Jianguomen in the capital was originally a city gate built during the Japanese and puppet rule.
It was a gap opened in the east wall of the inner city, which was called "Qiming Gate" at that time.
After the Japanese invaders surrendered, and under the strong demand of the broad masses of the people, the Peking City Government renamed this city gate "Jianguo Gate" on November 9, 1945.
The situation in West Chang'an Street is similar. The "Chang'an Gate" that was opened during the Japanese puppet period was also renamed "Fuxing Gate".
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, both Jianguomen and Fuxingmen have become the intersection of Chang'an Street and the Second Ring Road.
The city gate back then is no longer there.
Take East Chang'an Street as an example. The main buildings here currently include Jianguomen Bridge, Ancient Observatory, Friendship Store, etc.
Our country's batch number is "002", which is the country's first joint venture hotel pilot project jointly established by the Beijing Branch of China International Travel Service and Huamei Hotel Development Co., Ltd., with Peninsula Hotels Group being appointed by the foreign party to manage and operate.
It is precisely because the location was chosen here that the name "Jianguo Hotel" finally came into being.
This Sino-US joint venture tourist hotel covers an area of 17,000 square meters, a construction area of 30,000 square meters, a nine-story building, a total of 582 guest rooms, and an investment of up to 20 million US dollars.
From the groundbreaking on June 27, 1980, the construction cycle only took less than two years.
It opened for business on April 28, 1982.
There is no doubt that the opening ceremony that day was a very important event for the capital.
Chinese and foreign reporters gathered at the scene, and even the People's Daily and national television station sent people.
And whether it's a camera lens or a camera lens, there is no time to stop shooting during the whole process.
Because in addition to the grand ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by the Chinese leaders in charge of the project and the foreign investors, Jianguo Hotel is unique in every aspect.
The most obvious one is the appearance of Jianguo Hotel.
Compared with other buildings on Chang'an Avenue, although it looks very short, it is very long.
But the arched and flying eaves, the coffee-colored glass windows, and the flags fluttering in the wind are very novel.
It always makes people feel that Jianguo Hotel is like an ocean-going ship waiting to sail from nowhere and not knowing where to go.
It has quite a metaphorical flavor of "coming across the ocean".
So much so that even thirty years later, it is still a landmark building in the capital.
For another example, the interior of Jianguo Hotel also has a unique garden style in Beijing.
The artificial courtyard landscape here is unexpectedly created except for a winding creek.
The stream flows in the center of all buildings, turning, bouncing, swaying, and changing in countless ways.
There is also a gurgling spring in the middle, which is extremely natural and wild.
What's even more fascinating is that some of the guest room buildings have small terraces protruding from the side adjacent to the creek.
It is completely conceivable that when the residents sit on the small terrace, looking at the green green and listening to the gurgling water.
How carefree it is to sip a pot of fragrant tea or clink glasses and drink.
Furthermore, the facilities in all 528 guest rooms are extraordinary.
Surprisingly, each room is equipped with a color TV, a touch-tone telephone, a private bathroom and central air conditioning.
All of these things were modernization beyond ordinary people's imagination back then.
Even the waiter's white collar and black vest were completely different from the blue pants and white coat worn by other hotel waiters at that time.
Moreover, Jianguo Hotel also opened the first authentic French restaurant in Beijing, Justine’s, before Pierre Catton did.
You know, how difficult this matter is depends on the situation in our country.
At this time, the Republic could not even find a loom capable of weaving three-meter wide cloth, so it could only import curtains, bedsheets and fabrics from abroad.
And decent pastry raw materials are even more rare.
Everything as small as a piece of butter, a bottle of jam, or a bag of special flour must be purchased through the port city with foreign currency.
From this we can see what kind of huge investment this is.
Another thing is the unimaginably clean toilet conditions, which have also become a symbol of Jianguo Hotel's high-end standards.
This is because the toilet conditions in Beijing at that time were extremely poor, even those in hotels smelled bad.
When foreigners come to our country, besides not being able to eat real bread, they are even more afraid of using our toilets.
Especially if you have to go out of the hotel to catch up with a domestic emergency, it must be a nightmare-like experience. You have to go back to your residence no matter how far you go to solve the problem.
But what happened at the Jianguo Hotel completely changed everyone’s inherent understanding of the toilets in the Republic.
All imported ceramic products are used here, and there are dedicated personnel on duty to clean them at any time according to regulations.
It is indeed turning your own toilet into a bathroom, which is quite close to international standards.
Female guests can apply powder and makeup on their faces here.
In short, these rare modern facilities far exceed the lifestyle imagined by Chinese people.
It reminds people that the Republic has its first truly international hotel!
It can be said that this day is a milestone in the history of hotel development in my country.
Because it was with the Jianguo Hotel that the Republic finally broke the guesthouse-style tourist reception model that had lasted for decades.
This is no wonder why the opening of Jianguo Hotel attracted the full attention of so many media reporters, who couldn't wait to report everything that happened here.
For example, that night, the incident was featured on the national TV station's "Xinwen Lianbo", and newspapers and periodicals in the capital used important pages to report on it.
A Reuters article stated, "The first truly Western-style hotel opened in the capital, bringing necessary charm to this drab and windy city."
"AFP" also commented, "In a city where the hotel service industry has gone from poor to medium, Jianguo Hotel has been hailed as the best hotel in the capital overnight."
Of course, this day is particularly important for Ning Weimin and Song Huagui.
Can the Jianguo Hotel franchise store with "PC" clothing have a good start with the opening of the hotel and gain market recognition?
It will not only determine whether Ning Weimin's personal career can enter a new period of growth, but also his future.
This is even related to whether Pierre Carton can still maintain trust in Song Huagui in the future.
And whether Song Huagui's personal prestige within the company will be damaged.
After all, so much money has been invested. If it cannot be replenished in time, there may be problems with the capital circulation of the Republic.
And Song Huagui, who is extremely determined to invest funds in these projects, will find out that his decision is actually wrong.
I would definitely have no shame in approaching the head office for material support.
She will definitely be criticized privately by her subordinates, which will inevitably make employees doubt her ability.
On the other hand, everyone is happy.
Not only Ning Weimin and Song Huagui were able to give satisfactory explanations to their superiors.
It also means that the business direction of Pierre Carton is correct and has passed the actual test of the market.
From now on, we have secured the upper hand, and we can fully roll out the business, and operate and expand according to the plan with peace of mind.
It can even be said that Pierre Carton has set a successful benchmark for domestic garment industry peers.
The high-end clothing business model they created is destined to be used as a model by countless peers to imitate and learn from in the future.