Inflating the Body (1)
Six months later.
Time had flown by in an instant.
With the bitter winter wind already blowing in before the season had fully set in, Seung-hyun was reviewing the quarterly performance report in the conference room at Haesol Textile headquarters.
On the table sat a thick stack of documents and a tablet filled with graphs.
“GyeolBit bedding exports are up 23 percent from last quarter. Growth in the French and Italian markets has been especially strong. But since last month, Frette, which LVMH acquired, has started an aggressive sales push, and revenue has been sluggish.”
At Hwang Seok-jae’s report, Seung-hyun bit his lip.
“Has export volume gone down?”
“Not yet, but the mood among local European competitors is reportedly quite tense. Antoine Arnault’s prediction was clearly right.”
Seung-hyun nodded, realizing that splitting off the corporation and building scale had indeed been the right move.
If they had not separated the company, rumors might have started casting doubt on the GyeolBit brand.
Besides, as Lesser Factory grew in size and sales rose sharply, Haesol Textile’s value would only climb, even if GyeolBit bedding sales were temporarily soft.
“How is Lesser Factory doing?”
“It’s growing even faster after the spin-off. In addition to the Hongdae store, the branches opened in Busan, Daegu, and Gwangju are all posting stable sales. In particular, A-young’s comfort line is getting a strong response from younger customers.”
Seung-hyun nodded.
Lesser Factory’s success was exceeding even his expectations.
With a faintly flushed face, Hwang Seok-jae grew more animated as he went on.
“Above all, I’d say the successful launch of the GyeolBit Edition at Mirae Department Store, in collaboration with ProMemoria, has been the biggest win. It’s strengthened the luxury image of the GyeolBit brand even further.”
As Hwang paged through the tablet, he showed Seung-hyun photos of the GyeolBit Edition displayed in Mirae Department Store’s VIP lounge.
The combination of Davide Soci’s special-frame bed and GyeolBit bedding was producing an astonishing synergy.
“Splitting the brands up, just as Antoine Arnault advised, was a truly brilliant decision. Now Haesol Textile can focus on high-end bedding, while Lesser Factory is firmly establishing its own territory in the mid- to low-priced clothing market.”
Seung-hyun nodded and looked back over the report, thinking of the past six months.
After meeting Antoine Arnault, he had immediately drawn up the plan to spin off Lesser Factory.
The legal and financial hurdles had not been easy to clear, but in the end it was a decision that benefited both brands.
“By the way, sir, Royal Department Store has contacted us.”
At Hwang’s words, Seung-hyun turned his gaze toward him.
“Royal Department Store?”
“Yes. Vice President Kim Jun-hyuk personally requested a call. He says he’d like to discuss bringing GyeolBit bedding into Royal Department Store.”
Seung-hyun fell into thought for a moment.
Considering their relationship with Mirae Department Store, this was not something he could decide lightly.
“Let’s meet them first. We should hear what they’re proposing.”
After the meeting ended, Seung-hyun sent Hwang Seok-jae out and returned to his seat.
Then he looked at the weaving program on his monitor with genuine emotion.
True Dual-Tex...
It had taken a long time.
It had taken him this long just to draw out a new method among the hybrid point-connection weaving patterns.
With this, the two fabric layers were connected only at specific points in a point-link structure, and by optimizing the distance and pattern between those connection points, they had secured uniformity and stability in the air layer.
The perfectly formed double-weave fabric his father had once envisioned was finally complete.
“This will do, Japan...”
Seung-hyun, who had kept his focus on domestic sales all this time, felt a thrill at having finally created a fabric he could confidently believe would work in Japan as well.
*
Royal Department Store headquarters, Vice President Kim Jun-hyuk’s office.
Kim Jun-hyuk stood by the window, looking down over the Seoul skyline.
On his desk lay a thick file titled Haesol Textile Brand Analysis Report.
“What I saw at Mirae Department Store yesterday, the GyeolBit Edition, was really something.”
He spoke to Bang Sang-hoon, the executive director of the sales strategy office, who had just entered the room.
Bang nodded in agreement and said, “I had no idea the collaboration with ProMemoria would create such perfect synergy. In particular, the texture and pattern of that bedding were... it was clearly differentiated from other luxury brands. I think this time, we were definitely one step behind Mirae Department Store.”
Kim Jun-hyuk returned to his desk and spread the report open again.
It contained a detailed analysis of Haesol Textile, the growth of Lesser Factory, their product lineup, and market response.
“When is the meeting with Haesol Textile’s CEO, Jung Seung-hyun, scheduled?”
“It hasn’t been finalized yet. We expect to hear back sometime today.”
Kim Jun-hyuk nodded.
“Has the proposal been prepared?”
“Yes, here it is.”
As he reviewed the documents handed over by his secretary, Kim Jun-hyuk looked satisfied.
The terms Royal Department Store was offering were unprecedented.
A dedicated space larger than what ordinary bedding brands received, marketing support, and even a minimum guaranteed sales volume.
“This time, we have to make this happen. Just as Mirae Department Store brought in ProMemoria, we need to bring in GyeolBit.”
“Understood.”
After Bang Sang-hoon left, Kim Jun-hyuk took the report and went to his mother, CEO Lee Hie-eun.
She had been on the phone for quite some time with someone else, only hanging up after more than ten minutes of keeping her son waiting on the sofa.
“Who was that?”
“Lee Mi-seon.”
“Ah...”
Hearing the name of the presidential candidate’s wife, Jun-hyuk nodded as if that made perfect sense.
Before she was the wife of a powerful politician, she had been the daughter of a man who had once served as CEO of a rather promising company. Even long after marriage, she still loved luxury brands and had deep connections with conglomerate families.
Now that her husband had become a presidential candidate, she had cut back a little on luxury spending, but that didn’t mean her network or her social instincts had gone anywhere.
“She’s been throwing a fit, saying she wants a department store in Gangwon Province too. It took me a while to turn her down nicely. So, what is it?”
“You know ProMemoria launched at Mirae Department Store a while ago, right?”
CEO Lee Hie-eun’s face twisted sharply.
If the brand she wanted so badly had launched at a rival department store, then she would not have been fit to run a company if she hadn’t felt a sting in her gut.
“Why are you bringing that up?”
“Well, both I and the front-line staff thought that while ProMemoria was impressive, the bedding brand it collaborated with, GyeolBit, was also exceptionally good. You saw it too, didn’t you, Mom?”
“I didn’t.”
The fact that his mother, who usually checked everything the competition had, had not looked at this one at all made it obvious how sore she must have felt about it.
“Here... take a look.”
When Vice President Kim Jun-hyuk held up the tablet and showed it to her, she cast a sidelong glance and skimmed over it with narrowed eyes.
Then her expression changed, and she asked, “This was made by that Korean company?”
“Yes. Beyond the sheer technical skill, I really have to acknowledge the talent of that CEO, Jung Seung-hyun. The patterns he creates are so appealing... especially this, take a look.”
What her son showed her next was a Roche Bobois sofa.
“Hm? And what’s this?”
“Haesol Textile supplied sofa fabric to Roche Bobois too. This is the Versailles line, which Roche Bobois Korea launched exclusively, and apparently even headquarters responded well to it. But somehow, because Haesol Textile was launching a bedding line and a SPA brand, they supposedly had no factory capacity, so they abruptly stopped supplying it?”
“They stopped supplying Roche Bobois? Hah...”
“Crazy, right? But the Versailles line did so well and became so desirable that Roche Bobois ended up licensing Haesol Textile’s technology and patterns and is now producing it in another factory.”
“So Haesol Textile is just sitting back and collecting royalties every year?”
“Exactly.”
Only then could Lee Hie-eun be forced to pay attention to the little mid-sized company her son was talking about.
“So? What are you trying to say?”
“This thing they call GyeolBit. I’m thinking of launching it in Korea. It’s a Korean company, but it still doesn’t actually sell in Korea.”
“So because Mirae Department Store only launched GyeolBit bedding through a collaboration, we’re going to launch the brand itself here, where it doesn’t even exist yet?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
At her son’s plan, she nodded and said, “Not bad. Go ahead and go through with it.”
“Yes.”
Vice President Kim Jun-hyuk smiled brightly at his mother’s approval.
*
Haesol Textile office, late afternoon.
Seung-hyun was on the phone with Mok Jae-gyun, a lieutenant colonel from the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.
[CEO Jung, I’m truly sorry, but I’d like to meet you again. I have a new proposal regarding the military uniform supply contract.]
Seung-hyun sighed and replied, “Lieutenant Colonel, I’m really sorry, but just keeping the company running is already more than enough for me. I already told you that supplying military uniforms is unrealistic.”
[This time it’s different. I have a way to solve the production capacity issue. If you could spare just thirty minutes, I’d be very grateful.]
Seung-hyun hesitated for a moment.
Over the past six months, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration had contacted him several more times, and each time he had turned them down.
But seeing Lieutenant Colonel Mok’s persistence, he decided that they should meet once so he could clearly and firmly refuse.
“...All right. I’ll make time tomorrow at eleven in the morning.”
[Thank you very much. I’ll see you tomorrow.]
After ending the call, Seung-hyun leaned back with a tired expression.
But a thin smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
The gray fabric sample sitting on his desk.
He had finally produced the perfect Dual-Tex.
【Yarn Quality = 95.7%】
【Weaving Condition = Excellent】
【Uniformity = 97.8%】
【Durability = A-Grade】
【Product Value = 96.6%】
Astonishingly, its product value had reached 96.6 percent.
That a fabric could score that high on product value from the material alone told him just how much potential it held.
Seung-hyun immediately picked up his phone.
“A-young, if you’re free tomorrow, could you come by headquarters for a bit? I’ve got something I want to show you. You can come in the afternoon.”
After hanging up, Seung-hyun thought of Hanil Global.
Their desired entry into Japan.
In Japan, the land of Uniqlo, would Dual-Tex really catch on?
Seung-hyun found himself intensely curious.
The next morning, Lieutenant Colonel Mok Jae-gyun arrived at the company in a suit.
Tense to the point of stiffness, he took several sheets of paper from his briefcase with a grave expression and spread them out on the table.
“CEO Jung, have you ever heard of a company called Hwain Trading?”
Seung-hyun, who had been ready to say no to whatever came next, frowned at the lieutenant colonel’s sudden change in direction.
“Hwain Trading? No.”
“Hwain Trading was once a military uniform supplier. It supplied uniforms to the Ministry of National Defense until five years ago, but now it’s in financial distress.”
Seung-hyun asked with a puzzled look, “What does that have to do with us?”
Lieutenant Colonel Mok replied with a meaningful expression.
“What if Haesol Textile acquired Hwain Trading?”
“Pardon? Acquire it? Why would we buy a failing company? We have no reason to take on a bad business.”
Lieutenant Colonel Mok calmly continued his explanation.
“Hwain Trading has equipment and know-how specialized in military uniform production. Of course, its financial condition is poor, but if its production capacity were combined with Haesol Textile’s Dual-Tex technology, it would create perfect synergy.”
“Even so, acquiring a distressed company is a huge risk. We’re already busy enough as it is.”
Lieutenant Colonel Mok pushed the documents he had prepared forward.
“The Defense Acquisition Program Administration can offer special benefits for this acquisition. Much like a weapons purchase, the Ministry of National Defense will guarantee the loan, allowing you to raise the acquisition funds from the bank at ultra-low interest.”
When Seung-hyun still looked hesitant, Lieutenant Colonel Mok brought out his final card.
“And most importantly, if the sample passes, we can guarantee a stable military uniform supply contract for at least ten years. You could expect a reliable annual revenue stream of several hundred thousand uniforms.”
Seung-hyun was silent for a moment.
A ten-year stable supply contract was undeniably attractive.
“Ten years?”
“Yes. Hwain Trading’s debt is 4.1 billion won. Within two years, most of that debt could be cleared. And the land value of Hwain Trading’s factory alone is 1 billion won. This is by no means a losing deal.”
By then, Seung-hyun was starting to lean in.
Above all, Antoine Arnault’s words about needing to enlarge the company kept circling through his mind.