“You will never know the result if you don’t give it a try.” - Ai Ling
Hualien Markets - Exclusive Interview with Wang Jia Dumplings
#ChongqingMarket
#KeepYourFaith
#LearnFromYourCustomers
August 7th, 2020
Text/ LI Shan
Translation/ LIU Yi-Chun
Photography/ LEE Te-Mao
“I believe the customers can feel our dedication to the ingredients,” Ai Ling said gently with confidence and some flour on her arms. Ai Ling has been selling dumplings in the Chongqing Market before it was reconstructed. She named the stall “Wang Jia Dumplings” after her husband’s family name because her mother-in-law actually started the business first and she acquired the skills and tips from her. At first, Ai Ling sold fresh juice and also clothes in the market while her mother-in-law sold dumplings next to her stall. After her kids grew older, she was thinking about earning extra money to support the family. In 1999, she decided to come to the Chongqing Market to start the dumpling business here.
“There’s no turning back. Are you sure about this?”
When Ai Ling first came to the market, she didn’t know anyone. Many customers preferred to go to the vendors they were familiar with. However, Ai Ling found that many veterans visited the market quite often, and since she was the second-generation Mainland Chinese immigrant, they could communicate in dialects. Ai Ling always listened to their stories sincerely and treated them as friends. Because of her friendliness, the veterans enjoyed having conversations with her.
“You have to be in the shoe of your customers. It’s okay to earn less money but you can never weigh on your conscience,” Ai Ling said. She not only sticks to these principles herself but also asks her daughter to follow since she is working with her at the stall now. Her daughter used to be impatient to the elder customers. Ai Ling once pulled her aside after the customers left, and asked her to change her attitude. She told her that sometimes it might be difficult to understand the elder customers’ words and that was exactly why she should pay more attention to it. Ai Ling asked her daughter “will you treat me the same way when I grow old?” then she realized her problem.
When her daughter decided to join the family business, Ai Ling reminded her that there’s no turning back and she must be sure about it. She hoped her daughter won’t give up easily once she made the decision. Now Wang Jia Dumplings is in the third generation, and her three daughters are all involved in the business. Just like how she learnt from her mother-in-law in the past, now all her daughters spend every day in the market and learn the tips and skills from her. In addition to the tips of making dumplings, she focuses more on teaching them how to treat customers appropriately. Ai Ling said that she is so grateful for all the kind support the customers gave her all along. One time her teacher passed by her stall and told her that “Ai Ling, you did a great job. Keep your faith and don’t give up.” She was moved to hear that. It made all the effort worthwhile.
She joined the association to speak up for other vendors in return for their kindness and support
When Ai Ling was new to the market, the vendors were kind to her and always supported her whenever she encountered problems. For example, they would let her use the fridges for her stuffing. Ai Ling is like the daughter of the market. When she realized that some vendors were treated unfairly in the market and didn’t know what to do, she decided to join the market association to speak up for them in return for their kindness and support. She even became the chairman this year. However, she feels a bit distanced and awkward when people calling her chairman. To her, chairman is just a title and she is still the same person. The last thing she wants is the position of chairman changed her relationships with people in the market. Ai Ling could not sleep and eat well at the beginning of her term as the chairman. She even lost some weight out of this. Now, she realizes that everything is about communication. When facing different opinions, it’s important to try to understand others’ perspectives and pay respect to their feelings, especially when dealing with the elder vendors. It’s helpful to know about their daily routine in the market when dealing with arguments. Ai Ling said communication and respect are the key to keep the market prosperous.
She gave discounts to encourage the customers to bring their own utensils
Ai Ling recalled that when she lived in the military kindred village, she learnt how to make dumplings from her family. She preferred quiet activities so making dumplings suits her very much. She considered it a perfect job and never thought about quitting. Every morning, her mother-in-law will prepare all the ingredients at home and Ai Ling will head to the market to clean up first. They will make the dumplings right at the stall. Ai Ling said people now prefer lean meat and care about the quality and hygiene of the meat. Therefore, she will purchase the ingredients from the best vendors of Chongqing Market. The customers used to only buy dumplings that were made on site. Now, they will make reservation in advance and they also accept frozen dumplings. Ai Ling continued to adapt her way of doing business according the changes. Moreover, she supports plastic-free. She once held a campaign to encourage the customers to bring their own utensils instead of using the provided plastic packings. If the customers brought their own utensils, they would get discounts. Not everyone agreed with this idea since it couldn’t make money, but Ai Ling thought differently. She wanted to take action on the environmental issues so as to leave a better environment for her grandchildren to live in. Surprisingly, the campaign was a huge success. It attracted many customers who support the environmental-friendly idea. The dumplings sold out quickly and there was even one customer who had to come to their stall for three consecutive days to be able to buy the dumplings. This is one of the most impressive experience Ai Ling has throughout her life at the market.
The only four-star friendly market in Hualien
Ai Ling said the Chongqing Market keeps improving since it was reconstructed. Now the market is equipped with wheelchair ramp and toilets for the disabled. Also, the market will do the drainage maintenance and disinfection every month. All the progression and improvement we see today has come a long way. In 2019, the Chongqing Market was rewarded as the only four-star market in Hualien and Taitung thanks to the effort of the association members and the vendors. Ai Ling said she has amazing partners who are passionate and hardworking. They are willing to assist the vendors on administrative affairs to let everyone work smoothly together. Ai Ling is very optimistic about the future of the Chongqing Market. It is a friendly market that provides a variety of groceries and the vendors get along well with each other. She hopes the Chongqing Market can be prosperous by having more popular stalls and keep upgrading its environment and service.
