Goblin Library - Chapter 157

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 157

Lee Gang-hun nodded at Sayed’s words.
“That’s certainly possible.”
“In any case, it’s a fine product. Korean technology really is impressive.”
Lee Gang-hun spoke in response to Sayed’s positive reaction.
“I’d like to conduct business with this product.”
“With us?”
“Yes.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s words, Sayed studied him for a moment, then lifted and lowered the item in his hand several times before speaking.
“I’m not sure what the price would be, but considering the number of equipment units we have, demand wouldn’t be that high. We don’t buy new ones until the old ones break.”
“I understand.”
“And we’re already using Chinese-made products supplied by our primary contractor.”
“I’m aware of that as well.”
“Knowing that, yet still proposing a deal… is this product cheaper than the Chinese alternative?”
The question implied there was no reason to switch suppliers unless the price was lower.
“Our price is actually somewhat higher.”
If the volume were substantial, I could lower the price, but given Sayed’s point about small quantities, that wasn’t feasible.
“Higher? Then why would we use this product? Besides, our primary contractor’s primary contractor is China.”
At Sayed’s remark about having to consider the contractor’s preferences while using a more expensive product, Lee Gang-hun laughed and tapped the heavy equipment lightly with his hand.
“The reason I thought this deal would succeed after seeing you, Sayed, is because of these equipment pieces.”
“Why is that?”
“Because you still repair heavy equipment at home as a hobby—that tells me you’re a craftsman.”
“A craftsman?”
“A businessman would want to buy the cheapest product possible and use it, without giving a thought to field conditions. But someone like you, a true craftsman, would want to use products of superior quality.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s words, Sayed squinted and spoke.
“I appreciate being called a craftsman, but I’m also a businessman.”
“Which is precisely why I believe the business will succeed.”
“Why is that?”
At Sayed’s question, Lee Gang-hun smiled and pointed to the Chinese-made product.
“Typically, this breaks down in two months, doesn’t it?”
“Well, roughly speaking, yes.”
At Sayed’s response, Lee Gang-hun pointed to the Korean-made product.
“This one… is a product with quality that will last at least six months.”
“So roughly three times the efficiency.”
“Efficiency isn’t the real issue.”
Lee Gang-hun gestured to the heavy equipment for Sayed, who looked puzzled.
“When equipment breaks down, you don’t just leave it sitting on the job site without repairs, do you?”
“Of course. To the maintenance shop…”
Sayed stopped mid-sentence and looked at the equipment. When machinery broke down on-site, simple repairs visible to the eye were handled right there.
But if they couldn’t identify what was wrong, they had to transport it to the maintenance shop.
Since the equipment was so outdated, they often had to open it up to figure out what had failed.
“If this breaks down once every two months and we have to haul it to the maintenance shop, disassemble it, identify the problem, reassemble it, and transport it back to the site—how many days do you think that takes?”
Sayed fell silent in thought. Most job sites were located far from the city.
Even at the fastest, it took three days to bring it in, disassemble it, find the problem, repair it, and send it back.
This wasn’t a matter of component cost—it meant three extra days of downtime at the site, so there was barely anything to consider.
Moreover, two months was already a generous estimate. In unlucky cases, equipment could fail in as little as ten days.
After a moment, Sayed asked.
“Can you guarantee six months?”
“I can’t offer a guarantee.”
“You can’t guarantee it?”
As Sayed’s eyes narrowed, Lee Gang-hun nodded and spoke.
“Components have varying durability depending on the conditions and types of work they’re used for, don’t they? Moreover, this country experiences frequent sandstorms, which are devastating to equipment. Considering such variables, the lifespan could be shorter than six months or potentially longer.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s words, Sayed studied him for a moment. In truth, the sandstorms did accelerate the degradation of component lifespan.
Without that factor, Chinese products wouldn’t break down so easily.
“Then how did you arrive at the six-month figure?”
“I’ve sold this component at desert job sites before. There, they typically repurchased about once every six months. That’s why I set six months as the benchmark.”
As Lee Gang-hun spoke, he looked at Sayed.
“If it lasted that long in the desert, shouldn’t it perform similarly here?”
“You’re saying you have no data?”
“I do have data.”
Lee Gang-hun pulled a booklet from his bag and handed it over.
“This is a comparison of the components I brought against Chinese products. As you’ll see, the Chinese ones have a defect rate and failure rate roughly three times higher than our Korean products.”
Sayed took the booklet from Lee Gang-hun, read through it briefly, and looked at him.
“But I have one question.”
“Please, go ahead.”
“Looking at the unit price here, it’s about 10 percent more expensive than the Chinese version.”
“If you purchase in larger quantities, we can offer around a 10 percent discount.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s words, Sayed laughed.
“If this component lasts about six months as you say, we’d need two per machine per year, and with about twenty machines, that’s roughly forty total. Can you discount on forty units?”
“That’s difficult.”
“Then we have no reason to buy a year’s worth all at once—we’d only order twenty at a time. Did you really come all the way from Korea to sell such a small quantity?”
At Sayed’s words, Lee Gang-hun laughed and shook his head.
“If I came all the way from Korea just to sell that, I’d be a failed businessman.”
“Then what’s your thinking?”
“I need to sell a lot.”
“A lot? How?”
Seeing Sayed’s puzzled expression, Lee Gang-hun spoke.
『Currently, this country is undergoing large-scale construction projects. Just in terms of equipment alone, thousands of machines are operating across the nation.』
『You’re going to sell to all of them?』
『Not necessarily all of them, but I intend to sell as much as possible.』
At my words, Sayed paused, studying me for a moment before responding with a smile.
『Your ambition is admirable. However, most of the heavy equipment used in our country comes from Chinese manufacturers. And the machinery currently operating here was imported from China for their construction projects. Selling Korean-made equipment won’t be easy.』
『Then, to be direct—you’ll use our products, won’t you, sir?』
Sayed nodded at my question.
『I’m not certain whether six months is the right timeframe, but even half that duration would make it worthwhile. I’ll purchase one hundred units to start.』
『One hundred units?』
A company with only about twenty pieces of equipment buying one hundred? Seeing my bewildered expression, Sayed chuckled and continued.
『I sense we’ll become excellent business partners in the future, and I’d like to establish a strong relationship from the beginning.』
Recognizing from his tone that he wanted something from me, I asked.
『Is there perhaps another component or service you require?』
『Mahmoud has extensive connections—whenever he needs parts urgently, skilled technicians, or drivers, I often turn to him myself. And his reputation is impeccable; he’s never failed to deliver.』
『That’s why I maintain such a good relationship with Mahmoud.』
『According to Mahmoud, you’re an exceptionally skilled trader. He says you can procure and sell anything needed.』
Sayed said this while looking directly at me.
『Parts are fine. If circumstances permit, I’d like to purchase discarded heavy equipment.』
『Discarded equipment?』
『As I mentioned, most of the machinery in our country is either repaired scrap or salvaged from equipment too damaged to repair. Korea discards many machines that are still usable. I’d like to import those, either refurbish them for use or strip them for spare parts.』
After Sayed’s explanation, I paused briefly before responding.
『What volume are you considering?』
『The more, the better.』
『Can you handle that much?』
『If not, I can distribute it among other business owners in the same industry.』
『Understood. I’ll prepare a separate quotation for that business.』
『Please do.』
It was a promising proposal. With proper volume sourcing, this could be quite profitable.
Of course, heavy equipment is heavy and shipping costs would be substantial, but by removing the unusable parts to reduce weight, I could achieve reasonable savings.
Having assessed this, I said to Sayed.
『And while we’re discussing this, I have one more proposal for you.』
『Please, go ahead.』
『Beyond this product, I’m planning to supply various other items to you and the construction companies in this country.』
『New products, then.』
『I was hoping to source them from scrap, but obtaining them in bulk that way isn’t feasible.』
New construction sites emerge overnight, and projects begin constantly in this environment.
『That’s true.』
Scrap is broken, unusable material—that’s why it’s scrap. Picking out the specific components I need from it is like plucking stars from the sky.
That’s why we strip all usable parts from the scrap, store them, and use them later when needed.
『So you’ll be selling new products….』
Lee Gang-hun spoke to Sayed, who wore a contemplative expression.
“In truth, heavy equipment doesn’t break down simply because of a single component, does it? Even if we install this part, something else could fail and bring operations to a halt.”
“That’s certainly true.”
“Salvaging usable parts from scrap is economical, but in a country like this where construction projects operate on such a massive scale, it’s more profitable to invest in proper new products and keep the equipment running continuously. Every day equipment sits idle is a day of lost productivity.”
At Lee Gang-hun’s words, Sayed gazed at the component with a thoughtful expression. He was right.
I’d estimated the cycle at roughly two months since this particular component failed about once every two months and required maintenance shop visits, but in reality, other components failed frequently as well.
On unlucky occasions, equipment would return to the maintenance shop within three days of repairs being completed, damaged anew.
“You mentioned several products—which ones are you referring to?”
“I’ve brought multiple pamphlets, but surely field expertise is paramount, isn’t it? If you tell me which components fail most often, I’ll source them from other countries.”
“Other countries—which ones do you mean?”
“Korean and Japanese products, for starters. If you specify what you need, I’ll arrange the quantities and deliver them within twenty to thirty days.”
“Korea and Japan, you say…”
After a moment’s consideration, Sayed asked.
“What about pricing?”
“For bulk purchases, I’ll offer maximum discounts. And…”
Lee Gang-hun continued smoothly.
“If you introduce me to other heavy equipment company owners or construction contractors, I’ll increase your discount rate without their knowledge.”
“Introduce you?”
“Bulk purchases naturally warrant price reductions—that’s universal, isn’t it?”
“True, but what about my discount rate?”
“If you make enough introductions, I’ll discount it so generously that others will curse your name—though not quite free.”
“Ha!”
Sayed laughed softly at the prospect of receiving discounts so steep that others would resent him, then spoke with genuine enthusiasm.
“Then I’ll introduce you to people. Besides, if I’m importing heavy equipment, I should establish connections with Lia anyway—this works out perfectly.”
“Ah, and if you could tell me which components you consider most urgent, I’ll arrange to stock them in advance.”
“Already?”
At the word “already,” I laughed. As a small trading company, Il-un Trading Company had to economize on every expense during my stay.
So I needed to prepare inventory ahead of time.
Here, time truly was money.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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