Back to 1958: Creating a Century-Long Family Empire

Chapter 59: Opportunity in the European Market

From a production standpoint, flypaper and mousetrap glue boards were practically the same — the only difference was the glue formula. Everything else was identical.

On the sales side, An Yongqiang's distribution channels weren't particularly suitable, but Zhao Chenguang's channels were nearly a perfect match — both mainly sold to street vendors and small shops. These types of products weren't sold in upscale department stores.

Within just a week, flypaper sales had already surpassed those of mousetraps.

One afternoon in June, Yang Wendong was sitting under a buzzing electric fan, learning bookkeeping alongside Su Yiyi as they followed the instructions of a part-time accountant.

"This should go here..." the accountant muttered while calculating the accounts for the Changxing Pest Control Company and teaching them step by step.

Yang Wendong and Su Yiyi both focused intently. One was the boss — and needed at least a basic grasp of accounting. The other was a beginner and had to learn to become truly proficient.

After going through several people, Yang had finally found an accountant who was genuinely willing to teach. The previous ones had kept things deliberately vague and were promptly fired by Yang for trying to hold back knowledge.

Knock knock knock! There was a knock at the door — it was Zhao Liming.

"Dong-ge, that foreign woman is here. The white one."

"Elena?" Yang Wendong immediately knew who he meant. In recent days, he'd come to know a few foreigners, but only one woman among them — Elena.

"Yeah, I can never remember these foreigners' names," Zhao Liming said with a grin.

"I'll be right there." Yang Wendong stood up and said to Su Yiyi, "Keep going with the lesson. Don't worry about me — I'll be back soon."

"Okay." Su Yiyi nodded.

When Yang stepped outside, he immediately spotted Elena waiting by the door.

"Miss Elena, long time no see. You're looking even younger," Yang said with a warm smile as he approached.

Elena laughed. "I'm already over fifty. What youth is there left? But hearing you say that still makes me happy."

Yang Wendong asked, "Miss Elena, what brings you here today?"

"I heard from Brian that you've opened a factory. I was quite surprised when I heard it, so I came today specifically to take a look," she said.

"I see. Please, come in. The environment here isn't the best, so I hope you won't mind," Yang said, smiling as he led her toward his small office.

Aside from the workshop, the Changxing Pest Control Factory had only one small meeting room and one tiny office.

"Mr. Yang, may I take a look at your factory first?" Elena asked after glancing around the office.

"Of course." Yang agreed right away — it wasn't a military facility or anything, so he had no reason to keep visitors out.

Yang still felt a lot of gratitude toward Elena. If it hadn't been for the opportunity she'd given him back then, he might still be hawking rat traps in the Dong Market and living in a squatter hut.

The factory was small — even with Yang giving a full walkthrough, it only took about three minutes to see everything.

Afterward, Elena held a piece of flypaper in her hand and said, "Mr. Yang, you really are remarkable. If something like this were sold worldwide, it could benefit hundreds of millions of people."

"I'd love to make that happen, but unfortunately, I don't have the channels for it," Yang replied with a wry smile.

Hong Kong's domestic market — aside from real estate and finance — was pitifully small. It relied entirely on exports.

Whether it was the pre-1950s entrepôt trade, the 1950s–70s industrial boom, or even the later rise of tourism, about 99% of Hong Kong's economy was dependent on overseas markets.

And most of those overseas channels were controlled by foreign merchants. Even local Hong Kong trading firms were often just go-betweens, working with foreign counterparts and making a meager commission.

And with a new, unfamiliar product like flypaper, most trade firms wouldn't bother with the hassle.

Elena thought for a moment and said, "A product like this should benefit humanity. Maybe I can help, at least a little."

"You have overseas sales channels?" Yang looked at her with some surprise.

This white lady with a bit of a "saint complex" — a government officer with the Hong Kong Social Welfare Department — apparently had some unexpected connections.

Elena replied, "I wouldn't call it a channel exactly. Besides being an officer in Hong Kong's Social Welfare Department, I'm also a member of a charitable organization based in the UK. Over the years, we've purchased various relief supplies from trade companies — usually basic necessities. Some of those traders might be interested in this."

"Do they operate in the UK?" Yang asked.

"Yes, mostly in the UK, though some do business elsewhere in Europe too. If they're interested in your product, they would have the ability to distribute it across Europe," she explained.

"Then I'd be very grateful if you could help me make that connection. If it works out, I—" Yang began but suddenly paused.

If it were anyone else, he could just offer them a cut — a few hundred or even a few thousand dollars would be a significant incentive in this era, and he wasn't stingy when it came to sharing profits.

But with Elena... that tactic probably wouldn't work. If he said it out loud, she might even take offense.

Elena smiled. "I know what you were going to say. But there's no need. Do you remember what I told you the second time we met? I said that when you become successful, I hope you'll help more of the underprivileged Chinese, especially the children. That's enough for me."

"Miss Elena, you're a great person," Yang Wendong said after a brief moment of silence. "Even without your request, I would've done it anyway."

"I'm no great person," Elena replied. "It's just how I was raised — to help others whenever possible. As a wealthy country, Britain has a responsibility to support others."

"It certainly should," Yang nodded in agreement.

He was well aware of how ruthless and hypocritical Westerners could be — wolves in sheep's clothing, most of them. But for the sake of maintaining this moral facade, their education system still instilled values of justice and altruism. And over time, that did create people like Elena. Rare, yes — but they existed.

Still, there was no point in bringing that up. People truly dedicated to charity already had a kind of faith in their hearts.

Elena thought for a bit and said, "Here's what I'll do — I'll reach out to my friends back in the UK and ask them to get in touch with some of the traders. Maybe they'll be interested. But I can't promise anything. After all, this is a new product, and most of them won't know what to make of it. I doubt many would come all the way to Hong Kong for something unfamiliar."

"Regardless of whether it works out, I'm truly grateful, Miss Elena," Yang said with a genuine smile.

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