41. a dream he had once while working at the company.
“Is it real, or is it that bad?”
After being speechless for a while, Jae-ha regained his composure and opened his mouth.
“Yes, it’s like that. My dad is at the foundation.”
“You must have really succeeded, huh?”
“Yes. Don’t ask me how, because I can’t explain it.”
“Whew! Okay, but what are you going to do with the company? Are you buying it purely for me?”
“No. You’re part of the reason, but not all of it. Remember that story we used to tell over drinks sometimes?”
“What story?”
“Didn’t I tell you that someday, if I had the money, I’d like to start a fashion business and create a global SPA brand like H&M or ZARA in Korea, and that if that happened, you’d make the cheapest, best quality clothes in the world?”
“I remember. I did. I was very drunk.”
I may be a toddler, but I’ve spent six years on the fashion floor.
Plus, Mr. Hong’s policy was that sales should know production, so I knew how production worked, and I knew roughly what the cost was and how it was organized, if not in detail.
So I had a dream that one day I would be independent and start my own company, and I used to tell Jaeha only.
“You can think of it as a conjunction, but from an investment perspective, it’s not a good investment to buy a company with $30 billion in revenue when the market for baby clothes is so sleepy.”
“But?”
“Before I came to Korea, I researched here and there, and there are some mid-sized brands, not just JD-style, that are in a very risky situation financially, so I’m going to buy a few of them and combine them, and that’s how we’re going to start, and gradually we’re going to do adult wear.”
“And who’s going to run the business? I thought you had a big investment business in the U.S.?”
“You have a brother, don’t you?”
“Me, me? You’re going to report to me?”
“Yeah. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to put you in charge and leave you to your own devices. Unlike my other investments, I’m going to care about it, and I’m going to keep supporting it.”
“Huh—.”
From nob le mt l. co m
Jae-ha blushed red at the unexpected situation.
It definitely wasn’t from drinking.
“Why? Are you not confident? If you’re not confident, say it now. I’m only in the clothing business because of you, not because I don’t have anyone to trust.”
“Let me ask you a question. How far do you want to go?”
“I told you, my goal is H&M, ZARA, Uniqlo, don’t even get me started on the Korean Six Seconds or Top to Five.”
“Are you sure you want to support that?”
“We’re going to invest 100 billion this year, 200 billion next year, and more after that, depending on the situation. I don’t want you to say we’re failing because we don’t have enough money.”
Gulp!
From nob le mt l. co m
Jae-ha gulped down the rolled wheat to quench his thirst.
Thwack!
“You’re really going, aren’t you?”
“I’m going?”
“Are you serious?”
“Really?”
“Okay! Let’s go!”
“Let’s go!”
“hahahahaha!”
“hahahahaha!”
So here we go.
It’s a dream I had at one point in my career.
I’m not going to do it myself, but I’m going to go as far as I can.
The next day, I called Mr. Hong and he was so excited.
I don’t know what else he does, but he’s really good at this.
I told him I wanted to say hello, but he said he had an appointment today, so I went the next afternoon.
I arrived at the building where Daesung Apparel was located and took the elevator upstairs.
Two years and a few months later?
What a feeling.
Ding-dong!
– Who’s there?
I pressed the bell at the entrance, and the voice that came out of the intercom was Mrs. Chung, who had been taking good care of me.
She was the bookkeeper and secretary of the management support office.
“Me!”
– Who’s me?
“Me? Has she forgotten my voice already?”
– Oh my God, spelled out?
“I’m not the only one who talks into the intercom, am I?”
– Oh my God, it’s really Cheol-sik!
I’m the only one who talks like this when I leave my security card behind and go to the restroom or smoke a cigarette and then ask for the door to be opened.
Ziying!
The automatic door opened and I went inside.
After all the traveling and hardships, why am I so happy to see you?
“Wow, Chul-sik, you look so cool!”
“hahahahaha! How are you?”
“Oh, it’s obvious that it’s us, but why are you so handsome, you’re so fresh?”
“Hmph! Do you think it worked?”
“Yes! A lot!”
“Where’s the sales department?”
“How could they be in the office at this hour? They’re all closed.”
“Sure. Where’s the boss? I promised?”
“The new manager from the bank downstairs said hello. He’ll be there in a minute.”
“Great. In the meantime, I’ll go say hello. Is Mr. Lee there?”
“Yes, he’s here.”
Ms. Lee refers to Mr. Hong’s wife, Ms. Lee Jung-mi, who is in charge of the management support office.
Unlike Mr. Hong, she was very close to me, probably because she was an auntie.
Sometimes we talked about Mr. Hong behind his back.
I knocked on her door and said hello, and she was very happy to see me.
Next, I went around the production department and then the design room.
Of course, everyone welcomed the return of Stagnant Water (?), but as a company with a huge turnover rate, half of the employees had joined after I left, even though it had only been two years.
“Chul-sik, you’ve got company!”
I was chatting with the head of the design room when Mrs. Chung came and called me over.
“Hello, boss!”
“Oooooh, look at you, you’re all glowing, aren’t you?”
“You’re getting better since you don’t get cussed out by the boss?”
“Hey you!”
“hahahahaha!”
“hahahahaha!”
After talking about this and that, I stood up to drink.
“Hey, should I call Mr. Park and Mr. Lee, they’re both out of town and on their way back in?”
“No, boss, I have a long talk with them today.”
“Okay, then.”
“I’ll drive you today, so why don’t you go to the Korean restaurant up ahead?”
“Wow, you must have made a lot of money, I can smell the money.”
“Don’t you have a reputation for smelling the boss’s money?”
“hahahahaha! Isn’t that right?”
“Yup!”
Mr. Hong was indeed very good at smelling money.
It was almost an instinct.
We sat down at the Korean restaurant across the street, the one he only takes customers to when he has guests from Daesung, and started drinking.
Mr. Hong is a big drinker.
“Kya! In the 12 years I’ve been in business, you’re the first employee who left the company to come and buy me a drink. Thank you, man.”
Mr. Hong is in a really good mood.
“Drink up, Mr. Hong.”
“Yes, yes.”
Once they each had a bottle of soju, they started talking.
“How’s the company doing, boss?”
“How’s it going? It’s going well now, but I’m worried about the next few years. I can’t sleep at night because I’m worried about the next few years.”
“Yeah, they don’t have many kids these days.”
One of the secrets of Mr. Hong’s self-made success is that even if he is doing well now, he is very worried about the future.
“Hey, you should get married! You’re not even married, so how can you have kids?”
“Hmph, I’m sorry.”
“I’m just saying, you’re going to Saudi Arabia and you seem to be pretty successful?”
“Is that so?”
“Who am I to say that I can’t smell money, and that suit you’re wearing looks like a luxury item, right?”
“hahahaha! I spent a little.”
Mr. Hong doesn’t know the first thing about luxury goods.
Even with all the money he makes, his jacket is from XX Fashion, and he knows the best.
He only buys them when they’re on sale at outlets.
But he knows fabrics, so he thinks my suits are the highest quality.
“Son of a b*tch! Don’t splurge just because you’ve made some money, spend it sparingly. No matter how much money you have, it will be gone in a second, so be a good steward.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“So, what did you say about being careful?”
“Don’t get angry, and listen to what I’m saying.”
“Dude, you’re not even my employee anymore, why would I be angry? What’s wrong with you?”
Is it okay to be angry if you’re my employee?
“Boss, are you thinking of selling the company?”
“What? The company? Why the company? Well, it’s not worthless if the price is right, but who would buy it nowadays? I can’t sell it at a loss.”
“So you’re saying you’d sell it if the price was right?”
“Dude, why are you asking that?”
“I was thinking of buying it.”
“What, man? Heh, heh, heh, drink up. Don’t talk bullsh*t.”
“I’m serious, boss!”
“Is this guy crazy, just showing up out of the blue after two years? What’s wrong with you?”
I knew this would be the reaction.
I didn’t want to waste any time, so I did my homework.
“Boss, could you please call Judge Kang?”
“What? What’s with Judge Kang all of a sudden?”
“Can you just listen to me for once, didn’t you do that to that boss?”
“No, you bastard, what’s with Judge Kang all of a sudden?”
“You’ll find out when you call, I’m waiting for the boss to call.”
“What? Jung-soo? Why?”
“Because someone who knows me has already told Judge Kang about me.”
“What do you mean?”
“I just want you to pretend you’re being tricked and calling to say hello.”
“Okay, dude, I’m calling and I’m going home!”
“Yeah, you can do that.”
“Sucks, huh?”
Mr. Hong grumbled and picked up the phone.
From nob le mt l. co m
Judge Kang is the current deputy chief judge of the High Court and a high school classmate of Mr. Hong’s.
I’d seen him a couple of times as a chauffeur.
That’s why he’d asked his senior lawyer, Mr. Park Hong-ryul, to do it for him.
I asked him to confirm my identity to a very suspicious Mr. Hong.
“Uh, Jung-soo! It’s me! What, were you waiting for me?”
Mr. Hong’s eyes widened.
“What, a call from a former Supreme Court justice?”
Lawyer Park must have told Chairman Zhang, huh?
I didn’t tell him because I didn’t want to bother him.
“Don’t give me the benefit of the doubt? What, Il, Il Joe? Oh, okay. Okay, okay, thank you.”
Mr. Hong put down his phone and opened his mouth in disbelief.
“What the hell happened to you in two years?”
I can’t tell you that.
After a long silence, Mr. Hong sipped his soju in succession, and then asked me again.
“So, you’re worth a trillion?”
He must have abbreviated it a lot.
“Yes, sir.”
“hehehehe, this is it, Wen, you’re a ghost, so let’s just say it’s true.”
“Do you believe that I have the ability to buy the company now?”
“No, I believe that Jung-soo guarantees it, so what?”
“Then, if the price is right, are you willing to sell the company to me?”
“Hey, Cheol-sik.”
“Yes, boss.”
“You know me, don’t you?”
“Really? I’ve known you for six years.”
“Then you also know that I’m not someone to sell out just because I’m you, right?”
“Of course I do.”
This is the kind of guy who doesn’t want to lose a cent, even if it’s his brother.
“Okay, then let me get this straight. You want to buy 100% of the company?”
“Yes, 100%.”
“How do you want to price it?”
“Here’s the deal, I know it’s obvious, but don’t complicate it. I’ll give you the market value of the property. It’s the Cheonan distribution center, the company office, and two shops and a shepherd’s apartment, right?”
“You’re a ghost?”
“Aye, except for the apartment, you bought it when I was there, and I moved it all in.”
“Hmph, yeah.”
“Anyway, I’ll put 5% on top of the most recent actual sales price in the neighborhood for the property, is that okay?”
“Hmmm, that’s okay.”
Not okay, but good,
“And I’ll give you 10 billion for all the other tangible and intangible assets, including the 100 stores nationwide, plus goodwill, brand, etc. Actually, the experts I’ve hired say 7 to 8 billion is a fair price, but I’m just going with 10 billion, and I’m sure you can figure that out on your own.”
“Hmm, I’ll check that out, but what about the inventory?”
“I’ll just give you the book value.”
“Without even doing a physical inventory?”
“What’s there to tire each other out? How many times have I been called in to do inventory? It’s gross.”
“Puh-ha-ha! Isn’t that right, you’re negotiating with a guy who knows this stuff too well, so you’re comfortable with that?”
I’m paranoid about inventory, so I was comfortable with this.
For a small business owner, he rarely plays around.
“Okay, I’ll think about it for a few days and get back to you!”
“Sure, boss.”
He called me a week later and we met again.
He said he’d hired someone to look at it, and my terms weren’t bad, but he wanted a premium of $5 billion for a 100% clean handoff.
In other words, he was asking for $32 billion plus $5 billion for the company’s price of $27 billion, but I couldn’t give him the full $5 billion because my terms were a bit generous.
So I told him that I would only give him 3 billion, and he said that he was happy because he didn’t intend to take all 5 billion.
In the end, the sale price of Daesung Apparel was 30 billion.
I put 30 billion into Mr. Hong’s bank account, and Daesung Apparel became mine.