Richard immediately opened the message.

The profile picture showed a middle-aged man standing beside a white SUV.

The account looked legitimate.

Years of posts.

Family photos.

Business-related content.

Not a dummy account.

Not a scammer.

Most importantly...

The first message wasn’t asking for a last price after twenty-three minutes.

That was already a good sign.

The message read:

"Hello. Is the BMW 330i still available?"

Richard quickly typed a response.

"Good evening sir. Yes, the BMW 330i M Sport is still available."

The reply arrived less than a minute later.

"Black Sapphire Metallic?"

Richard glanced toward the dealership lot through the office window.

The black BMW sat closest to the entrance.

Even from here it looked expensive.

"Yes sir. Black Sapphire Metallic."

"2024 model?"

"Yes sir."

"How many kilometers?"

"18,427 km."

The typing indicator immediately appeared.

Then another message followed.

"Casa maintained?"

"Yes sir."

"Complete service records available?"

"Yes sir. Complete records."

The customer replied almost instantly.

"Any accident history?"

Richard already knew the answer.

The reconstructed history showed a clean record.

"No major accident history sir."

"Original paint?"

"Yes sir."

"Any issues with electronics?"

"None sir."

"360 camera working?"

"Yes sir. Everything is working fine!"

The typing indicator appeared again.

This time it remained there longer.

Clearly the man knew what he was looking for.

A casual buyer usually asked about monthly amortization first.

This guy was asking technical questions.

Then another message appeared.

"Can you send more interior photos?"

Richard opened his gallery and sent several images.

Front seats.

Dashboard.

Steering wheel.

Rear seats.

Center console.

A few seconds passed.

Then the customer reacted with a thumbs up.

"Looks clean."

"Thank you sir. Are you interested? You can visit tomorrow in my dealership where we can negotiate price? Uhm, to inform you sir, we only accept cash payment only, is that okay to you?"

Richard asked as he hasn’t partnered with financing companies yet so cash is the only method of payment. Ten seconds later, the client replied.

"I can pay cash."

Richard’s eyebrows immediately rose.

That answer alone eliminated a huge amount of uncertainty.

Most inquiries ended the moment buyers discovered the price.

Others spent hours negotiating financing options.

Some simply disappeared.

This one?

The man was talking about cash.

For a vehicle worth over three million pesos.

That alone told Richard he wasn’t dealing with an ordinary buyer.

Richard quickly replied.

"That’s great sir."

"When would you like to visit?"

The response arrived almost immediately.

"Tomorrow morning."

"Around 10 AM if that’s okay."

Richard glanced at the time.

Perfect.

The dealership wasn’t exactly busy.

In fact, he was the only employee.

"10 AM works perfectly sir."

"I’ll be at the dealership."

The typing indicator appeared again.

Then another message arrived.

"I’d like to inspect the complete papers as well."

"You’ll see them tomorrow, it’s at the car," Richard said.

The customer replied with a thumbs-up emoji.

Then another message followed.

"How negotiable is the price?"

Richard smiled.

There it was.

The inevitable question.

No Filipino bought a vehicle without attempting to negotiate.

Not even rich buyers.

Actually, rich buyers often negotiated harder.

Richard thought for a moment.

The listed price was already competitive.

Lower than comparable units being sold by established dealerships. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Still.

Leaving room for negotiation was part of the game.

"We can discuss it tomorrow sir after you’ve inspected the vehicle."

"Fair enough."

The customer responded.

Then another message arrived.

"To be honest, I’ve been looking for a 330i for almost two months now."

"Most of the units I’ve seen either have questionable history or suspicious mileage. Which is why tomorrow I might bring my own mechanic to inspect the car."

"I see sir, it’s fine, you can bring your mechanic. They are welcome to perform as many tests as they want. Would that be all sir?"

"Yes that’s all, thank you for accommodating me and with your swift response," the client said with a thumbs-up emoji.

***

A day later, Richard slept in the dealership as he couldn’t afford to fumble the first deal of the company’s existence.

Not that he slept particularly well.

He probably woke up five times during the night.

Sometimes to check the time.

Sometimes to check his phone.

And once because he thought somebody had entered the lot.

Nobody had.

It was just his nerves.

By nine in the morning, Richard had already cleaned the office, arranged the documents, and inspected the BMW three separate times.

The vehicle didn’t need cleaning.

It was already spotless.

Yet he still wiped portions of the dashboard.

Then checked the tires.

Then checked the paint.

Then checked everything again.

At exactly 9:58 AM, a white Toyota Land Cruiser turned into the road leading toward Phoenix Auto Trading.

Richard immediately noticed it through the office window.

His first customer had arrived.

The Land Cruiser slowly approached the gate before entering the property.

Then something interesting happened.

The vehicle slowed down.

Considerably.

Richard could practically see the driver processing what he was seeing.

And honestly?

He didn’t blame him.

The customer had probably expected something completely different.

After all, Phoenix Auto Trading was new.

Very new.

Its Facebook page was barely days old.

Its listings had only appeared online recently.

Most people would’ve assumed it was some tiny buy-and-sell operation operating from a random vacant lot.

Instead...

The Land Cruiser rolled deeper into the property.

And the driver visibly slowed down even more.

Because rows of premium vehicles sat beneath the roofing.

The black BMW 330i.

The pair of BMW X3s.

The Lexus NX.

The Mercedes GLC.

The Audi Q5.

The Fortuner GR Sports.

The Camry hybrids.

Every vehicle looked clean.

The Land Cruiser eventually stopped near the office.

Three people emerged.

The middle-aged man from the profile picture.

A younger man carrying a diagnostic scanner case.

And a driver.

Richard immediately guessed which one was the mechanic.

The middle-aged man spent several seconds looking around before walking toward the office.

His eyes continued moving from vehicle to vehicle.

Clearly surprised.

Very surprised.

Richard stepped outside and greeted them.

"Good morning sir."

The man smiled and extended his hand.

"Good morning."

"I’m Vincent."

Richard shook it.

"Richard."

Then Vincent looked around again.

"You know..."

He laughed slightly.

"I wasn’t expecting this."

Richard raised an eyebrow.

"Expecting what sir?"

Vincent gestured toward the dealership.

"Honestly? I thought I’d be visiting one of those small buy-and-sell lots with five or six vehicles. I checked your Facebook page last night. It looked new."

Richard smiled.

"You’re not wrong sir. I just recently opened and you are my first client."

"I see, well let’s get down to the business."