The New Wave (4)
Early one morning, at Chairman Cha Sang-wook’s home in Hannam-dong.
Soft sunlight filtered through the large windows of the lavish sitting room.
Chairman Cha sat on one sofa, sipping dark black tea.
Given the setting, President Jo Kang-min stood tense as he held out a clipboard with both hands.
"This is the report I put together as soon as I got back."
Chairman Cha took the documents and leafed through them casually.
Tables, graphs, and photographs detailing the Okura Hotel’s booking indicators and customer reactions had been neatly organized.
His expression seemed unreadable at first glance, but the cold gleam in his eyes put pressure on President Jo all the same.
After closing the file, Chairman Cha asked, "How was it in Tokyo?"
Beads of sweat sprang up on Jo Kang-min’s forehead. "I realized I’d been living far too complacently."
Apparently that was enough. Chairman Cha did not scold him heavily, only gave a small nod.
To be honest, if anyone deserved reproach, it was Chairman Cha himself for accepting the bedding and then sleeping with it at his side ever since.
If he had lived a life of indulgence toward himself and severity toward others, he would never have climbed to the position he held now.
"Be specific."
"The bedding was extremely comfortable. I was amazed that the hotel had tried something new beyond facilities and service, and that they had bedding to match. But what surprised me even more was that the bedding turned out to be the GyeolBit brand that Ms. Cha Hee-ju launched at Mirae Department Store. It made me realize how much I still lacked in discernment."
"Hmm... so it says exactly what the report says?"
"Yes..."
As President Jo recalled how he had slept soundly through the night when he first woke at the Okura Hotel that morning, he could finally understand why sleep had become such a hot topic in Japan.
He had sent that information back to Seoul right away, and just thirty minutes before arriving in Hannam-dong, he had received the report compiled by the company.
After checking the changes in booking rates before and after the Okura Hotel introduced its sleep concept, along with shifts in search rankings for the hotel, President Jo became certain that a major wind might be about to sweep through Hanil International.
"That Director Yoon told me to definitely stay there because she’d made the reservation at Okura. Back then, I didn’t think much of it. I only thought it was a little annoying to go ten minutes farther than somewhere nearby... but after experiencing it, I can’t help thinking I’d have been in serious trouble if Director Yoon hadn’t recommended it to me."
"Yes..."
"What’s even more astonishing is that the blanket I slept under that night was apparently a brand my granddaughter gave me as a limited-edition gift."
"Ah, is that so?"
A thread of relief seeped into President Jo’s chest.
"Why didn’t I think of that... My head must be rotten."
"Not at all, sir. I didn’t think of it either."
"Well, that’s obviously the problem."
"Ah... yes."
"Isn’t it interesting? Once the other side leads the market, customers follow. Depending on how you use events and concepts, even the hotel business changes like this. In the end, it means a company can create and lead the market. The same goes for hotels."
Jo Kang-min could only echo the chairman’s impeccable, textbook-perfect words.
"Yes, exactly. Until now we’ve insisted on passive marketing, but after seeing the Okura Hotel example, I think we need to actively hold differentiated events if we want to attract overseas customers as well."
"If we keep settling for the old approach of, 'Our hotel has good facilities, so guests will find us on their own,' we’ll be left behind in no time. This time, they landed a clean shot on us."
"Yes. I’ll revise the report as soon as I get back and prepare a comprehensive overhaul plan for the hotel business."
Chairman Cha nodded, then fixed him with a piercing stare.
"Don’t take it lightly. Move proactively. Remember that the age when hotels could just wait for people to find them by name is over."
At that moment, Jo felt it instinctively.
If he failed to make proper use of this opportunity, next time he would be cut without mercy.
With a chill running through him, President Jo lowered his head.
"Yes, sir. I will make sure to prepare a good proposal and report it to you."
*
After Seung-hyun visited Professor Woo Ji-yeon at Seoul National University of Fine Arts and Music, she began preparing for the contest with a rare flutter of excitement.
It was a little disappointing that the competition was not limited to current students, but even so, merely being the one to host it was an opportunity more than good enough to boost the school’s reputation and her own.
Before long, a week passed.
Da Vinci Hall, Seoul National University of Fine Arts and Music.
The spacious auditorium was packed to the rafters with fashion department students.
The notice had gone up a week earlier announcing that the design contest would be unveiled to students and that all enrolled students were required to attend.
Students practically lived for contests like this, so naturally every current student came swarming in, and there were even plenty of students from other departments who had an interest in fashion.
And when they saw the phrase “Haesol Textile & Lesser Factory Designer Contest”, they began to murmur among themselves.
"Lesser Factory? That’s huge. We’re talking about a designer for them?"
"Why is that huge? Honestly, it’s just a new SPA brand, isn’t it?"
"It is huge! Then where is it supposed to be huge?"
"But what is Haesol Textile? Have you heard of it?"
"I feel like I’ve heard the name somewhere..."
While everyone was making assumptions and tossing out comments, the appointed time arrived, and with the click of heels, Professor Woo Ji-yeon strode up onto the stage.
"All right, everyone, quiet! The reason I called you all here today is because we have a very special opportunity... Are you all here? No one’s missing, right?"
The look she shot at the teaching assistant was icy cold.
For her, missing a day like this was something she could not even imagine.
"Everyone except five people checked in on the electronic attendance sheet."
At the assistant’s immediate report, she said coolly, "Strip those five of their application eligibility."
"Understood."
Looking down over the gathered students, she said, "You all seem to think opportunities come whenever you please. The world isn’t that easy. You have to be ready at all times. That’s the only way you can seize an opportunity when it comes. What is this? Some of you don’t even show up on a day like today... I can’t understand it."
The students exchanged glances and waited for her to get to the point.
"I’m not saying this to criticize you personally. I’m talking about the proper attitude. You’re here, so I think you’re already qualified enough to be given an opportunity. First, one of our school’s alumni, or rather a student who took leave right before graduating, has astonishingly gone on to start a business and become a huge success. I could tell from the moment he first enrolled that he wasn’t ordinary. But who would have known he’d become this successful? That’s why I say you never know what kind of life a person will lead."
As the professor continued, the students listening to her slowly widened their eyes.
From the way she was speaking, it was no different from saying that a current student had launched Lesser Factory.
She kept going.
"You’ve all probably heard the name. Some of you may even have bought clothes there yourselves. The brand is Lesser Factory. Now then, shall we give him a round of applause? Jung Seung-hyun, head of Haesol Textile and a senior in our fashion department, class of year four."
Among the current students, there were not many who did not know the name Jung Seung-hyun, except for freshmen.
He had excellent grades and a good personality, so everyone was on friendly terms with him.
Perhaps for that reason, the students erupted into applause and cheers.
"No way!"
"Seung-hyun! Buy us lunch!"
In particular, Min-woo, who was still working as a teaching assistant, stared with his mouth hanging open in disbelief and clapped like a robot.
"Hello. I’m Jung Seung-hyun."
Just as he had when he first came to the school, Seung-hyun was dressed in a Loro Piana suit, and he looked striking.
And one student, watching him, stared as though spellbound.
"Wow... oppa..."
So-hee, now a year higher and gradually becoming better known as a model, found Seung-hyun’s appearance unbearably unfamiliar.
The applause and cheers soon died down, and Seung-hyun continued.
"By good fortune, I ended up leading a company called Haesol Textile and launching a brand called Lesser Factory, and we’ve been posting pretty solid results. But our chief designer came to me saying he wanted to study abroad. As a company founder, I’m also a student, so I respected his wishes. Um... fortunately, a company that invested in us is LVMH, the Louis Vuitton group..."
"Ooooh!"
"That’s insane!"
Even Professor Woo Ji-yeon covered her mouth in surprise at that part.
"They recommended our designer for admission to l’École de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne. So our chief designer is now preparing to enter there, and if his grades are good, he’s been promised an internship at LVMH as well."
By then, the auditorium had fallen into silence.
"He didn’t major in fashion. But all the lines currently at Lesser Factory were born through his hands, so LVMH also fully recognized his talent. In a sense, we’re practically part of the Louis Vuitton group now, so if you join the company and prove your skills, I think you’ll have a real chance to make a name for yourself overseas as well.
And our company also supplies combat uniforms to the U.S. military on a licensed basis, and we make high-end luxury goods like GyeolBit. We need a lot of talented people."
Professor Woo jumped in here.
"You all heard that, right? The friends who didn’t show up today... they missed this opportunity."
At first, the students had thought the professor was exaggerating, but now they changed their minds and realized she had not been wrong.
And beyond that, they regretted that only five people had been absent today.
If more had skipped, there would have been fewer competitors.
Seung-hyun went on.
"The contest will begin one month from now, and its form will not simply be an assignment. It is much closer to an audition for selecting Lesser Factory’s next designer. And it’s open not only to current students, but also to graduates."
"Aaaah..."
A collective groan of disappointment rose from the students.
Seung-hyun gave a faint smile and added, "That said, if a current student has enough skill, I fully intend to hire them."
He stepped back, and Professor Woo took the microphone with a smile and said, "Then you might think this all sounds pretty good, but the grand prize is 100 million won, along with a chance to join the company, and the winning line will actually be sold at Lesser Factory."
"Wow!"
"Ooooh!"
Watching the stunned students, she said, "From the first prize down to the excellence awards, there will be prize money and an opportunity to join the company. If we limited all of this to current students alone, Lesser Factory would lose too much, so I think you all need to understand that part. Any questions?"
Hands shot up everywhere.
Professor Woo pointed to one student.
"You there, in front."
The large student with dark stubble and glasses asked, "Would it be possible to transfer to LVMH after getting hired?"
It was a rather provocative question, but Seung-hyun answered with an unexpected smile.
"Of course, if that’s what you want. And if that company recognizes a designer’s abilities and accepts them, we won’t stop you. Of course, to get that far, the designer would have to be extremely good, wouldn’t they?"
The questions continued.
"I assume the company has a concept it wants. Can you tell us exactly what it is?"
"It should fit Lesser Factory, right? I don’t think I need to explain that in words. If you’re a designer, you should be able to sense it."
"Is there an age limit by any chance?"
"No. A brand-new freshman would be fine, and so would someone old enough to be my mother."
After more than thirty minutes of questions, Seung-hyun said, "When people dream, how often is there a real chance to turn that dream into reality? I think you can seize it. If you’re ready, then challenge yourself. I believe in your talent."
The students broke into cheers all at once, and some of them were already taking photos and videos with their phones and uploading them to social media.
And So-hee watched all of it with a strange expression whose meaning was hard to read.