Chinese Medicine: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 629: Chapter 629: Besieged

Wang Lei contacted Manager Zhang, the head of purchasing for Hualian Supermarkets.

On the other end of the line, Manager Zhang said, "Well, Manager Wang, congratulations! Anything from Ding’s is guaranteed to be top-notch."

"However..."

Manager Zhang paused, then said with some difficulty, "I’m terribly sorry. This time... I’m afraid we won’t be able to stock your product."

"Huh? Why not?"

Wang Lei was stunned. "We’ve been partners for so many years, what’s going on? Is the profit margin too low? We can negotiate!"

"It’s not about the profit." Manager Zhang sighed and lowered his voice. "Manager Wang, I’ll be straight with you. Just yesterday, people from a few of the big corporations—P&G, Unilever—suddenly showed up and had us sign an exclusivity agreement."

"They’ve completely bought out all the shelves, endcaps, and even the promotional displays in our personal care section. They paid for a full year upfront, and the contract states in no uncertain terms that we are strictly forbidden from stocking any new shampoos from other brands, especially... *ahem*, especially certain emerging brands."

"They’ve even filled up all the space in our warehouse. Even if I wanted to help you, I’ve got nowhere to put the products."

"What?"

Wang Lei’s mind went blank with a BUZZ.

’A complete buyout?’

’An exclusivity agreement?’

This was clearly a premeditated move to shut out Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory.

...

「Meanwhile.」

Ding Kaifang personally dialed Ji Youyou’s private number.

"Hello, Youyou, it’s Ding Kaifang."

Ding Kaifang’s tone was relaxed as he made some small talk. "Been busy lately? There’s something I was hoping you could help me with."

"What is it?"

"We’ve developed a new shampoo with outstanding results..."

He told her about the natural botanical shampoo,

He expected Ji Youyou to readily agree, just as she had when promoting their Aloe Vera Frost.

After all, Ding’s products were high quality, the endorsement fee wasn’t low, and their collaborations had always been pleasant.

However, the other end of the line went silent.

"Um... President Ding."

Ji Youyou said helplessly, "This time... I’m afraid I can’t."

"You can’t?"

Ding Kaifang was taken aback. "Youyou, is there some difficulty? A scheduling conflict? That’s fine, we can..."

"It’s not about my schedule."

Ji Youyou cut him off, her voice tinged with apology. "President Ding, to be honest with you... just yesterday, Bawang Group, the company I endorse, suddenly sent over a supplementary agreement. They raised the breach of contract penalty to 800 million. And it specifically forbids me from promoting any other brand of shampoo or hair care products on any occasion."

"Eight hundred million... If I breached the contract, I wouldn’t be able to pay that off in my entire lifetime."

Having weathered the storms of the business world for decades, how could Ding Kaifang not understand what this meant?

His expression instantly darkened.

’Bawang Group?’

’A sudden contract change?’

’An 800 million penalty?’

This clearly wasn’t just aimed at Ji Youyou.

To make such a big move, and to time it so precisely, was definitely no coincidence.

Someone was targeting Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory.

Then, Ji Youyou shared the rest of the news she had heard, like how other celebrities had all signed similar contracts.

This made Ding Kaifang even more certain. Being able to influence so many celebrities at once, even forcing them to sign such "indentured servitude" contracts, was not something one or two companies could accomplish.

Behind this, he feared, the giants of the entire personal care industry had joined forces.

"I understand." Ding Kaifang forced himself to sound composed. "Youyou, thank you for telling me all this. Otherwise, I’d still be in the dark."

’In that case, there’s no point in trying to contact other celebrities.’

Although Ji Youyou had refused the endorsement, she was still a little curious. "President Ding, is the new shampoo you’re releasing... really that good? Good enough to make those big factories so nervous?"

She was a smart woman and had naturally guessed the reason behind it all.

"Good? Of course it’s good," Ding Kaifang said with conviction. "It’s an absolutely revolutionary product."

"Could you send me a couple of bottles to try?" Ji Youyou asked in a low voice. "I’ll just use them privately."

Ding Kaifang smiled. ’This girl knows a good thing when she sees it.’

"Sure, I’ll send you a whole case. But remember, do not post about it on Weibo or your Moments. Otherwise, I’m not helping you pay that 800 million."

"Don’t worry, President Ding. I’m not an idiot."

After hanging up, the smile on Ding Kaifang’s face vanished instantly, replaced by a dark, gloomy expression.

He thought to himself,

’How could the other cosmetic companies have gotten wind of this?’

’Even if they found out through their channels that Ding’s was developing a shampoo, for them to make such a huge move—even joining forces to attack us and sparing no expense—before the product has even launched or its effects have been proven, it just doesn’t make any sense.’

’Unless...’

’They’ve already gotten their hands on a sample!’

’And they’ve tried it for themselves and know about the shampoo’s incredible effects.’

’Only true fear could make them so united, so frantic.’

"There’s a mole in the factory."

Ding Kaifang spat out the words through gritted teeth.

The shampoo had only been produced a few days ago and had been sealed in Warehouse No. 1 the entire time. Only a handful of core employees had access to it.

’Someone must have secretly taken a sample out.’

Just then, Wang Lei pushed the door open and came in, a look of dejection on his face.

"President Ding, the situation is bad."

Wang Lei reported, "I just contacted over a dozen major supermarkets and hypermarkets in the surrounding cities, and the response from all of them was ’no counters,’ ’no space.’ It’s like they all coordinated. All the prime spots have been bought out by the big brands like P&G and Unilever. They’ve signed exclusivity agreements, and we’re not even allowed to run promotions."

"Even some of the slightly larger convenience store chains have been swayed by their PR."

In other words, all of Ding’s Pharmaceutical’s major offline sales channels for the shampoo had been completely blocked.

Of course, some small community supermarkets and mom-and-pop shops might not have been covered, but those channels were too fragmented and couldn’t generate enough sales volume. They were not Ding’s target market.

"Dammit, those bastards are playing dirty."

Furious, Ding Kaifang slammed his hand on the table, knocking over his teacup. "They’re trying to completely shut us out."

He cursed for a moment, then calmed down slightly.

"President Ding, what do we do now?" Wang Lei asked.

A ruthless glint flashed in Ding Kaifang’s eyes. "If they’ve blocked us offline, we’ll go online. I refuse to believe they can block off the entire internet."

"Activate the backup plan immediately. Start by promoting on our official website. Then, I want you to pour our advertising budget into the major high-traffic platforms like Douyin, Kuaishou, and Weibo. Find those smaller influencers and amateur bloggers who aren’t tied down by contracts to do reviews."

"As long as the product is good, once word-of-mouth starts to build, they won’t be able to stop us."

"A few cosmetic companies can’t possibly control the entire internet, can they?"

"Understood."

Wang Lei nodded. Although he wasn’t confident, he knew they had no choice but to fight with their backs against the wall.

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