After making inquiries, I learned that Sewoon Sangga and Yongsan Electronics Market in Seoul were the main places where computers and electronic components were traded.
Maru and I immediately drove the truck to Sewoon Sangga.
Underneath the tall buildings, countless small shops, barely larger than 10 square meters, were lined up, filled with various electronic components, from cameras to computers. You could find anything there.
I carried one of the working computers and went from shop to shop, eventually entering one with a sign that read "Custom-Built Computers."
"Welcome."
I greeted the owner and showed him the computer.
"Do you buy used computers? I'm thinking of selling this and buying a new one."
The owner examined the computer and said,
"You're buying a new one? Let me take a look. Hmm, it's a 386. I'll give you 200,000 won for it."
I pretended to be angry and said,
"200,000 won? Do you know how much I paid for this?"
"Now, now, look. New technology is emerging rapidly, and the times are changing quickly. The 386 was really expensive back then, but now the 486 is the mainstream, so it's outdated. That's why it's better to invest a little more when you first buy a computer and get a higher-spec model. That way, the resale value will be better. How about this one? It's top-of-the-line. 8 megabytes of memory and a whopping 420 megabyte hard drive! It can use both 5.25-inch and 3.5-inch floppy disks! Plus, it has a CD-ROM drive! And the latest 16-bit sound card for amazing sound quality! And to top it all off, a 14-inch state-of-the-art monitor so you can enjoy everything on a larger screen! All this for just 3 million won!"
It was a surprising price, but my mind was elsewhere. I was quickly taking notes.
"Me…memory…hard…disk…floppy…what inch did you say…?"
While the owner was busy promoting the computer, I took out a small circuit board from my backpack and asked,
"Can I sell this secondhand too? My friend asked me to sell it for him while I'm selling the computer."
"The resale value of network cards is very low. They don't break easily, and there are so many of them on the market. I'll give you 10,000 won for it."
"I see. Network…card… Okay. Hmm."
As I pretended to contemplate, Maru suddenly walked into the shop. The owner was startled by the appearance of the 185-centimeter tall, 120-kilogram giant.
"Hey, what are you doing here? We're going to be late for our appointment. Do you want to get beaten up by the boss again?"
"Gasp! Boss! I'm so sorry, sir. I'll come back later."
I quickly grabbed the computer and followed Maru out of the shop. As we walked away, Maru grumbled,
"Why am I the boss?"
"You look stronger than me. This is the best way to get out of a situation quickly."
"Can't we just ask directly? We could even offer some money."
I wagged my finger.
"Don't be ridiculous. Who would reveal their business secrets to a stranger? We can learn everything by visiting these shops one by one. So, he said this is a RAM card, right?"
I wrote "RAM card" in large letters on the card and headed to the next shop.
After visiting several shops, I started to understand what computers were all about.
Of course, the owners would have lowballed the prices, but just by listening to the prices, I could figure out the importance of each component.
I stopped by a bookstore and bought a pile of computer-related books. That day marked the beginning of my computer studies.
CPU, GPU, the bulky metal chunk that was the hard drive, floppy disks, and so on.
I disassembled and reassembled the four computers I had, experimenting and researching.
"Alright, I think I have a grasp of it. Let's start a new business."
"Hyung, shouldn't you study more before jumping in? What if you lose money?"
"No, I think this is a race against time. The component market already exists. The secondhand market is active too. It's just that this knowledge hasn't reached the junkyard world yet. We need to get in now to gain a first-mover advantage. What do those old junkyard owners know about computers? They'll gladly sell them even if we offer scrap metal prices."
"You didn't know much about them until recently either."
"That's why I'm saying this! We know now, so we need to act fast. Junkyard owners will just disassemble and sell the computers for parts, but imagine if we offer to buy them without disassembling. We'll save on labor costs."
I immediately ordered new business cards.
'Chunho Resources. We buy circuit boards, computer main units, and monitors, unassembled. We travel nationwide for orders of 5 or more units.'
As soon as the business cards arrived, I took action. I started visiting junkyards, mainly in the city.
I drove the 1-ton truck to the junkyards, handed out my business cards, and started buying unassembled computers.
I would visit a junkyard, hand out my card, and if they had computers, I would buy the main units for 4,000 won each and the monitors for 2,000 won each. Then I would ask for directions to the nearest junkyard and repeat the process.
When the truck was full, I would go back, unload, and start again.
I even sacrificed sleep to maximize my time, leaving a business card on the doors of closed junkyards and throwing one over the fence before moving on. In a month, I had visited most of the junkyards in Seoul, starting with Ansan.
At first, it was difficult to find computers. Since they weren't difficult to disassemble, most junkyard owners had already taken them apart.
But after a month, I started receiving calls from the junkyards I had visited earlier.
They had five units ready for me to collect. I immediately rushed to buy the main units and monitors.
10 units became 30, and 30 became 100 in no time. And then the testing began.
"First, disassemble them and test each part."
I taught the employees how to disassemble and test the components, and I was in charge of the final inspection and assembly.
There were many trial and errors at first.
"These guys just put everything back together haphazardly after disassembling them."
Since I offered to buy unassembled computers, some junkyard owners tried to trick me by reassembling the computers they had already disassembled.
They forced the parts together, resulting in broken components and incomplete units.
In the end, I had to contact the junkyards and tell them I would also buy disassembled parts separately.
Moreover, the employees, who were unfamiliar with computers, were incredibly slow at testing.
It took them almost an hour to disassemble and test one computer, one part at a time. I thought about it and came up with a solution.
"Let's build test rigs."
After researching and disassembling and assembling computers for a while, I became quite familiar with them. I immediately started working on the test rigs.
Instead of assembling a working computer inside the case, I laid out the components on the floor and assembled them with only one part missing. A test rig without a hard drive, a test rig without a RAM card, and so on. This sped up the process significantly.
The employees would disassemble the computers, plug the components into the test rigs, and if they worked, they passed. If not, they were discarded. As they became more proficient, they managed to revive 85 out of 100 main units in just three days.
"Wow! How much is this worth? It cost me 400,000 won to buy those 100 units. If I sell these 85 units for just 200,000 won… Gasp! 17 million won!"
"Hyung, this is… amazing. Amazing."
"We need more employees. We're getting this much just from Seoul, imagine the potential nationwide. Let's hire more salespeople. The scrap metal from the industrial complex isn't important anymore. This is it. This is the real deal. Find a worker who can operate a forklift, and you join this side too."
Once I had a decent amount of stock, I needed to find a way to sell them. There were two options.
"Sell them directly or sell them to a secondhand wholesaler."
I could open a store in Yongsan Electronics Market or Sewoon Sangga and sell the used computers directly to consumers at a higher price.
But that would only work while the volume was still low. Once I started collecting nationwide, would a single store be enough to handle the volume?
Time was of the essence. I needed to expand my network quickly and establish a nationwide presence to prepare for future competitors.
"How long can I maintain this monopoly? One year? Two years?"
The technology itself wasn't difficult. It was just that people weren't aware of it yet.
The old junkyard owners were still in the dark about the market prices and were happy to sell at those prices, but how long would that last?
I honestly didn't think it would last even a year. Some junkyard owners might realize the potential of computers, or someone working in the computer market might discover this opportunity.
Once I started buying in earnest, the word would spread quickly. Then the price competition would begin. To build a nationwide distribution network and gain an advantage in the price war, I needed to involve a secondhand wholesaler.
"There must be a secondhand wholesaler who buys in bulk and supplies the stores."
But how could I find them? The store owners wouldn't tell me, and they would rather buy from me and sell to the wholesaler themselves to make a profit.
"A man goes straight."
I loaded the 1-ton truck with computers and headed to Yongsan Electronics Market in Seoul.
It was a weekend, so the market was packed with people. I parked the truck near the market and hung up the sign I had prepared.
'-Selling 100 used computers. Looking for a secondhand wholesaler for a long-term partnership. Can supply over 100 units per month-'
The truck only had less than 50 sets of monitors and main units, but it was just for show.
People passed by, staring and whispering, but I calmly placed a plastic folding chair next to the sign and waited.
After about five minutes, a man approached me and said,
"Is that all you have in the truck?"
"No, I have more at my company."
The man nodded and said,
"I own a computer store, and I'm interested in buying. Can I check the specs of the computers?"
I looked at him and asked,
"Are you a wholesaler? Or do you run a store in the market?"
"You seem to be new to this business. There are no wholesalers like that in Yongsan Electronics Market. We all run small shops and help each other out with inventory when we need a large quantity. So, why don't we grab a coffee and talk instead of standing here?"
I shook my head and declined his offer.
"No, thank you. I'm fine. Let's do business another time."
"You really seem to be unfamiliar with how things work here…"
The man rambled on, but I kept ignoring him, focusing my gaze straight ahead. After talking for a while, he gave up and walked away, grumbling.
Many other people approached me and expressed their interest in buying, but I rejected them all.
A wholesaler should at least have a warehouse. They all tried to evade the question when I asked about their warehouse, so I turned them down firmly.
This wasn't a one-time deal. It was an important partnership that would sustain my business in the long run, and I believed that the first step was crucial.
In almost four hours, at least 20 people approached me and were rejected, leaving with disappointed expressions. The closing time for Yongsan Electronics Market was approaching. The sky was getting dark, and I started thinking about going home.
I hadn't expected it to be easy, so I was about to leave without any regrets when two men approached me and said,
"Hello."
"Hello."
So far, it was no different from the previous encounters.
"You said you're looking for a long-term partnership. Does that mean you'll have a consistent supply?"
"Yes, I can supply at least 100 units per month."
The man suddenly spoke to the younger man next to him in a language I didn't understand.
"Do we need to do this officially with documents? Or can we do a cash transaction without any paperwork?"
"I prefer a cash transaction without paperwork."
The man spoke to the younger man again, who nodded.
"If you have time, we'd like to invite you to our warehouse. Our boss is interested in this deal."
'Got it!'
Bingo.