, and then dismantle them. Of course, I will also let them have more ships at the ship-breaking yard." Buy some.”

Lin Zhichao said: "The ship-breaking factory can't afford much. It's good to be able to dismantle fifty merchant ships a year. If we can dismantle warships and aircraft carriers, the profits will naturally be higher."

During the seven months of ship dismantling this year, only about 20 ships were dismantled. Of course, this is just a prelude.

Feng Yongfa nodded and said, "Okay, I will go and communicate with Zhongtian Shipbreaking Plant later to get a detailed understanding of the situation. I will come back as soon as possible after inspecting the port conditions."

"Um"

Purchasing ‘vessels to be dismantled’ for Zhongtian Ship Recycling Yard was a smooth process, and more importantly, it was possible to pick out ‘better’ merchant ships.

After all, you only need tens of thousands of dollars to buy a 10,000-ton cargo ship. This will make your money back in two or three trips. You will make a lot of money in two or three years, and you can even send it for dismantling.

At the same time, it can also seize the market in disguise and squeeze out competitors.

As deputy general manager, Feng Yongfa went to the Gulf of Aden port to inspect, which was not overqualified. After all, he would go to the port there several times a year because of which direction the oil was loaded from (Yemen port).

The function of inspecting the port is not only to detect leaks, but also to determine the market situation, because the port is like a barometer, representing the shipping market.

"Jiaxuan Mall, grand opening!"

"New business model clothing, gold store, toys, catering all-in-one, guarantee you a great time!"

As the advertisement spread, the ‘Jiaxuan Shopping Mall’ in the Crocodile Shirt Building also opened grandly on New Year’s Day in 1959!

The advertisement was not very big, it was only placed in the newspaper for three days, because if there were too many people, it would be a troublesome thing; you know, when the "Man Yi Building" opened in Central last year, the people who went to experience Hong Kong's first escalator, It is very crowded and needs to arrange for an elevator master to be on duty.

The Jiaxuan Shopping Mall has only four floors, with seven or eight shops on each floor. It can only be regarded as a mini-mall, with a total of thirty shops.

"Lin Sheng, congratulations!"

On the opening day, we still had to invite some guests and friends to come and support us. Everyone inadvertently showed an expression of envy. After all, such a building is already worth a lot of money. Not many of the top ten real estate developers in Hong Kong are willing to invest. After all, this is a rental property, and it will take seven or eight years to repay the capital, which is very tight on funds.

"Lin Sheng, you are indeed the most innovative in the real estate industry. You have opened shops on the second, third and basement floors. The rent is several times that of an office building!" Hu Zhaochi, a veteran Shunde businessman, said with a hearty smile.

Hu Zhaochi is a trading and real estate businessman, and he is also investing in the hotel industry; of course, he has a very famous son, that is the eldest son Hu Baoxing, who is one of the founders of the famous "Woo, Kwan, Lee, Law Firm" in Hong Kong. Many wealthy people's lawyers have also achieved success in business. The real estate company that Lee Shau Kee cooperates with is called 'Wingtai Construction'.

"Mr. Hu, you have given me a reward, please come here!" Lin Zhichao said enthusiastically.

Although he doesn't really engage in a 'small circle' culture - he only makes friends with Shunde people, since he is from the same hometown, he must be somewhat enthusiastic.

"Lin Sheng, congratulations, this building is so beautiful!" Later, Liao Baoshan also came to congratulate.

"Liao Sheng, you are in good spirits!" Lin Zhichao greeted.

He and Liao Baoshan were true friends. Of course, although they had a good relationship, Lin Zhichao would not have been a good person if it was the 1961 bankruptcies. Liao Baoshan borrowed money from him, up to 10 million Hong Kong dollars, and the interest was calculated. In his previous life, it is said that all of Liao Baoshan's friends lent him 30 million, but it was still insufficient. HSBC and Standard Chartered lent him another 30 million. What is important is the statement of HSBC and Standard Chartered, which has a greater 'guarantee' effect. Otherwise, of the 100 million deposit, at least 80 million will have to be withdrawn.

Even if someone as close as Li Gaofu encounters a financial crisis, Lin Zhichao will only borrow money at an appropriate level.

The loss is deserved, and this is the lesson to be learned.

Those who came to participate in the opening were all real estate friends. Not many people were invited. After all, it was just a small project.

After the ribbon-cutting, everyone went in to visit one after another. At the same time, there was also a lot of foot traffic. There are staff next to the escalators on the three floors to avoid accidents.

A family of three followed the flow of people to visit the "Jiaxuan Shopping Mall". When they arrived on the underground floor, there were shops selling crafts and industrial products.

The son said in surprise: "Bond toy, that's an electric train!"

With this shout, the parents were dragged in for a walk. As a result, the couple could only satisfy their son's wishes.

On the next floor, there are brands such as 'Crocodile Shirt' and 'Chow Tai Fook', and the couple also purchased clothing and jewelry respectively.

Next, on the second floor, there are still clothing, shoe stores, and watch stores. The woman bought another piece of clothing.

The grade of these stores corresponds to the shopping level of white-collar and blue-collar workers in Hong Kong. There are neither high-end foreign brands nor cheap brands.

When they arrived on the third floor, the family of three felt hungry, so they walked into a wonton noodle shop and had a feast. There are also bakeries, Cantonese restaurants, and tea restaurants on this floor. These people originally moved in to attract investment, but they made a lot of verbal promises, such as that office employees would eat here and so on.

Every level has something to gain. A family of three ate it and walked around for a while before returning home with a full load.

On that day, the customer flow of Jiaxuan Mall was very sufficient, and it could even be said that it was overcrowded. Many tenants were smiling; especially the tenants in the basement, second and third floors. Their prices were originally cheap, but now the customer flow is so high, how could they be unhappy? reason.

Of course, Lin Zhichao is also very happy. The high passenger flow means that the rent can be increased next year! Increase rent!

Landlords in Hong Kong have always been very powerful.

Fortune 500 companies tremble in front of them!

The first working day after New Year's Day (1959).

Lin Zhichao is sitting in the office of Cheung Kong Holdings. He is looking at the design sketches of "Patrick Street" and "Triangle Street" in Causeway Bay. There are nine buildings in total, all of which are commercial and residential buildings - shops, offices and residences. The more important ones are the two buildings built in the "Triangle Lot" and the "Patrick Street First Building" opposite it. These are the planned "department store" and "shopping mall". Of course, there are office buildings and residences on top.

The Planning Department has a standard for the commercial area and residential area of ​​this type of land. If it exceeds the standard, there may be some trouble - to pay more.

At the same time, buildings in this era are generally 17 floors high and no more than 20 floors high. This is due to construction costs and planning; so in the 21st century, if you look at the satellite map, you will see that there are buildings in Wan Chai, Causeway Bay, and Kowloon. There are a large number of 17- to 20-story buildings, all of which were built in the 1950s and 1960s and are more than 60 years old.

But regardless of how old these houses are, they are of better quality than new buildings in the Mainland. This is something Lin Zhichao has experienced personally. The steel bars used in Hong Kong buildings are very thick and very dense. Although it is not in an 'earthquake zone', it is in a 'typhoon zone', so all high-rise buildings must withstand typhoons.

"husband!"

There was a sudden 'shout', and Lin Zhichao raised his head with a smile.

"I thought I was at home!"

Tang Caiyun walked into the office with a hint of slyness on her face, and then said with a smile: "I never work at home!"

This is true. Lin Zhichao prohibits himself from working at home, including calling his subordinates to "make soup". At most, he only thinks about some plans in his mind; of course, the most important thing is to spend time with his family.

"Are you getting used to the new office?" Lin Zhichao asked.

In fact, the couple is in the same office.

Cheung Kong Holdings has more than 100 employees, but only has 14,000 square feet of office space. Except for a few core high-level employees who have independent offices, everyone is shared by multiple people.

In this era, a real estate company actually only has a dozen or twenty people. For example, Yangtze River Industrial has more than 100 employees. That is because Yangtze River Industrial is developing large-scale commercial projects, hotel projects, and even Poly construction and stone mining companies.

Therefore, more than a hundred people are not enough, and we are still recruiting staff.

Tang Caiyun said: "Very good!"

As she answered, she added some tea for Lin Zhichao, and then sat in her seat again, also looking at some drawings and plans.

This is Lin Zhichao training Tang Caiyun, so that she can "top" at the critical moment; he also told her in a sideways way, asking her to see and learn more in the company, but not to talk too much, and there cannot be two bosses.

To put it bluntly, even 'nuclear weapons' may not be used, but they cannot be left without them.

"Later, I will inject 30 million from the Yangtze River Industrial Group into the Yangtze River Industrial Group for land acquisition and other funds this year!" Lin Zhichao said casually.

As of now, Yangtze River Industrial Group's on-book liquidity has reached more than 180 million. Last year, Yangtze River Industrial Group expected profits to exceed 90 million, approaching 100 million. Of course, there is also a lot of investment, such as steel plants, overseas zipper factories, equipment procurement, etc. The total investment is almost more than 30 million.

Tang Caiyun said: "Are there few off-the-plan properties for sale this year?"

Generally speaking, Cheung Kong Holdings can solve its funding problems by selling off-the-plan properties.

Lin Zhichao said: "This year, there are only two or three small properties for sale, mainly because the price will be higher next year, and we have sufficient funds, so we can arrange it this way. From next year, we will sell off-the-plan properties, buy land, and invest in Central Commercial Building."

Tang Caiyun also likes to invest in rental properties and said: "Okay"

Afterwards, the couple worked hard, mainly because Lin Zhichao wanted to devote himself to his work. Lin Zhichao personally audits the drawings of every Cheung Kong Holdings project and also inspects the properties.

This situation will have to continue for at least a few years before Lin Zhichao can feel relieved.

Currently, of the five commercial projects of Cheung Kong Holdings in Hong Kong, only the Global Tower has not yet started construction, but the drawings have been almost finalized and construction is expected to start this spring.

Lin Zhichao also wants to invest in two first-class commercial buildings in Central in the next few years and is slowly waiting for opportunities. Of course, forget it about ordinary small and medium-sized buildings. There is no point in investing too much in that thing.

years ago.

Senior executives such as Lin Zhichao and Feng Yongfa came to the Global Maritime Academy for inspection. It is a self-owned three-story industrial building with a small playground. It is not only a teaching building used for training seamen, but also some public libraries and activity rooms. For use by seafarers on leave.

It can be said that it can be seen from here - Global Shipping has a lot of money and bought a 70,000-square-foot piece of land to build a 'Seaman's Home'.

During the inspection, Lin Zhichao raised a question: "Our seafarers' salaries and benefits are the highest in Hong Kong. Why are there still losses of seafarers, especially senior seafarers?"

Everyone suddenly had a bitter smile on their faces and felt aggrieved. This was indeed a very 'serious' problem. Training a seaman and then leaving after three years would result in some loss.

If the contract is signed for five years, it is easy to give people a feeling of "disgust", and the mood of the senior seaman is also very important.

Feng Yongfa, who had just returned from overseas, revealed the key: "Boss, just because our senior seamen are so good, some shipping companies and shipowners have started to poach senior seafarers whose contracts have expired at high prices. After all, no matter how bad they are, , I also hope that there will be a few good senior seamen to support the scene; instead, it will be ordinary seamen, and other shipowners usually recruit those uneven people through the 'ship recommendation hall'."

Lin Zhichao thought that there might be some big shipowners trying to influence the senior seamen of Global Shipping Lines.

After thinking for a while, he said seriously: "The loss of our senior seamen is a loss for the company. Even the loss of those old seamen is also a loss. Therefore, I plan to start a 'staff pension' plan and transfer 10% of each staff member's % of salary is forced to be included in the 'pension system', and then we use the funds in it to invest in shipping, and use money to make money to increase the amount of the pension system. In the end, every seafarer can get it when they retire. A pension.”

All the senior executives showed joy. They were not stupid. This was the boss leading the employees to make money.

Feng Yongfa immediately said: "This plan not only seeks benefits for all employees of Global Shipping Lines, but also retains seafarers and reduces brain drain."

In fact, Global Shipping did not lose many talents, it was just a phenomenon. Now that Lin Zhichao discovered it, he naturally came up with the most suitable plan.

Hong Kong does not have a government pension system. Later generations did have a "mandatory provident fund", but it was still very early.

However, good companies will have their own employee pension systems, mainly to improve employee loyalty. For example, Hengchang Enterprise in later generations was so powerful in trade because it had well cultivated 5,000 very loyal "old ministers". These old ministers not only had a pension system, but even had internal shares.

Lin Zhichao asked all regular seafarers of Global Shipping to pay 10% of their normal salary every month to pay pensions, and then invest in shipping, which is equivalent to giving them shares.

"Okay, let's formulate a detailed strategy later and give the sailors a head start!"

Building such a pension system is a very big deal and must be carried out step by step.