Chapter 146
Chapter 146
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 146
Chapter Title: The Salad Franchise
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"Ah, how's the charcoal grill machine coming along?"
Jo Yi-ruk answered my question as if he'd been waiting for it.
"President Moon and I are developing it together. We've mostly finished contracting with the factories, and production will start soon. We're planning to take pre-orders on the homepage sometime next week."
"Good. Proceed with that."
"Yes, sir."
Then, No Se-hee stood up from her seat.
"I've researched the latest trends in the dining industry."
No Se-hee flipped through the materials she'd prepared with a rustle. Aside from the new hires, only the more seasoned employees were attending this meeting.
Me at the center, with Jo Yi-ruk, No Se-hee, Park Sang-won, and Yang Ji-ah. Plus Baek Jae-ha and Hyun Ye-won, whom I'd specially permitted to observe.
"The popularity of last year's 'Honey Butter Chips' is still going strong. Not quite the sold-out frenzy from before, but other companies are flooding the market with copycats. Similar styles like nuts, popcorn, and pretzels are gaining traction too."
Yeah. There was that phase.
I remembered most copycats fizzling out after a brief flash, with only a few steady sellers surviving.
"The trend has lasted longer than expected, so how about launching related new products now? For Binggwa or Songdabang."
"Too late."
I cut her off decisively.
"Trends in the food industry move fast. The copycats are shining right now largely because the original Honey Butter Chips are in short supply. But they've announced factory expansions and increased production, so this hype will die down soon."
Not much time left. We should've jumped in sooner to ride the wave.
But reacting to every fleeting trend like this makes inventory management a nightmare once it fades.
That's why I hadn't bothered. Binggwa and Songdabang were doing plenty well on their price competitiveness alone—no need to chase fads.
"More interestingly, what about the milk tea trending in Taiwan and Hong Kong these days?"
"Milk tea..."
"You know, black tea with milk. Make it sweet, of course. Ideally with tapioca pearls for bubble tea, but that might be too much."
We're not a bubble tea specialist brand. Boiling the pearls takes too much time and effort.
Songdabang runs on high volume and low margins, so no room for menu items that slow turnover.
"People aren't resistant to foreign foods anymore. Launching milk tea as a new Songdabang item could work... Jae-ha."
After some thought, I called out to Baek Jae-ha at the far end of the table.
"Yes?"
"Can you develop it?"
"I'll try various versions."
"Okay. Go for it."
As I wrapped up, I noticed Hyun Ye-won next to him tilting her head and scribbling something, her face full of confusion. She seemed to have a question but was holding back, figuring it wasn't her place to butt in.
"Hyun Ye-won."
"Y-Yes?!"
"Ask if you're curious. I invited you as an actress to participate in the meeting."
"Oh..."
Hyun Ye-won glanced around nervously, her eyes darting. When everyone chimed in with "Go ahead!" her face lit up.
"Um, then... may I ask why we're not spinning off the milk tea into its own franchise?"
Oh, sharp question.
I gestured for her to elaborate. She launched right in, no sign of her earlier hesitation.
"It's still unfamiliar here, but as you said, it's hugely popular in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Koreans are traveling abroad more these days, getting exposed to it, so demand is probably rising."
Spot on. I nodded.
"Overseas examples show tons of milk tea specialist franchises... and Korea doesn't have any yet. I think The Song has what it takes to pioneer that path."
Bold answer, straight out of a fresh employee's playbook.
It didn't sound wrong at first glance. But...
"We already have Songdabang. Adding another cafe brand would hurt both."
"...!"
"It's the same pie we're dividing. Gukbap joints and Chinese spots target different crowds, so they coexist fine. But a milk tea specialist and a general cafe? Their customers overlap too much."
Hyun Ye-won looked shocked but still puzzled, her questions not fully resolved. Sure enough, after hesitating, she spoke up again.
"Even so, they wouldn't overlap perfectly. Wouldn't boosting market share benefit The Song overall?"
"Could be. If you're prioritizing share. Assuming Songdabang and the milk tea spot cede some sales to each other, headquarters might even profit."
"Then why not? But..."
"That's not enough reason."
Headquarters' gain can't be the top priority.
"It could screw over the franchise owners who trusted us to join Songdabang."
"Ah!"
Hyun Ye-won jumped like she'd been struck by lightning.
Exactly. That logic sounded familiar, didn't it? Of course—it's Hyunmu's law of the jungle.
"Staring at numbers can trick you sometimes, but we can't forget each one represents a franchise owner's livelihood."
Hyun Ye-won clamped her mouth shut at my words.
"Forcing them to yield sales to each other? Imagine how unfair and frustrating that feels from their side."
"...You're right. I'm sorry. I didn't think it through."
"No, it's fine."
She might not have gotten there yet. Nothing surprising, but Hyun Ye-won looked dazed anyway.
She was clearly struggling to focus on the meeting.
'She's shocked realizing she carries Hyunmu's values.'
Values creep in unnoticed like that. If her surroundings were full of that mindset, she'd absorb it naturally.
Having someone point it out made it hit home. And the fact she could self-correct? That's impressive enough.
'I'll talk to her after the meeting.'
Business first.
No Se-hee continued her briefing.
"And while not mainstream, noteworthy is how 'mala tang'—that Chinese dish—is building a dedicated fanbase..."
The explanations wrapped up smoothly.
With the rough flow in my head, I cleared my throat lightly.
"Ahem."
All eyes turned to me.
"Good. The reason I gathered you all today... you might have guessed."
I grinned.
"To talk about our next franchise."
"..."
"..."
No one looked surprised, like they'd expected it. Makes sense—this was a rare full-scale meeting.
"The idea I came up with this time... is this."
Thud.
I pulled something from the insulated box I'd prepared. Plastic containers for portioned food.
"Here, pass them around."
They took them one by one, puzzled but curious.
"Huh? It's light...!"
Yang Ji-ah muttered unwittingly. No wonder—the containers were light enough to lift one-handed, hardly what you'd expect for food.
"Go ahead, open them."
They pried open the lids with eager, curious faces.
Click.
"...Huh?"
"What?"
Murmurs of confusion leaked out.
Fair enough.
Inside the plastic containers...
Were unmistakably fresh vegetables.
Cherry tomatoes, corn kernels, and olives added pops of color here and there. But green dominated over 80%.
The only meat was a piece of chicken in the center—looking healthy at a glance.
In other words, it didn't look all that appetizing.
"Vegetables?"
Park Sang-won spat it out, barely holding back "rabbit food."
"Oh, wait—no, it's salad!"
"Yeah. Chicken breast salad. Like what I ate on diets..."
"Feels healthy just looking at it."
The reactions weren't great, as expected.
In this era's food scene, "salad" was side-dish territory—something to pair with pasta or pizza.
The idea of salad as a "meal" was downright alien.
Dieters surviving on two potatoes and three boiled eggs might eat it. Otherwise, it seemed unsatisfying, unappetizing.
Just "health food."
In a society where calling chicken "god" felt natural and late-night ramen was a cheeky indulgence...
This "health food" was truly a hot potato.
"Hold on. President, you didn't bring this because..."
Jo Yi-ruk trailed off, face paling.
"Come on, Team Leader Jo! It's an appetizer, right?"
"Ah, The Song's finally doing pasta franchises. Nice—pasta's easy to prep."
Park Sang-won and Yang Ji-ah chimed in. But Jo Yi-ruk kept staring at me with unshaken eyes.
Sorry to dash your hopes.
I grinned and declared.
"I'm thinking of opening a 'salad' specialty store."