Beijing. Hot Pot & Grill Restaurant!
After settling things with Third Sister, Li Yi suddenly thought of some matters back in Pengcheng. He immediately turned to Long Zhanjun and asked, “By the way, Third Sister’s husband, how’s the catering company coming along?”
“It’s almost ready. After you left Pengcheng, General Manager Lan sent over a dozen people to Pengcheng to help me set up the catering company.”
Long Zhanjun continued, “After nearly a month of preparation, we finally got all the paperwork ready in late October and completed the registration in Pengcheng. The new company is called Li’s Catering Management Co., Ltd., with a registered capital of 5 million yuan, and you’ll serve as the legal representative.”
“The company’s primary business operations include catering services and brand management. Currently, the company operates eight directly managed restaurants, plus a large cold storage facility that integrates slaughtering, storage, and refrigeration. Total assets…”
Once Long Zhanjun had finished explaining the company’s situation, Li Yi immediately asked, “How are the personnel arrangements currently set up?”
“Since we couldn’t reach you at the time, I took the liberty of appointing you as the company’s legal representative and general manager. Nana and I will serve as deputy general managers, Li Yeqiao as the company’s financial director, Liu San as the cold storage manager, and Dongzi, Shitou, Qiangzi, Feng Qian, and Niuqiu as managers of the various branch restaurants…”
Before he could finish, Li Yi cut in, “Brother-in-law, I don’t have time to manage the catering company right now, so I won’t be taking on the role of general manager.”
“Here’s what we’ll do. I’m going to reorganize the company’s personnel. You’ll take on the role of General Manager, overseeing the company’s overall operations and reporting directly to me.”
“At the same time, I’m appointing my sister Li Na and Li Yeqiao as deputy general managers. Old Li will go with you to Pengcheng, while my sister will stay in Beijing. Additionally, Feng Qian and Zhang Xinyao will serve as the company’s finance director and HR director, respectively, and Ling’er will be the office director. Everyone else’s positions remain unchanged!”
To be honest, Li Yi was quite optimistic about the future of the catering company. After all, the first real catering companies in China didn’t emerge until at least 1987.
Back then, with the entry of brands like KFC and McDonald’s, a wave of domestic catering companies emerged, eventually growing into a massive market worth 4 trillion yuan.
Backed by China’s massive population and rapidly rising economy, coupled with early strategic positioning, the catering industry certainly has a promising future.
But unlike managing a financial investment firm, running a restaurant company is simply too troublesome and complex; managing a large restaurant company is more exhausting than managing ten investment firms.
Furthermore, since Li Yi currently holds the status of a civil servant with a permanent position, it would be inconvenient for him to take the lead in managing a domestic company. Therefore, he simply cannot take on the role of general manager.
After hearing Li Yi’s proposed adjustments, Long Zhanjun immediately asked, “Is this adjustment appropriate?”
“What’s wrong with it? Tell me your thoughts,” Li Yi replied.
“First, I’m worried I won’t be up to the task of being general manager. After all, our company’s registered capital is a full 5 million yuan, and our eight stores currently generate monthly revenue of 500,000 to 600,000 yuan—and that figure will only grow. Yet I’m just someone who didn’t even finish junior high school…”
Before he could finish, Li Yi cut him off: “Brother-in-law, you may not believe in yourself, but don’t doubt my judgment. If I say you can do it, you will. Besides, who says you can’t run a business just because you didn’t go to school?”
“You know Lao Nian, the founder of ‘Shamu Sunflower Seeds’ in Anhui Province, right? He never went to school either. His whole family used to scrape by begging and running street stalls, but now he makes a million a year just selling sunflower seeds—his business is huge. This shows that having a business mind has nothing to do with whether or not you went to school.”
Li Yi was well aware of Long Zhanjun’s capabilities. As one of his “Eight Golden Warriors” and the “King of the Northwest,” Long had once opened up the Northwest market for Li Yi with just 2 million yuan in capital. Back in the 1990s, he had achieved the astonishing feat of earning 5 billion yuan for the company within three years.
If even he claims he doesn’t know how to do business, then who else would dare to claim they understand the ways of commerce?
Not to mention his past achievements—even his current accomplishments in Pengcheng alone are enough to make people take notice.
In just a few months, he had firmly established a foothold in Pengcheng. The fact that four branches were opened there in quick succession without his direct assistance was ample proof of his capabilities.
Seeing how much Li Yi trusted him, Long Zhanjun felt deeply grateful.
But the more he felt this way, the more he felt he had to speak up.
“Xiao Yi, let’s set aside the matter of my appointment as General Manager for now. As for Feng Qian taking on the role of Financial Director, she has never had any experience with finance before. It’s clearly not appropriate to put her in charge of that.”
Long Zhanjun continued, “And then there’s Ling’er. She’ll only be 19 after the New Year, and she only has a junior high school education. How can she possibly serve as the company’s office director?”
Li Yi smiled and said, “You have a point, but you must understand that the company is still in its early stages. When hiring, our primary consideration isn’t ability, but loyalty—whether someone is trustworthy or not!”
“If someone isn’t trustworthy, their abilities are useless—in fact, the more capable they are, the greater the risk. On the other hand, as long as they’re reliable, it doesn’t matter if their skills are lacking. Can’t we ‘ride a donkey while looking for a horse’?”
“Make do for now?”
“Exactly. Whether it’s Feng Qian, Ling’er, or even you, you can all work while learning the ropes. If it doesn’t work out, we can always post a job opening to find someone more suitable,” Li Yi explained.
“That’s actually a good idea!” Long Zhanjun said.
“Alright, it’s settled then. Find some time to pass my orders down the chain!” Li Yi said.
“Yes!”
“Third Sister’s Husband, from now on, the catering company will operate independently. Whether we can grow this company into a powerhouse depends entirely on you!” Li Yi said.
“We’ll work together as one to turn this catering company into the largest in the country!” Long Zhanjun said.
Third Sister chimed in, “Xiao Yi, your brother-in-law and I will help you manage this company well.”
“I trust you both. Now, let’s discuss the equity distribution for the catering company,” Li Yi said.
“Equity… are you giving us shares in the company?” Long Zhanjun asked, somewhat surprised.
“Yes…”
Before he could finish, Third Sister interrupted urgently, “No way! The company shares belong entirely to you—we don’t want any!”
Li Yi hurriedly said, “Sis, brother-in-law, you have to listen to me on this. These shares aren’t just for the two of you—others will have them too.”
“Others too?” Li Na asked, looking stunned.
“That’s right. I plan to give you and my brother-in-law 10% each, Old Li 5%, and I’ll set aside another 10% as an equity incentive for the store manager. However, these shares come with dividend rights only—no voting rights, and they can’t be transferred or cashed out!”
Li Yi continued eagerly, “Furthermore, I’ll set aside 5% of the company’s net profit every month as bonuses and benefits for all employees.”
After hearing his words, Long Zhanjun paused to think for a moment, then exclaimed in admiration, “Brilliant—absolutely brilliant!”
Third Sister asked, somewhat puzzled, “What… what’s so brilliant about that? I don’t see it.”
Long Zhanjun immediately explained, “Although this move reduces Xiao Yi’s own shareholding percentage, he still firmly retains control of the company—he’s just earning a little less on the surface.”
“But by doing this, he’s transformed his personal company into a company owned by all the employees. From now on, when employees come to work, they won’t be working for Xiao Yi—they’ll be working for themselves. Don’t you think they’ll be more dedicated and work harder?”
“Of course they will!” Li Na said.
“Exactly. Once everyone treats the company as their own home, everyone will be on the same page and pulling in the same direction. It’ll be hard for the company not to thrive!” Long Zhanjun said.
With Long Zhanjun’s guidance, Third Sister quickly grasped Li Yi’s vision and immediately said, “Xiao Yi, you’re the smart one. Your brother-in-law and I will follow your lead!”
Li Yi nodded and continued, “To accelerate our expansion, headquarters will conduct monthly performance evaluations of all store employees. Those who excel will qualify to become managers of new branches. Additionally, we’ll need to…”
Although Li Yi didn’t have time to personally manage this restaurant company, he wasn’t going to be just a figurehead either.
Right then, Li Yi explained the management model from his previous life’s “Some Lao” restaurant in detail to Third Sister and her husband, instructing them to use it as a foundation to develop the catering company’s own management bylaws and systems.
You have to understand that this management model has been proven in the market. Regardless of how Moulao fared later on, this model at least enabled them to expand rapidly and even secure the top spot as the first publicly traded restaurant company in China—these are all hard facts.
Upon hearing what Li Yi had to say, Long Zhanjun and his older sister Li Na were both speechless, yet utterly amazed.
Amidst their astonishment, Long Zhanjun meticulously jotted down every detail in his notebook, determined to implement them exactly as described. Thus began the rise of a legendary figure in the restaurant industry…
……….