Xiao Yebai was young, perhaps still naive to such worldly matters, but the Zhao father and son were older, having weathered many storms, and they understood these things well.
Zhao Zirong and Father Zhao, thinking this way, discovered that their own woman, Mrs. Zhao, was sitting with Gu Nuan, seemingly engaged in a delightful conversation.
No one knew Mrs. Zhao’s temperament better than the Zhao Family. Mrs. Zhao was known for her particularly stringent character, even more so than Xiao Jianming. Such a disposition meant she was demanding in conversation, setting the bar extremely high, and placing significant pressure on the other party that not everyone could withstand.
This was indeed the case. There were very few who could truly become friends with Mrs. Zhao. According to what the Zhao Family knew, the only close friend Mrs. Zhao had ever had was Ruan Ruzhen, who had passed away.
It was rare to see someone with whom Mrs. Zhao could enjoy such an animated conversation.
Perhaps there was something special about this one.
The time reached two in the morning.
Zhao Mengjin brought over a coffee pot and, as instructed by Mrs. Zhao, started grinding the coffee beans brought by the Zhao men with a manual coffee maker, then began brewing it on the spot.
The fragrance of the coffee wafted through the room in waves.
Almost everyone present had drunk coffee before, and among them, people like the members of the Zhao Family, Xiao Yebai, Zhang Sanfeng, and Zhan Dapeng had all tasted superior quality coffee.
Just by the aroma of the ground coffee alone, some people present could distinguish the quality of the coffee.
Speaking of coffee, the average person might not understand, thinking the coffee made from powder sold in stores is the same as coffee brewed directly from beans, not to mention being unaware that there are hundreds of varieties of coffee beans just from Brazil alone. The coffees sold on the market are classified into two types: pure beans and blends.
The difference between the two—single-origin beans versus a mixture of multiple types of beans—is apparent from the names alone. The coffee produced by the Zhao Family belonged to the category of instant coffee, which of course used blended beans as a base mixed with other ingredients.
The reason why the Zhao Family chose instant coffee as their first market product was simple: compared to the high-end image of pure beans, instant coffee had a low barrier to entry, required less investment, and according to research, the majority of coffee drinkers in China were accustomed to adding sugar, milk, and other additives, consuming more instant coffee—that is, fewer people sampled pure bean coffee. This may be related to the fact that drinking coffee was not a traditional habit in China.
In business, it’s not always best to chase the high-end market; capturing a larger audience in the mid-lower sector before cultivating high-end customers is a strategy. The Zhao Family’s wine brand previously followed this path.
Initially, Chinese people had a general understanding of wine, with the majority consuming baijiu. However, the Zhao Family managed to cultivate a high-end clientele from a regular audience through their wine club. Human desires evolve from low to high, and as economic conditions improve, people naturally seek higher pleasures. For origınal chapters go to novel※fire.net
The rapid accumulation of wealth among Chinese people in recent years and their progressively higher consumption aspirations created a very favorable premise for businesses to transition from low-end to high-end products.
Having tasted the sweetness of the wine business, the Zhao Family had no reason not to apply the same strategy to the coffee business, yet they hadn’t anticipated facing obstacles from the start.
Smelling the fragrance, Mrs. Zhao was the first to catch a hint of the aroma and said to her husband, "These beans seem to be a little better than the ones we found last time, not so sour."