A Request From Across the Sea (2)
At Haesol Textile headquarters, good news kept arriving in Jung Seung-hyun’s office.
Director Hwang Seok-jae came in carrying a tablet and showed it to Seung-hyun.
“Representative Jung, these are the first-day sales figures for the Lesser Factory store in Japan. We hit 120 percent of our target!”
Seung-hyun stared at the screen with a look of surprise.
The graph showed sales climbing steadily hour by hour.
“That’s better than I expected. I thought it would struggle at first...”
“According to the local subsidiary’s report, Han Saet-byeol’s influence was significant. And above all, many customers said they were satisfied with the quality of the products themselves.”
Seung-hyun nodded in satisfaction.
He had been trying to forget it, but because people had said it was the kind of business that always came in only to go out bankrupt, it had still been nagging at him.
If Lesser Factory survived in Japan like this, it would be a meaningful development for the Korean fashion industry as well.
Lee A-young, who had been attending the meeting, smiled faintly and showed Seung-hyun her laptop screen.
Several design sketches were spread across it.
“I based these on the customer feedback the Japanese local manager sent over and came up with some new designs. Japanese consumers definitely have different tastes from Korean ones. They prefer styles with more individuality, so I tried out a few different details.”
Seung-hyun studied the sketches closely.
Lee A-young always surprised him.
They kept the core identity of Lesser Factory while reflecting Japanese consumer tastes in a polished, stylish design.
“Do you think we can keep using Dualtex for the fabric?”
“Of course.”
“Good. Then how about launching it under the name Tokyo Line?”
Lee A-young’s eyes brightened.
“That name is really nice! Tokyo Line... If we develop it specifically for Japan, I think it could attract even more customers.”
“Then shall we set a development schedule? What do you think about a fall launch?”
“I think it’s possible... We’ve already finished the basic designs, and we can use the fabrics from the existing Lesser Factory lineup. But the exact timing might still depend on sampling and feedback, so it could take some time.”
Seung-hyun nodded.
He had not expected Lesser Factory’s entry into Japan to go this smoothly.
Riding that momentum, he felt they should also consider expanding into other Asian markets.
“Good. We’ll support all the resources needed for the Tokyo Line development. Let’s make a serious push into the Japanese market with this opportunity.”
Lee A-young smiled brightly and nodded.
“Thank you, Representative Jung. I’ll do my best to make it into a wonderful line.”
Director Hwang checked the tablet once more and said, “And there’s one more piece of good news. Okura Hotel has let us know they’d like to place some GyeolBit bedding in certain suite rooms.”
Seung-hyun had heard that Mr. Okada Sota had once visited the company, and he had been expecting good news sooner or later.
In fact, sales growth in GyeolBit bedding through Mirae Department Store had begun to slow, so they were already at a point where they needed another breakthrough.
As they kept producing GyeolBit bedding, the workers were becoming more and more skilled, and productivity was rising little by little, but sales growth had started to stall, so they had begun to worry about inventory.
In a situation like this, entering a Japanese hotel chain was practically a new opportunity.
“That really is good news! Are there any specific conditions?”
“Yes. Since it isn’t ordinary household bedding, they sent several requirements for hotel use.”
When Seung-hyun looked through the email Director Hwang handed over, he saw that, unlike the usual single, queen, and king sizes, the hotel had specified several exact dimensions.
They wanted duvets and sheets measuring 302 centimeters by 203 centimeters, slightly larger than king size.
The pillowcases were also 50 centimeters by 90 centimeters, unlike the Korean standard.
The most important requirement was durability. Okura Hotel noted that they washed bedding every day at a high temperature of 90 degrees Celsius and processed it in industrial dryers, while also saying they believed Haesol Textile’s GyeolBit would fully meet those conditions.
In addition to that, though it was not written explicitly, it was obvious the sheets would be repeatedly pulled tight and straightened during daily housekeeping.
The hotel also wanted water-repellent functionality so stains would come off easily, as well as anti-static performance, all while preserving a luxurious appearance.
Finally, they requested that the GyeolBit logo be subtly embroidered on one side of the bedding to express the brand’s value.
Seung-hyun fell into thought for a moment.
GyeolBit bedding’s French linen blend was already fairly durable, and Okura trusted it, but he was remembering that a hotel environment was something different altogether.
“We’ll need to develop a fabric specialized for hotels. One that keeps its quality even under high-temperature washing and drying, and under heavy friction.”
“Huh? You’re saying you’re going to develop a whole new fabric too?”
It was only natural for Hwang Seok-jae to be surprised, since fabrics did not just appear out of thin air because someone said they would develop them.
Okura Hotel had only mentioned durability in terms of the level already expected of existing hotel bedding, which made the request all the more striking.
“French linen blends are durable, yes... but I’ll study it for now.”
“...Understood.”
After the meeting ended, Seung-hyun sat alone in his office and thought about how he might dramatically improve the durability of GyeolBit bedding while preserving its softness, warmth, and gentle feel.
He reasoned that five-star hotel bedding, with its special laundering process of high-temperature washing, sterilization, and ironing in dedicated facilities, needed a fabric built for exactly that kind of use, unlike bedding for ordinary homes that was simply washed frequently.
“Can it be done?”
In his head, Seung-hyun had already begun mapping out how to improve the hotel bedding fabric.
If the contract with Okura Hotel went through, the chances of expanding to other Japanese hotels would rise dramatically.
If that happened, domestic five-star hotels would be the ones reaching out to Haesol Textile before Haesol even had to ask.
Where should I start?
He had boldly promised to develop a new fabric, so he needed to do something, but nothing immediately came to mind.
Since he could not give up the strengths of the existing French linen blend, that made it even harder.
Seung-hyun took out the bedding supplied to Mirae Department Store from the sample room and ran his hand over the same fabric he had touched hundreds of times before, feeling its texture once more.
To preserve this featherlight softness and warmth, the only real answer, no matter how he thought about it, was to keep the French blend fabric.
Then the only option was to add a new yarn that had not existed before and strengthen the durability that way.
Seung-hyun began his research, digging through all sorts of papers and books on yarn.
*
At the Ministry of National Defense in Yongsan, a single unscheduled phone call broke the quiet afternoon in the minister’s office.
“Minister, the United States Embassy in Seoul’s Department of Defense office has sent over an official request.”
At the senior secretary’s voice, Minister Kim Pil-yeon furrowed his brow.
Negotiations over defense cost-sharing with the United States were under way these days, so there had been more demanding requests than good news.
“Bring it up.”
“Yes, sir.”
Moments later, the senior secretary brought up a black approval folder and handed it over.
As Kim Pil-yeon opened it, he asked, “What’s it about?”
“It’s a request for cooperation regarding the Korean military’s new combat uniform. This is an official government-level request, and the U.S. Secretary of Defense is personally asking for samples of the uniform.”
The minister looked up with an expression of surprise.
“The Secretary of Defense himself requested it? And for a combat uniform? Not a weapon?”
“Yes. It seems the improved new Army combat uniform caught the eye of officers from the Second Infantry Division during a previous ROK-U.S. combined exercise. The details are in the document, but they want to receive samples and evaluate performance through them.”
Kim Pil-yeon nodded and read through the official request.
Dear Minister,
I would like to express my respect for your country’s progress in the defense industry and for the Republic of Korea Army’s efforts toward advanced force modernization.
I recently received a report from DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, regarding the new advanced-material combat uniforms developed by a private Korean company and supplied to your Army. According to the report, these uniforms...
...and so on. Most of the content above was unnecessary, and the most important sentence was at the very end.
...We hereby officially request samples in order to evaluate the performance and technological potential of the advanced combat uniform developed in your country. The provided samples will be managed under strict security standards and technology protection procedures...
“They’re asking us to send samples...”
The minister fell into thought for a moment.
The sender was clearly listed as the Secretary of Defense, United States Department of Defense.
It was surprising that the Secretary of Defense would take an interest in a combat uniform fabric that was not even a weapons system.
At the same time, though, it was also a sign that Korea’s technological capability was being recognized.
“Call the DAPA commissioner right away.”
“Yes, sir.”
Thirty minutes later, DAPA Commissioner Oh Sang-deuk, a retired major general, arrived at the minister’s office.
“You wanted to see me, Minister?”
The minister handed him the papers on his desk and said, “The United States has requested samples of our new combat uniform. Looking at how this uniform improvement project has drawn interest from so many places, it’s clearly a national benefit, but it also means your abilities are being recognized to that degree.”
“Haha, I haven’t really done much.”
“Modesty aside... Take a look first.”
Oh Sang-deuk, the DAPA commissioner, first checked the approval documents containing the official request.
Then he closed the folder and said at once, “DARPA must have taken an interest in our military’s Dualtex fabric. Hmm... Before we send anything, I’ll check whether there are any security issues with the company’s material technology or any legal problems.”
“And if we check and it comes back clear, what would you expect the story to be?”
The commissioner thought for a moment before answering.
“At worst, it could just fizzle out. But in the worst-case scenario, they might take part of the Dualtex fabric technology and use it to develop a new material for their own improvement project. Of course, that’s the worst assumption. Diplomatic tensions between our two countries could worsen.”
“And if it isn’t that?”
“In the best case, it would lead to direct export of the U.S. military uniform, but that will be difficult. The United States doesn’t consider only strategic factors when it comes to important equipment like military gear or uniforms.”
“Right. They’ll think about security too, and if we start talking about importing uniforms, it’ll become a political issue as well. Economically, people would criticize it too.”
“They’ll probably ask for a license-production contract or technology transfer.”
“Would Haesol Textile, the company currently supplying the combat uniforms, agree to that?”
“They’re a company. For them, it would be no different from hitting the jackpot.”
“Then all we have to do is make the decision for them?”
“That’s correct.”
Since it was not a difficult matter, Kim Pil-yeon nodded.
“Good. Then once the review is done and there are no issues, notify the company.”
“Understood.”
Oh Sang-deuk bowed and left the minister’s office.
Once he returned to DAPA, he immediately relayed the matter to Brigadier General Won Cheong-gyu.
“There’s been a request from the U.S. Secretary of Defense asking us to send samples of our combat uniform. Check right away whether there are any problems, and if there are no restrictions, notify Haesol Textile of the result.”
“Yes, Commissioner. I’ll confirm it immediately.”
The commissioner was quite pleased that a project that had started by chance had grown into something the U.S. military would also covet.
After all, all of it would become intangible assets added to his résumé.
---