Chapter 258: The Expansion of Carrefour Supermarkets
"A Product That Transcends Eras: The Plastic Bag"
That was the headline on the front page of Oriental Daily this morning. Beneath the headline was a full-color image of an elderly man holding a plastic bag filled with a variety of vegetables.
Beside a newsstand in Admiralty:
"Oriental Daily used color for today's cover? Are they switching to color printing now?" a young woman asked curiously.
"Probably not," a man beside her replied. "Oriental Daily and Honghua Daily both belong to the Post-it King, Yang Wendong. They probably just borrowed the color printing press from their sister paper."
"Oh, I see." The woman nodded. "Have you seen one of these plastic bags?"
"I have. A friend went to Carrefour yesterday," the man replied. "He brought back one of those plastic bags. I tried it out—it's seriously tough. Two people pulling on it couldn't rip it. And you can pour water inside—it won't leak. It's super light too, folds right into your pocket. I asked to borrow it, but my friend wouldn't give it to me."
"He's treating it like a treasure," the woman laughed.
"Exactly. It's so convenient for grocery shopping—no need to carry a bulky basket. And people won't even know you're going to the market."
"Hmm, so it really lives up to the description in the paper." The woman paused for a moment, then said, "It's still early. Why don't we go to Carrefour and pick up a few things—get a plastic bag while we're at it?"
"Sounds good," the man agreed. "I'll grab the bike and take you over."
"Alright," the woman nodded.
Together, they rode to Changxing Plaza on Des Voeux Road, Central.
"There are so many people here! Is there some kind of festival?" the woman asked as she dismounted, seeing the crowd gathered at the entrance of the plaza.
"No, the New Year's coming up, but this is definitely more than usual," the man said. "Probably like us—people saw the news in the paper and rushed over to get one of those plastic bags."
"With this many people, Carrefour's entrance must be even worse," the woman said, starting to worry.
"Everyone wants a bag—we'll just have to squeeze in," the man chuckled. "Let's go take a look."
"Mm."
…
As they'd guessed, the entrance to Carrefour was jam-packed—far busier than usual.
They pushed through the crowd, bought a few daily necessities, and joined the checkout line.
An hour later, the couple walked out of the store, each carrying a plastic bag.
"This is amazing. It's completely transparent, but so strong," the woman said, swinging her bag lightly.
"Must be similar to packing tape—also super tough," the man commented.
"True," the woman nodded. "Too bad Carrefour won't sell more. I would've bought extras to bring home."
"They'll probably become more common soon," the man said after a pause. "Oriental Daily mentioned there are still supply issues. Since they're limited in quantity, Carrefour's not selling them outright.
But once mass production kicks in, I bet everyone will have one."
"And by then, we won't treasure them so much," the woman laughed.
All around them, people who had gotten plastic bags were examining them closely. It seemed most had come for the bags more than the shopping.
…
Inside an office within Carrefour, Yang Wendong stood by the window, watching the crowds outside.
"Not bad. The joint feature in Oriental Daily and Honghua Daily definitely brought a wave of customers to the store," Yang Wendong nodded.
Successful publicity required two elements: strong dissemination channels and a genuinely high-quality product or service.
Right now, Oriental Daily and Honghua Daily had a combined daily circulation of over 20,000 copies. And newspapers weren't just read by buyers—many copies were shared.
With a front-page placement, it was estimated that over 100,000 people would see the feature.
And since the plastic bag was genuinely useful, anyone with the time would be intrigued enough to visit and see for themselves.
Behind him, Liu Huayu laughed and said, "It was smart of you, Mr. Yang Wendong, to set the rule: no selling plastic bags separately—they can only be given with purchases."
"Even if I hadn't said it, you guys would've done the same eventually," Yang Wendong chuckled. "How does today's foot traffic compare to our grand opening last year?"
"It's a little less," Liu Huayu thought for a moment. "Back then, we spent heavily on marketing—newspaper ads, TV commercials, grand discounts—and Changxing Plaza itself brought in big crowds."
"Mm." Yang Wendong nodded. "That's okay. Now that we've got the 'magic' of plastic bags, the shopping experience will improve. Invest in more ads to draw in new customers."
"Understood," Liu Huayu replied.
Yang Wendong asked again, "How's the prep going for the new stores in Admiralty and Causeway Bay?"
In the second half of last year, Yang Wendong had instructed Changxing Real Estate to acquire suitable properties for supermarket use. It had been difficult to find the right site in Central, but Admiralty and Causeway Bay yielded results. Once purchased, renovations began immediately.
By the end of the year, renovations were complete. Now, they were just about ready to open.
"They're all set," Liu Huayu said. "We'll open in three days—just in time for the pre-New Year rush."
"Perfect," Yang Wendong nodded. "The holiday season is the best time to get people used to one-stop shopping. That's our biggest selling point."
"Also," he added, "make sure plastic bags are ready. And speak with the bus association—coordinate to increase bus frequency. Good transportation is the foundation of commercial success."
"Got it. I'll speak with Mr. Huang about it," Liu Huayu replied.
In the months since arriving in Hong Kong, he had come to deeply appreciate how interlinked the various branches of Changxing Group were.
When a new Carrefour location opened, they didn't need to worry about high rents—Changxing Real Estate already had properties ready. In fact, they were acquiring real estate faster than new stores could open.
When it came to advertising, the group had its own newspaper and radio station. And if those weren't enough, they could call on other outlets and even TV stations.
Now even public transit could be aligned. With this level of resource coordination, it was hard for the supermarket to fail.
At noon, Yang Wendong had lunch at a restaurant inside Changxing Plaza, just above the Carrefour store.
Just as Yang Wendong was about to leave, a young woman approached. His bodyguards instantly surrounded her in a flash.
The commotion naturally drew Yang Wendong's attention. Seeing the girl flustered as she was being patted down by the female guards, he walked forward and asked, "You looking for me?"
"Mm~" The woman finally collected herself and pointed to the plastic bag sticking out of Yang Wendong's pocket. "I wanted to ask if you'd sell me that plastic bag."
"You want to buy my plastic bag?" Yang Wendong looked down at his pocket, pulled out the folded bag, and held it up.
He had grabbed a few from downstairs just moments ago, thinking they'd come in handy at home. The large bags, made of stiffer material, didn't fold as discreetly and were quite visible in his pocket.
"Yes." The woman nodded.
"How much are you offering for one?" Yang Wendong asked.
"Ten cents?" she replied tentatively.
"Are you planning to resell these somewhere else?" Yang Wendong asked with a knowing smile.
A smart merchant could instantly recognize the value of a good product. For small-time traders, exploiting information asymmetry was the most profitable tactic. Right now, plastic bags were still riding on that kind of asymmetry.
"Yes," the woman admitted. "My boss wants to buy a bunch of these bags and sell them over in Kowloon."
"Alright then, you can go." Yang Wendong waved her off without asking more.
The fact that these small-scale traders saw value in the plastic bag only confirmed its massive potential. He didn't care about making a quick buck from bulk orders—it would only stimulate Carrefour's popularity further. In that sense, it was a win-win.
…
Three days later, in Causeway Bay.
Yang Wendong brought Su Yiyi and their son to one of the busiest streets in the area.
"Wow, there are more people here than in Central!" Su Yiyi remarked as they walked.
They were surrounded by several bodyguards, which gave them some personal space. Others, however, were shoulder to shoulder.
Yang Wendong chuckled, "That's normal. Causeway Bay is now the top place for shopping and strolling.
Central has lots of commerce too, but it leans more toward office and finance."
"True. This area is much more suitable for regular folks," Su Yiyi nodded. "Then our Carrefour here will do even better, right?"
"It should do just fine," Yang Wendong replied with a smile. "The Causeway Bay Carrefour has two floors—over 30,000 square feet. It's even bigger than the flagship in Central."
In land-starved Central, opening a large supermarket was hard. Even though the property belonged to them, Changxing Plaza couldn't be fully dedicated to a single retailer.
Other areas offered more flexibility. While land in Admiralty and Causeway Bay wasn't exactly cheap, there were still options. That's why Changxing Real Estate had targeted spacious properties during acquisitions.
In the future, when they expanded to Kowloon, they would look at securing entire plots of 100,000 square feet for each store.
Of course, expansion required caution and thorough planning. There was no room for recklessness.
"That's great," Su Yiyi said with a smile. "Then my Yiran's Boutique can follow Carrefour too."
"You already have dozens of shops. No need to stick so closely to Carrefour," Yang Wendong said.
"That won't do," Su Yiyi laughed. "Being next to Carrefour means high foot traffic!"
"Alright, alright." Yang Wendong nodded.
Soon, they arrived at an eight-story building. It wasn't very tall, but the floor space was considerable.
At that moment, Zheng Zhijie, who had been waiting, came forward and said, "Mr. Yang Wendong, when I tried to buy the whole building, the landlord refused. In the end, I could only secure the bottom two floors."
"Location like this? No one wants to sell. Managing to get two floors is already good," Yang Wendong said with a chuckle.
In 1962, Hong Kong real estate prices were already sky-high. Commercial land in Central had exceeded HK$1,000 per square foot—2.5 times the price in 1958—and it was still rising.
Speculation had become rampant. In that climate, few people were willing to part with prime properties.
"Should we head inside?" Zheng Zhijie asked.
"No need. I know what it looks like," Yang Wendong waved. "Just observing from here is fine."
"Alright," Zheng Zhijie replied.
…
At 9:00 a.m. sharp, the store manager cut the ribbon, releasing a wave of balloons into the sky. The doors of the new Carrefour officially opened.
Crowds surged into the store.
"Looks like our supermarket brand has become a household name in Hong Kong," Yang Wendong said with a faint smile.
Zheng Zhijie nodded. "Yes, Carrefour has really set a new standard for shopping. Even those who haven't visited yet are curious enough to check it out. And with today's opening discounts, plus the plastic bag promotion, and all the newspaper coverage, of course the locals came flooding in."
"Good. Let's go take a look ourselves," Yang Wendong said.
Even if he wasn't a retail expert, he had plenty of customer experience from his past life. That gave him insight into what worked and what didn't.
…
Inside the Causeway Bay Carrefour, it was shoulder to shoulder. The crowd matched Central's in scale. Despite all preparations, the checkout lines were still long.
"Not bad. Let's keep acquiring similar properties," Yang Wendong said, clearly satisfied.
"Of course," Zheng Zhijie replied.
Liu Huayu chimed in, "Don't worry, Mr. Yang Wendong. As long as I have enough staff, I'll open new stores at full speed."
"Good," Yang Wendong said. "Lao Liu, we've basically completed the start-up phase. Now it's time to focus on scaling.
The faster we build our network, the sooner we can centralize procurement. That's the key to real success."
In the original timeline, supermarkets didn't take off in Hong Kong until the late 1960s or early 1970s, and even then, growth was slow. It took years for big capital to take notice.
But now that Yang Wendong had launched ahead of schedule—and was fully committed to expanding—he might attract major players sooner than expected.
That didn't worry him too much, but it did mean he had to move quickly.
Once he secured prime locations and grew large enough to lower costs, no one entering the market later could outcompete him.
"Understood," Liu Huayu nodded. "This year, I plan to open ten new stores. I'll also be training more staff in advance to prepare for the future."
"Excellent. I'll leave that to you," Yang Wendong said.
As a transmigrator, he knew retail's future lay in supermarkets. He could offer advice, but the day-to-day operations required experienced professionals.
And that's how it worked across all his businesses.
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