Chapter 57 : Transfer Fee of Two Hundred Thousand
Chapter 57: Transfer Fee of Two Hundred Thousand
"That's too much."
Upon hearing the number 550,000, Chen Fan's expression remained unchanged, leaving the woman across from him unable to guess his thoughts.
"First of all, computers are consumables that are updated and replaced very quickly."
"Especially for the internet cafe you're running, the performance requirements for computers are even more stringent. Once your computers can't keep up with the performance, you'll immediately be surpassed by your competitors."
"So, for me, the computers in your internet cafe aren't worth much. Maybe after a year, I'll have to consider replacing all the computers with new ones."
"And the most valuable asset of an internet cafe is the computers..."
At this point, Chen Fan paused and looked at the woman across from him.
"So, the price you're asking for is taking advantage of the fact that I'm not in the industry."
The woman looked at Chen Fan in astonishment, as he had surprised her several times in less than ten minutes since they first met.
Seeming to feel a bit embarrassed, the woman raised her hand and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Here's what we can do. If you're really interested in taking over, I can lower the price a bit more."
The woman thought for a moment and quoted a new price.
"370,000."
Chen Fan smiled and shook his head, indicating that this price still wasn't worth it.
"To be honest, if I had 370,000, I could just rent a small storefront and open a new internet cafe myself."
"And I'd use the latest computers on the market with the best configurations. My business would definitely not be worse than your current shop, right?"
Having the crux of the matter exposed so directly, a hint of panic appeared in the woman's eyes for the first time.
She hadn't expected this freshman student named Chen Fan to have such sharp insight into the issue.
With just a few sentences, he had pinpointed the core problem, leaving her at a disadvantage.
The woman looked at Chen Fan, hesitated for a moment, then gritted her teeth.
"If you can pay the full amount upfront, I can sell everything to you for 300,000."
Chen Fan continued, "I don't know how long you've had the transfer advertisement posted."
"But I believe that if you're asking for 300,000, unless someone is really desperate, no one would take over."
"It's the same reason, if they have that much money, why wouldn't they choose to open a new internet cafe on the same street instead?"
Chen Fan went on to analyze, "Internet cafes are the most troublesome type of business to transfer, because the most expensive assets are the computers, which ironically have the highest depreciation rate."
"And computers update and replace models very quickly, so the transfer fees for internet cafes are usually exceptionally low."
"The only transfer advantage of your internet cafe is its geographic location, since it's right next to Yunhai University. If operated well, you won't have to worry about a lack of customers."
The woman quickly nodded in agreement.
"That's right, no need to worry about customers. Doesn't that alone make it worth thirty thousand?"
Chen Fan smiled slightly.
"If I were a customer, why wouldn't I go to an internet cafe with better configurations instead of coming to your outdated cafe?"
"My purpose in taking over your cafe is to make money. But what if after a year, these computers become outdated? Wouldn't I then have to replace them all with new computers, or else go bankrupt?"
"What would be the point of me taking over your internet cafe?"
"Isn't that the logic?"
After listening, the woman stared blankly at Chen Fan, then leaned back against the chair, as if all her energy had been drained.
Clearly, she was at a loss for words against Chen Fan's arguments.
This guy didn't seem like an immature freshman at all. Rather, he was more like a seasoned business veteran.
As if recalling something, a hint of redness appeared in the woman's eyes.
After remaining silent for around ten seconds, she finally spoke in a weak and powerless tone.
"200,000."
"That's my lowest price. If you don't think it's appropriate, then we have nothing further to discuss."
"You pointed out so many flaws, but you're also aware that my internet cafe is still profitable at the moment."
"Just do a simple calculation. Even if these computers become outdated after a year, you'd have already earned back the transfer fee from the profits you made that year."
"You won't lose money."
Chen Fan was somewhat surprised, not expecting the woman to recover her composure so quickly.
To be honest, if this were twenty years later, given the current state of her internet cafe, even two hundred thousand would seem like a rip-off to him.
But that last point the woman made was very valid.
This was the year 2000, and internet cafes were consistently profitable.
Moreover, Chen Fan knew very well that in the next year or two, internet cafes would experience a true peak period.
At that time, opening an internet cafe would be like growing a money tree.
Calculated this way, the 200,000 transfer fee was definitely a bargain.
However, in any negotiation, one should steer the discussion in a favorable direction.
Chen Fan secretly glanced at the woman in front of him.
Even though he had haggled the price down so aggressively, she still agreed to lower it.
It seemed the woman was truly in urgent need of money.
But Chen Fan's goal from the start wasn't this internet cafe.
"Um... may I ask, are you the owner of the commercial property where this internet cafe is located?"
The woman looked at Chen Fan with some surprise.
"You can rest assured about that. The property is mine. If you take over, I can give you a discounted rate on the rent, and I promise not to raise it for three years."
"You misunderstood me."
Chen Fan smiled and waved his hand, trying to ask, "What I meant to ask is, do you have any intention to sell the property where this internet cafe is located?"
The woman was clearly taken aback.
"Are you interested in buying the internet cafe or the property?"
Chen Fan smiled, "If possible, I'd like to buy the internet cafe together with the property."
For the first time, the woman looked at Chen Fan with a meaningful gaze.
"Little brother, you're quite ambitious."
Chen Fan smiled, "Do you have any intention to sell?"
The woman shook her head.
"Sorry, the property was left to me by my parents. I don't have any plans to sell it for now."
Chen Fan felt somewhat disappointed.
His goal all along had been the property.
Now that he couldn't buy the property, spending two hundred thousand to take over an internet cafe didn't seem quite as satisfactory, even though he wouldn't lose money.
"Have you considered it? Do you still want to buy?"
The woman looked at Chen Fan with some anticipation.
Chen Fan hesitated for a moment, then tried asking, "May I have some time to consider before giving you an answer?"
The light in the woman's eyes immediately dimmed, and she forced out a smile.
"Of course."
"But... I'll only give you one week. If..."
"No problem."
However, Chen Fan directly agreed.
"During this one-week period, you can continue posting the advertisement. If someone else is willing to buy, or offers a higher price than me, you can sell to them at any time."
Upon hearing this response, the woman seemed satisfied.
She took out a notebook from her pocket.
"Leave me your phone number so it'll be easier to contact you later..."
Chen Fan smiled somewhat sheepishly.
"Sorry, I don't have a phone number. But you can rest assured that once I've made up my mind, I'll come find you at the internet cafe right away."
The woman looked at Chen Fan with some surprise.
She was starting to have trouble understanding this young man.
He had calmly negotiated a deal worth hundreds of thousands with her, yet didn't even have a phone number.
Was this guy really not just messing with her?