Focus

Story of an illegal DVD store owner

(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-04-29 07:56

Feng Huihui (not her real name) has been operating a pirated DVD and CD store in Chaoyang district for years. She sells both foreign and Chinese movies and her latest Hollywood arrivals include The Men Who Stare at Goats, Peacock, The Open Road and Everybody is Fine. Early this week Feng talked to METRO about what she says is a "business with small capital."

Q: How big is your shop and how much did you need to start such a business?

A: The shop is about eight to nine sq m. I pay 34, 000 yuan per year in rent. I think 100, 0000 yuan would be enough for somebody to enter the business.

Q: How many foreign titles do you have?

A: I've lost count of them. There are probably thousands. I only put the new arrivals on the shelf. But there are also many in the boxes for customers in search of old films.

Q: Is business good?

A: I sell an average of 700 yuan worth of DVDs and CDs per day. Generally speaking, DVDs of foreign blockbusters and television series sell better than Chinese films. On some days, people spend thousands of yuan on foreign DVDs. Some buy when they go abroad. People tell me they watch the DVDs only once, so they don't want to buy real copies, which sell for dozens of yuan each.

Q: How much do you pay for the pirated copies? Is the quality of pirated films as good as real ones?

A: I buy them for less than four yuan each and sell them for six yuan apiece. I cannot tell you where I get them because it's a business secret. We guarantee the quality of the DVDs. People can come back for another copy if they have problems playing them at home. They also can test them on the DVD player at my store. But I won't give a refund.

Q: Have you heard of the police raids on pirated DVD stores? Some shops owners say they've stopped selling because they're tired of playing seek-and-hide with the police. Are you afraid?

A: My shop has been legally registered with the local industry and commerce bureau. The officials even helped me think up a new name for my shop, when they found others already took the name I wanted.

Q: Why did the raids not affect your shop even though you have a 'DVD and CD' sign on the storefront?

A: Let's talk about something else.

METRO