The Art of the Deal and the Price of Ambition
Thwack! As Choi Cheol-kyu dropped the box onto the table, Yoon-gi’s gaze locked onto it. Inside lay a chaotic heap of traditional hangwa snacks, interspersed with a hundred 10,000-won bills. To an outsider, it looked like the scene of a corrupt official caught red-handed, but Yoon-gi only offered a faint, amused smirk.
“Uncle, your pockets are looking quite heavy again today.”
“Tell me about it. They think money solves everything, so they keep bringing it to me. From my perspective, I’m grateful.”
The atmosphere was remarkably peaceful. That was because Yoon-gi hadn’t forbidden the acceptance of bribes. To be precise, he had issued an order not to reject them in the first place. The people offering these bribes were the type who would stop at nothing to get ahead in business. If rebuffed, there was no telling what kind of trouble they might stir up. Thus, Yoon-gi had instructed Ryu Geun-tae and Choi Cheol-kyu that they could keep any bribes they received, provided they reported them to him first.
If a report came in and the bribe involved something too dangerous, Yoon-gi would order it returned, and both men would comply without a word. In a different era, this method would have been risky due to wiretapping or hidden cameras, but this was the early 1980s. Even if they accepted a bribe, they could simply deny it ever happened. In this day and age, bribery investigations only became a problem if one actually provided a benefit in exchange. Looking at Kim Sun-ho earlier, he had paid the bribe and still ended up a sucker; even if he reported YK Department Store to the police later, the company wouldn't suffer. Furthermore, considering the relationship between YK Department Store and the new military regime, there was a high chance Kim Sun-ho would be the one dragged off by the ANSP. They could simply pressure him, asking why money had suddenly disappeared from his account and accusing him of illegal remittances to North Korea.
“It’s truly easy to extract money from people who try to profit through illegal means. You just take it and don’t deliver.”
“That’s only possible because it’s us, though.”
Yoon-gi chuckled at Choi Cheol-kyu’s remark, sat down across from him, and picked up a hangwa set. “This tastes absolutely terrible. Looks like they brought something that’s been sitting in a shop for a year or two.”
“They wouldn’t have bought it knowing that. The sellers must have offloaded it quietly.”
“Well, that’s the economic world for you. A housewife asks a merchant for one more fish, then sneaks another one out of the bin; the merchant sells imported frozen mackerel while claiming it’s fresh domestic catch; then that same merchant gets ripped off at another shop. It’s all the same.”
[In management, taking care of your own family is more important than morality.]
Having set his course, Yoon-gi had no intention of changing his philosophy, and thanks to this, the loyalty of those around him was steadily growing. The fact that the construction office staff volunteered for overtime was proof enough of that.
“That aside, Yoon-gi, I have one question.”
“Go ahead.”
“I’m following your orders without complaint, but aren’t you handing over too many ultra-luxury brands to the mini-department stores? Of course, it’s not to every store, only those run by the power players, but at this rate, we won’t be able to sell anything at the main department store.”
Choi Cheol-kyu’s concern was valid. There were more mini-department stores than expected. While they were mostly intended to stock mid-to-low-end goods to create a massive shopping complex, some were clearly going to handle luxury items. Considering the number of such stores and the projected demand for ultra-luxury brands, it was clear that the demand left for the main department store would be minimal. In the worst case, it could drop to zero.
“I’m doing it on purpose.”
“Huh? On purpose?” Choi Cheol-kyu let out a somewhat dim-witted sound and briefly organized his thoughts. ‘If the sales of luxury goods at the main store are 100 percent, the sales at the mini-department stores are only 40 percent—isn’t the gap too wide?’ But Yoon-gi’s follow-up cleared his doubts entirely.
“Think about it. How many people would actually come to YK Department Store just because we have ultra-luxury brands?”
“Ah… objectively speaking, there isn’t much incentive for customers to come just for that.”
“Exactly. But if we supply those ultra-luxury brands to the relatives of the power players, the story changes. Because those brands will become a channel of communication with the heart of the regime.”
Only then did Choi Cheol-kyu nod. “Ah, I thought you were going to supply mid-to-high-end brands to the power players. As a way to use them as a communication channel. I thought the ultra-luxury brands were meant to maintain the premium image of the main department store.”
In fact, when Choi Cheol-kyu had persuaded JSD, he had done so by promising to prioritize the supply of mid-to-high-end brands to their relatives, so he hadn’t been asking out of complete ignorance.
“You were a bit off-target. I intend to hand over the ultra-luxury brands. Once they start being used as a communication channel with the power elite, most other chaebols will soon be carrying at least one of these ultra-luxury brands. Because carrying that brand itself will become a badge of honor, a sign that says, ‘I’m close with so-and-so.’”
“Ah…! That’s why you didn’t categorize the mini-department stores by brand, but by specific product lines!”
“Exactly. If you buy from a certain general’s relative’s shop, you get a handbag; if you buy from another’s, you get a watch. That creates another effect.”
“What’s that?”
“If you bought an item from General A, but you don’t have an item from General B, who is close to General A? That becomes an Achilles’ heel.”
“Ho-ho, so they’re forced to buy more and more?”
“That’s it. Eventually, the chaebols will be covered in luxury goods from head to toe, and that trend will soon spread to the middle class. And the working class will buy decent goods that fit their wage levels.”
“My god…”
“That’s why I’m currently expanding the factory scale of Jeil Textiles. You didn’t know that, did you?”
“What? Really?”
“Yes. We can’t create luxury brands, but if we make high-quality, reasonably priced clothes under a label that quasi-monopolizes the handling of luxury brands? We’re carving out an entirely new market.”
“My god…” Choi Cheol-kyu’s jaw dropped. What Yoon-gi just described was the kind of thing someone might fantasize about over drinks. But the fact that Yoon-gi was turning that fantasy into reality sent shivers down Choi Cheol-kyu’s spine. Who in this world could plan, execute, and succeed with such a scheme?
“I’m using the power players of the new military regime for adult luxury goods, and I’m currently laying the groundwork for youth luxury goods. If this trend continues, there will come a time when people don’t just buy luxury goods for the sake of networking. Do you think the owners of these mini-department stores will care about everyone they sell to? And ultra-luxury brands aren’t the only luxury goods, are they?”
“That’s true. That’s true.”
“Then, that’s when we hold special sales at the main department store. We can have sales, host other events, and so on. That’s why I included those specific clauses in the contracts.”
As Yoon-gi said, the contracts stipulated different settlement ratios for specific items supplied to the mini-department stores based on volume. It started at 40 percent for the first shipment, but would rise to 80 percent later. Furthermore, the prices were strictly set by the main department store, and if they wanted to hold a sale, they had to obtain approval from the main store. By modern standards, these were poison pills, but in this era, they were considered reasonable enough to be accepted. The relatives of the new military regime signed because they trusted in their own power, and the others signed because it was a booming business.
“It’s no wonder people say you should have been the father and your dad the son.”
“It’s because my father stayed as my father that I am who I am today. I am the happiest son in the world right now.”
Watching Yoon-gi’s warm smile, Choi Cheol-kyu finally saw the expression of a son who was truly happy to be someone’s child.
* * *
“So, if we call the distance between this circle and that circle x…”
In the classroom, while the math teacher was lecturing, Yoon-gi was reading a book completely unrelated to the math textbook. However, the teacher didn’t reprimand him. Because he was the top student in the school? That wasn’t entirely wrong, but it was a bit different. No matter how much Yoon-gi paid to earn his freedom during class, there was always a teacher who wouldn’t listen to the principal. The math teacher was one such person; even though he had received instructions from the principal and even pocketed generous under-the-table bonuses, he frequently bothered Yoon-gi during class. Even after Yoon-gi scored a perfect 100 and ranked first in the school, nothing changed. Eventually, the principal had to make the two of them take the old Seoul National University entrance exam in math. The result: Yoon-gi scored a 96 (converted to a 100-point scale), while the math teacher only managed an 81.
At this point, one would think he’d leave him alone, but perhaps due to the inferiority complex of losing to a student, the math teacher became even more persistent in annoying Yoon-gi, eventually leading to a plainclothes police officer visiting the school. The math teacher was dragged off to the ANSP and returned an hour later, but after that, he never dared to touch Yoon-gi again. Thanks to that, Yoon-gi was able to prepare for the Hermès shoot in peace.
What Yoon-gi was reading were introductory books for models and photographers. He had no intention of becoming a model or a photographer, but he was preparing more deeply because he knew this shoot would be sufficiently profitable.
“Yoon-gi, what book is that?” Jin-soo, who was studying quite hard in his own way, found the original text Yoon-gi was reading beyond his reach and passed it to Won-hee.
“Won-hee, what book is this?”
“Uh, uh?” Won-hee was startled and gingerly picked up Yoon-gi’s book. “The title seems to mean ‘What is a Subject?’”
“What’s the content?”
“Uh… the content is…” Won-hee broke into a cold sweat, his sideburns damp, and pushed the book toward Jin-soo. “You study it and read it! Can’t you even read this?”
“You! You can’t read it either!”
Watching Won-hee and Jin-soo bicker, Yoon-gi didn’t tell them he was going to the Hermès shoot. Telling them directly would only diminish the surprise. Feeling like they were a pair of younger brothers squabbling, Yoon-gi chuckled, and seeing him laugh, the two lost the energy to fight and exchanged bitter smiles.
And after school, Yoon-gi called Jo Cheong-woo to the study once again.
“You know what I’m going to say, right?”
“Gasp!” Looking at the stack of books on the table, Jo Cheong-woo let out a sound like a scream.
“W-wait. Weren’t you going to go for a shoot this time, not a contract?”
Yoon-gi offered a Buddha-like smile to the frantically speaking Jo Cheong-woo.
“That’s obviously a side job. Do you really think that’s the only reason I’m going to Japan?”