Chapter 67: Advertisement (3)
Chapter 67: Advertisement (3)
éclat Étoile.
It was a company famous for its women's cosmetics.
While some believed it to be a French firm, it was actually a domestic brand headquartered in Korea. They had been pushing a luxury strategy... or at least, they used to.
"Song Hee-bin's contract is coming to an end soon, so I think we need to find a new advertisement model."
The Brand Strategy Team at éclat Étoile had been nursing a collective headache lately. Sales had plummeted in the face of aggressive new brands. To be precise, they were losing the competition against other cosmetic lines.
Song Hee-bin, the actress who had served as their model for the past five years, was also leaving once this contract expired.
I’m sure another brand reached out to her.
Song Hee-bin’s value had skyrocketed recently due to her immense popularity in a currently airing Monday-Tuesday drama. Naturally, she likely wanted to move to a brand with higher value that offered more money.
"Ugh."
Team Leader Jung Tae-soo of the Brand Strategy Department felt a migraine coming on. It was becoming painfully obvious how they were falling behind other brands.
"Shouldn't we use a model who can actually boost our brand recognition?"
"The budget is..."
"But there's no point in using a celebrity with low recognition."
"That's true, but if we hire a famous celebrity and the results don't match the investment, it'll be hard to recover from the loss."
The issue wasn't just the down payment given to the celebrity. The real problem was the potential loss incurred if the celebrity failed to deliver the expected results and sales continued to drop. Even now, they were barely hanging on.
With the contract with Song Hee-bin falling through, they had to find a new model within the next month.
"She acted like she was going to renew, and then—this is why celebrities are...!"
Jung Tae-soo shouted in frustration. But what could he do? It was their fault for not being able to offer better contract terms.
"Um, Team Leader."
"What is it, Assistant Manager Park?"
"How about her?"
Assistant Manager Park turned his tablet around to show a screen. It was a clip of a woman from Looking at the Past and Memories.
Ju Seo-yeon—the star who had become an overnight sensation as the grown-up Princess Yeonhwa. He heard she had appeared on some cable broadcast recently as well.
"She certainly has a great face. But does Ju Seo-yeon have enough recognition to carry an ad?"
"True. But don't you think she's bound to blow up?"
"Ah, so what? You want to 'buy low' and bet on her future?"
"Yes, yes. Exactly."
Jung Tae-soo sighed as he watched Assistant Manager Park nod eagerly. This wasn't child's play; betting on a vague future was risky.
"Park. How long ago was Princess Yeonhwa? Actress Ju Seo-yeon hasn't even properly appeared in anything yet. And you know, right? I heard the movie she's filming now is a thriller."
"W-well, yes."
"An actress in a thriller movie. She’ll obviously be a supporting character. When will she get her next project? When will her recognition go up? Who’s going to watch an ad featuring a child actor who vanished for ten years and only recently gained a bit of buzz from a play? The theater audience?"
"..."
Assistant Manager Park slumped back to his seat, dejected. Jung Tae-soo felt he might have been a bit too harsh, but it couldn't be helped.
Advertising was ultimately about image and recognition. It was true that Ju Seo-yeon possessed extraordinary beauty, but that was separate from advertising. Beauty could always be enhanced and made to shine through editing.
Recognition, however, was different. What mattered was how luxurious the cosmetics appeared and how much they appealed to women.
But I still have to submit a report.
He had narrowed down a few candidates for now. He could only move forward if the higher-ups liked one of them.
Two idols, two actresses...
They were all celebrities with a decent amount of name value. As Jung Tae-soo was about to submit the report with five candidates, he hesitated over the final slot.
Well, fine. Ju Seo-yeon.
It wouldn't hurt to throw her in as a wild card. Her face wasn't out of place, and she had been a hot topic lately. Of course, Team Leader Jeong didn't give it much thought. To him, she was just a filler—nothing more, nothing less.
One week later.
"Wait, Ju Seo-yeon?"
A director from éclat Étoile visited the Brand Strategy Department. The man, who possessed a massive stature, spoke with a satisfied smile.
"Wow, Team Leader Jeong, you've got a good eye. Yes, let's go with Ju Seo-yeon for this ad."
"Pardon??"
Wait, why? He wanted to ask, but...
"Taesumdal, Princess Yeonhwa! You know, ten years ago, I was going through a really rough patch. But I managed to pull myself together thanks to that one drama. Ah, did I tell you this story? To be precise, it was ten years ago, in the summer."
The Director's story began there and lasted for a full hour. Jung Tae-soo had no idea that Director Baek Min-chan of éclat Étoile was a die-hard fan of The Moon that Hides the Sun.
"Uh, but Director. Don't you think Actress Ju Seo-yeon's recognition is a bit... low?"
When he cautiously broached the subject, Baek Min-chan replied, "Ah, recognition! You know how it is. Using an actress who's already at her peak isn't everything. Sometimes, you have to, what do you call it? Buy low, right? You grab them and sign the contract while they're still cheap!"
"Excuse me?"
Wait, 'buying low' comes up here too?
"Ahem. Anyway, you might be skeptical. But you know I have good instincts. She's a child actor I saw ten years ago and knew would make it big. And look at how brilliantly she returned. I'm certain. Her name value will skyrocket within a year."
At the Director's words, about ten different rebuttals came to Jung Tae-soo's mind—like the fact that Ju Seo-yeon was still a high school student.
However, Baek Min-chan did have good instincts. It wasn't so much that he was a good judge of character, but rather that whenever he stepped up like this, his so-called 'scent for success' was usually sharp. After all, wasn't he the man who had started a business in a tiny one-room flat ten years ago and grown it to this size alongside the CEO?
"...Understood."
Regardless, Jung Tae-soo remained unconvinced. But when the boss gives an order, you follow it. He was, after all, just an employee.
Another two weeks passed.
Inside the éclat Étoile office.
"Hello. I am Ju Seo-yeon, a rookie actress from Nova Entertainment."
Driven by Director Baek's strong insistence, the actress finally arrived.
*
A cosmetics ad.
Seo-yeon agonized with a serious expression. Cosmetics were still a difficult subject for her.
It wasn't that Seo-yeon didn't wear makeup. Her invincible TS body maintained a pearly complexion without any effort, and she possessed enough natural defense to withstand the blazing sun without a drop of sunscreen. She was beautiful even without makeup... but her mother, Sua, wasn't about to let that slide.
"Let's at least do the basics, honey."
"..."
Thus, she had reached a level where she could apply BB cream and draw her eyeliner or lipstick to a minimum. She wasn't very good at it because she lacked dexterity, though.
Besides, even if Seo-yeon didn't dress up, there were often professional makeup artists to do it for her. For an actor, makeup was something they eventually had to get used to.
But an advertisement...
A cosmetics ad was like a symbol of status for women. Whether or not they landed one was a matter of pride for female celebrities. Even Lee Ji-yeon had done a BB cream ad. Thinking back to how much she had bragged about it then...
"Oh my, Seo-yeon! You got a cosmetics ad? éclat Étoile is a brand I use too! See? Your mom has great taste!"
In fact, Sua was using that brand's products. She couldn't use them often because they were expensive, but she said she loved the lipstick because of its great color payoff. Of course, this was all a bit foreign to Seo-yeon.
In the end, she had no choice but to accept the ad. It was true that it was a great opportunity.
"Hello, I am Ju Seo-yeon, a rookie actress from Nova Entertainment."
And so, she was at the éclat Étoile office. As a brand that claimed to be luxury, the company building was quite flashy.
It seems like a company with a decent reputation.
Why would a company like this want her? Seo-yeon felt a bit puzzled. Even her manager, Park Eun-ha, seemed nervous beside her.
"I am Jung Tae-soo, the Brand Strategy Team Leader. And..."
"I am Baek Min-chan, a Director at éclat Étoile."
Even a Director had shown up. Did Directors usually attend these things? Seo-yeon had lived a corporate life in her past existence. Higher-ups usually didn't bother showing up to these kinds of meetings. In fact, even a Team Leader showing up was unusual. Or was this just how celebrity ad contracts worked?
"Ahem, I'm just here to observe, so please don't mind me," Baek Min-chan said.
Then why did he come out at all? While she wondered that...
"First of all, I believe you've already heard the gist of it. We at éclat Étoile would like to propose a one-year exclusive modeling contract to Actress Ju Seo-yeon."
"One year?"
"Yes. Of course, it can be extended later, and the contract can be renewed. Naturally, the terms will only improve."
The first contract is always delicate. It sets the standard. You can raise the pay from here, but you can't lower it. Seo-yeon didn't have any particular thoughts on it. Given her level of recognition, she was certain the down payment wouldn't be that high.
However.
"The modeling fee for a one-year exclusive contract is 400 million won."
I see, 400 million. ...Wait, what?
"400 million?"
400 million was a figure Seo-yeon had only ever seen as in-game currency in her life. She had filmed dramas and received a down payment for a movie before. Her movie contract had been 200 million won, which was the level of a B-list actor. But 400 million was double that.
Considering the difficulty of the shoot, it was a shocking amount from Seo-yeon's perspective.
Honestly, I would've done it for half that.
Jung Tae-soo felt the sting too. For an actress of Seo-yeon's level, half that amount would have been plenty. However, Director Baek Min-chan, who was watching with hawk-like eyes, had insisted. He argued that they had to give her at least B-list treatment so she wouldn't easily jump ship to another brand once the contract ended.
He was likely thinking of what happened with Song Hee-bin, but Jeong still felt it was overkill.
"...What do you think of the terms?"
After carefully reading the contract, Seo-yeon nodded. There didn't seem to be any toxic clauses. Manager Park Eun-ha nodded as well. If anything, the terms were too good for Seo-yeon. It was enough to make her wonder if they had an ulterior motive.
"I'll do it."
For 400 million, of course she would. Who cared about the cosmetics or whatever?
"When does the filming start...?"
"I'll send over the schedule, so you can pick a date."
With Park Eun-ha's words, things proceeded smoothly. They decided to review the contract a bit more before officially signing, but it was practically a done deal.
"Ah, by the way, you mentioned the movie you're appearing in is a thriller. What kind of role is it?"
"That's... a secret."
"Ah, I understand. I was curious, but that's a shame. As you know, the image of an ad can change depending on what kind of role the model plays."
Having finished the meeting on a good note, Seo-yeon gave an awkward smile at Team Leader Jung Tae-soo's words. It was a detail newly specified in her movie contract, so she couldn't breathe a word of it.
Come to think of it, isn't this a problem?
The role of a murderer.
Seo-yeon hadn't thought much of it, but it would have a huge impact on an actor's image. Especially if she performed well.
...Hmm.
Isn't this bad?
400 million won.
Seo-yeon stared blankly at the contract. She could suddenly see the 400 million won flying away into the sky. It was a famous story that actors who played killers were often dropped from ads because of that image. And Seo-yeon was doing a cosmetics ad.
If the movie became a hit, she would 100% be fired.
Image. I have to fix my image.
Seo-yeon's heart began to race. Before the 400 million won vanished, she had to find a role that could neutralize the image of Cha Seo-ah.
And coincidentally.
There happened to be one movie and one drama that could resolve her problem.
The only issue was that both projects were connected to two people she already knew.