---
title: "Sending Money Is Dumb, Dining Is Low-Class: What Else Can You Do for Procurement Relations?"
description: "During the holiday season, when red envelopes are flying around, this article discusses why sending money to procurement is not a smart move, and why treating them to meals is also ineffective. Instead, it suggests thoughtful gift-giving within legal limits, focusing on small, practical items that show care and consideration, such as imported gum, throat lozenges, or honey, which align with the procurement's lifestyle and needs."
author: "黄静"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2017-10-05"
language: "en"
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original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/wfAQjHDiP3ysMYkDFXYBjg"
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---

# Sending Money Is Dumb, Dining Is Low-Class: What Else Can You Do for Procurement Relations?

> During the holiday season, when red envelopes are flying around, this article discusses why sending money to procurement is not a smart move, and why treating them to meals is also ineffective. Instead, it suggests thoughtful gift-giving within legal limits, focusing on small, practical items that show care and consideration, such as imported gum, throat lozenges, or honey, which align with the procurement's lifestyle and needs.

KA Store Management / Huang Jing
It's the holiday season again, the time when red envelopes are flying everywhere, so it's quite fitting to discuss this topic. Sending money to procurement is nothing new, but why say it's dumb? If everyone is sending money, it becomes homogeneous. Money is just a quantified number, and procurement will compare in their minds who gave more and who gave less. Those who give more aren't truly caring; they're just rich and foolish! Those who give less aren't truly caring either; they're just stingy and mean! Giving too much is unaffordable, giving too little is embarrassing—it's really a headache!
If money isn't suitable, then treat them to a meal, right? Invite them often, treat them well! Shark fin, lobster, abalone, Japanese cuisine, French feasts, Korean BBQ, and maybe even a private club hidden in the mountains, the kind with security checks—how impressive! Ha, you think it's great, but are the procurement willing to go? They're exhausted from overtime, want to go home early to be with their kids, and you want them to go out eating and drinking with you? No fun! Even if they want to go out to eat, who wouldn't prefer to chat and gossip with a few close friends rather than listen to you talk about shelf space and new products? Boring! Nowadays, no one lacks a meal; they want pleasure, relaxation, social interaction, and privacy. Is there pleasure, relaxation, or privacy in dining with suppliers? Besides, eating out all the time is so low-class, as if I have no other refined hobbies or interests besides eating, like I'm just a fat, big-eared foodie!
Money isn't appropriate, and eating isn't appropriate either. What to do?
Give gifts!
Why suggest gifts? Because money is just cold numbers, an objective material exchange that reminds both parties of the transactional relationship. But a gift is thoughtful and warm; the recipient can feel your sincerity from it. If you keep them in your heart, they will naturally keep you in theirs.
First, let me clarify: with the current crackdown on commercial bribery, I'm not foolish enough to openly advocate bribery. The gifts mentioned here are all within legal bounds. After all, giving something worth fifty yuan can't be called bribery. Dealing with stores means dealing with various people in the store. In our social environment where "relationships are paramount," the importance of interpersonal connections is self-evident. In fact, many times, store matters aren't about whether they can be done, but whether the procurement is willing to do them. Why should they help you? If the relationship (guest sentiment) is good, it's different—
The art of gift-giving is profound. You must give gifts skillfully, hitting the mark. In the early stages of gift-giving, there are several principles to note:
Understand the procurement's characteristics
A person's characteristics are mainly composed of habits and personality, which in turn are determined by income and social status. Personality determines destiny, income determines personality... Store procurement's actual income is decent, generally at a petty bourgeois level locally. Domestic petty bourgeois characteristics are similar: they like foreign things, pay attention to details, value atmosphere, and like to display their life taste (the very rich don't show off such "taste" as much)... In daily life, they want to show they are different from others (i.e., non-petty bourgeois). Petty bourgeois are especially particular about personal items, liking small, exquisite things. But this is usually limited to small personal items; they'd like to be particular about big things too, but their means are limited. Anyway, these small items can't be too expensive. So, observe the procurement's personal accessories; they are often quite refined.
What price range?
Never give high-priced gifts: first, it's illegal; second, procurement won't dare accept. It's suggested that early gifts be worth around one hundred yuan. Items of this value are easy for the manufacturer's sales staff to expense, and most stores allow procurement to accept low-value small items, so procurement can accept them without burden.
What to give?
Gifts must be targeted; what you give should be what they want, otherwise it loses meaning if it's something they don't need or like.
For example, target the procurement's health. The procurement profession leads to many common ailments and psychological issues (sensitivity, suspicion, nervous tension, excessive stress, loneliness, poor gastrointestinal function, irritability,上火, poor sleep, easy anger), etc. The most effective way to care for someone is to care for their health; nothing is better than giving health! Note: never give medicine, and avoid various health supplements—too tacky. Within a few dozen yuan, what can you give? There are three things to consider: imported gum, imported throat lozenges, and small bottles of wild honey (large bottles cost more). Procurement have direct needs for these. For example, 上火 can cause bad breath; procurement communicate closely with all kinds of people daily, so they can't have bad breath, making gum essential. Procurement talk a lot every day (negotiations, disputes, often talking until dry mouth and sore throat), so throat lozenges are necessary. As for poor digestion and 上火, both can cause constipation; honey's main function is to lubricate the intestines... At the same time, these items are imported, exquisite, and reflect life taste as personal accessories, fitting the procurement's pursuit of a petty bourgeois lifestyle. Note: never give domestic gum or throat lozenges in big boxes for ten yuan—that would ruin it... Also, it's best if these items are not available locally; try to buy them in big cities like Tieling. And these are consumables; when they run out, you'll give them again, and since they like them, over time, you'll become familiar. You can also design gifts for the procurement's parents, children, or other close family members, which fully shows your thoughtfulness, and your gifts are unique, different from others, distinguishing you from those crude and low-class people.
Among the vast sea of manufacturers, procurement looks back slowly, and in the crowd, they take one more look at you—and the legend begins—
Author: Huang Jing
Huang Jing, expert in store backend system design, researcher on supplier-retailer relations. With over ten years of professional procurement experience, from state-owned large retail enterprises to foreign hypermarkets, she has served as procurement section chief, procurement manager, procurement director, training director, etc., with a relatively complete career in the modern retail industry. She has conducted in-depth research on supplier-retailer relations, especially systematic research on procurement issues, negotiation issues, cost issues, contract issues, and conflict resolution that suppliers care about.
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