Episode 41. Old Hand 1.
Hyunwoo’s ears perked up at the words “PR Director” that had come out in his inner monologue.
PR Director?
That man is the PR Director?
He recalled what the store manager had said earlier.
“When a new brand comes in, the department store’s PR office usually gives it a push at least once, but we didn’t even get that…”
And Song Gaeun’s inner voice.
[This is so annoying. We really are a new store, so what is this? We haven’t gotten a single promotion, let alone an event. When we first opened, Gucci made a fuss saying they were going to do theirs, and last time Chanel barged in. Haa… I’m so upset.]
Both of them had regretted not getting support from the department store’s PR office.
If he was the PR Director, then at the practical level, he was the final person in charge.
Hyunwoo absolutely had to grab hold of him.
That man could resolve Cartibajac’s disappointing lack of publicity, and though he didn’t know what would happen in the future, if things went well, he might even be able to connect him with Mancheon Apparel.
In any case, if he could build a good relationship with him through this opportunity, there seemed to be a lot to gain in many ways.
The man’s voice rang out again.
“What? She’s even having trouble with her agency, so it’s absolutely impossible? Hey! Then what am I supposed to do? You don’t know what the president’s temper is like? (…) I don’t care. Bring Lee Suyeon here somehow. Don’t even think about coming back alone. Got it?”
He irritably hung up the phone.
“Haa… This is killing me. Seriously…”
[Please, somebody save me.]
“Would you like me to help you a little?”
The PR Director turned his head with a blank expression.
His eyes said, Who the hell are you?
“I’m Kim Hyunwoo from Mancheon Mulsan.”
“Mancheon Mulsan? No, why would someone from Mancheon Mulsan…”
“I ended up overhearing your phone call unintentionally. This is because of casting a promotional model for the department store, right?”
“…”
“It’s just that we also just came back from the president’s office because of a model issue.”
“You did?”
“Yes. We’re in charge of a luxury brand called Cartibajac, and the president happened to visit…”
Hyunwoo pointed to Song Gaeun standing behind him.
“And she forced our supervisor here into some clothes. She seemed to be thinking of making her a model.”
The PR Director’s eyes shifted to Song Gaeun, then widened.
There was expectation in his gaze, as if wondering whether he might not have to bring in Lee Suyeon after all.
“And?”
“It ended as a mere happening. She said she didn’t look luxurious.”
The PR Director’s face, which had briefly brightened with expectation, darkened again.
Then Hyunwoo’s voice reached his ears.
“What if we dress up our supervisor luxuriously and show her to the president one more time? She did like her face.”
“Mr. Hyunwoo!”
Hyunwoo approached the indignant Song Gaeun and whispered into her ear.
“This person is the PR Director here.”
Song Gaeun’s eyes widened.
If he was the PR Director, then he was the person effectively in charge of publicity.
In that case, Cartibajac might also…
“You said you’re a supervisor, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’ll speak casually. Have you ever done a photo shoot?”
“Ah, no.”
“Not even once?”
“Other than selfies and group photos.”
“Hmm…”
[So it’s because she doesn’t know how to take pictures. Her face and figure are perfect. She’s exactly the style the president likes. She also fits our department store’s image well. If we dress her up a bit and just slightly change her style, there’s a chance.]
“Want to do a test?”
“A test?”
“It’s nothing special. You just need to redo your makeup a little and take a few photos.”
“…I need to tell my team leader…”
While Song Gaeun went off to call Yang Gyeonghun, Hyunwoo asked him,
“To be honest, we’re a bit flustered too. Do you really think the president will like her?”
“I think we can make it work if we put her together well, but I don’t know. She’s fixated on someone else right now.”
[Once that witch gets fixated on something, she has to do it no matter what. Whether it’s right or wrong doesn’t matter.]
“Ms. Lee Suyeon?”
“Huh? How did you know?”
“I heard your call earlier.”
“Ahem…”
If it wouldn’t work because she was fixated on Lee Suyeon, then the solution was simple.
He just had to get rid of that fixation on Lee Suyeon.
“Director.”
“What?”
“If the president keeps asking only for Ms. Lee Suyeon, could you tell her this?”
“What?”
“Tell her that rumors are going around that Ms. Lee Suyeon has a messy private life with men. Say it would be a huge problem if another scandal broke and they had to change the promotional model again.”
It would probably work.
The previous model had caused trouble because of a promiscuous private life, and in her inner voice earlier, she had said that doing cheap things or having messy relationships with men was absolutely unacceptable.
As if his guess had been correct, the PR Director’s eyes were wide with astonishment.
“What did you say your name was?”
“I’m Kim Hyunwoo from Sales Team 9 of Mancheon Mulsan.”
“Kim Hyunwoo from Sales Team 9 of Mancheon Mulsan… You’re a genius.”
“Pardon?”
“I said you’re a genius. How did you even think of something like that? Hahaha, there was such an easy method, so what was I worrying about? Honestly.”
Just then, Song Gaeun finished her call and returned.
“So, what did your team leader say?”
“Um, well… Hmm… um…”
Song Gaeun tried to speak but hesitated.
“What did he say?”
“He said to stop fucking around and just come back.”
“What?”
“Stop fucking…”
“Hahahaha…”
Suddenly, he burst into hearty laughter.
“All right, all right. It’s fine, so you can just go.”
“Pardon?”
“This Kim Hyunwoo here solved everything. Ah, seriously… Why didn’t I think of that? Anyway, thanks.”
[Where in the world is there a person without a single weakness? I’ll find one no matter what it takes and make Lee Suyeon into that kind of image, at least in the president’s eyes. They both say it’s nonnegotiable, so what can I do? It can’t be helped.]
As he was about to head toward the president’s office, Hyunwoo called out to him.
“Director.”
“Hm?”
“If it’s all right with you, we’d like Cartibajac to sponsor the clothes the model wears. Could you make that happen?”
“Cartibajac? You said it’s a luxury brand, right?”
“Yes.”
“That much is no problem. Once the staff is set up, I’ll call you, so have the clothes ready.”
“Thank you.”
“Thank me? I’m the one who should be grateful. I was about to write my resignation letter.”
He raised a hand, then turned and strode off briskly.
Hyunwoo asked Song Gaeun, who was staring blankly at his back.
“Would you say that’s enough publicity?”
She answered in a dazed voice.
“Of course. In an image advertisement for Mancheon Department Store, the model will be wearing nothing but Cartibajac. What bigger advertisement is there? I need to hurry back and sort out products where the logo shows well.”
* * *
On the way back to the company, Song Gaeun fell sound asleep, snoring with abandon, while Hyunwoo drove and thought.
Only a month after joining the company, he had already met three members of Mancheon’s chaebol family.
As for Min Jeongae, all he knew so far was that she was instinctive and eccentric.
But that did not mean he could underestimate her.
There were many cases where an instinctive person surpassed someone logical and intellectual.
He had even heard that among politicians and businesspeople who achieved great success, many were instinctive types.
And Min Byeongsu seemed quite intellectual and cold-headed, with ambition and drive that were anything but ordinary.
In a way, was he the person who seemed most likely to take the lead in the management succession?
That, too, was something he did not know.
Because no one knew when or who might surge ahead, or how the situation would unfold.
Lastly, Kim Byeongjun.
Kim Byeongjun was not yet at a stage where he could be discussed.
He had only just arrived at the starting line, and he had not yet been polished.
All Hyeonu knew at this point was that he had a good character.
But that sort of inner quality had nothing to do with the competition for managerial succession.
In the end, what mattered would be who sat on the throne at the final moment.
He did not know who that person would be, but one by one, things about them were being clipped and filed away in Hyeonu’s mind.
* * *
Looking at Song Gaeun’s face, which was covered in heavy makeup, Yang Gyeonghun asked,
“Assistant Manager Song, what happened to your face?”
“Don’t even ask. I got caught by that old demon hag, ugh.”
After hearing the whole story, Yang Gyeonghun and Kim Byeongjun found it immensely amusing.
“So that’s why you were saying something about modeling. If I’d known that was what it was, I would’ve let you do it. I thought you were just talking nonsense.”
“Forget it. I never intended to do it in the first place.”
Kim Byeongjun cut in.
“Still, it worked out well. Cartibajac will get some publicity out of it.”
Song Gaeun’s face brightened.
“Exactly. The store manager was thrilled, too. She almost cried, you know?”
“Anyway, if it worked out well, that’s good. Assistant Manager Song, you need to make your solo project a big hit too.”
“Haa… I’m looking forward to it too. Cartibajac is seriously a brand that’ll blow up as long as people find out about it.”
“Right, it needs to blow up.”
In the warm, friendly atmosphere, everyone added a comment or two before Kim Byeongjun asked,
“Hyeonu, did you properly introduce yourself at Mancheon Apparel?”
“I couldn’t because they were in the middle of a product review.”
“Today was the product review?”
“Yes.”
“Then just find a good time and introduce yourself over the phone. There’s nothing much to worry about there anyway.”
Strangely, whenever Mancheon Apparel came up, everyone seemed to loosen up.
It was true of Song Gaeun, who worked straightforwardly without any tricks, and it was true of Kim Byeongjun, who was meticulous when it came to work.
“By any chance, has anyone here carried out a project at Mancheon Apparel? I’m feeling completely lost right now, so I was hoping to use it as a reference and get a feel for the atmosphere.”
“A project?”
Yang Gyeonghun, Kim Byeongjun, and Song Gaeun looked at one another. Then Yang Gyeonghun gave a small laugh and said,
“There’s no such thing there.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s a place where you can’t get your teeth in. Whatever you say, they just answer, ‘That’s how clothes are,’ and that’s the end of it.”
“Pardon?”
“Look. Depending on the brand, they plan around three hundred to five hundred models per season. Since they plan two seasons, S/S—spring/summer—and F/W—fall/winter—that means they plan a thousand products a year. Then those are divided again by color and size. On top of that, as you know, clothes follow trends. Every season has different trends, and even in the middle of a season, some item always suddenly becomes popular. So what do they do? They have to plan it as a spot item and make it too. Mancheon Apparel has six brands like that. From the standpoint of people like us, who manage the whole picture and pick out what might make money to push as projects, it’s incredibly tricky. The place is spinning nonstop like a hamster wheel, and there’s no room to squeeze in.”
Just hearing Yang Gyeonghun’s explanation was enough for Hyeonu to imagine what would happen if he rashly tried to interfere with Mancheon Apparel.
Even when put this way, there was nothing he could say in response. If the people actually working in the field said it, he would be left speechless.
As Hyeonu was thinking this, Kim Byeongjun added,
“That place is stagnant water. Every company with Mulsan in its name has fashion and textile affiliates. Do you know why?”
“Why?”
“Because they all started out in textiles. It’s a product of the export-promotion policies of the light industry era. Mancheon Mulsan was the same—the first thing we exported under the name of a general trading company was clothing. In other words, Mancheon Apparel is like the grandfather of Mancheon Mulsan. It’s an Archaeopteryx.”
“……”
* * *
They had explained it at length, but what Yang Gyeonghun and Kim Byeongjun had said was very simple.
“Don’t expect much from Mancheon Apparel. Even if you mess with it, you won’t even break even.”
It really did seem that way.
But there was something a little strange.
The Mancheon Apparel he had seen with his own eyes had been too languid, too lax, and devoid of vitality.
It was completely different from the desperation of the PR director at Mancheon Department Store he had seen today, or from what he had experienced here over the past month.
Since he knew too little at the moment to make any kind of judgment, he began by researching Mancheon Apparel.
By the time the workday had long since ended and it was around nine o’clock, he had finished a rough investigation of Mancheon Apparel.
There were six brands: menswear, family-style easy casual, sportswear, two women’s casual brands with concepts aimed at different age groups, and an outdoor brand that was popular these days. Aside from those, there was also one accessories brand and one shoe brand.
Looking at the financial structure, the company was fairly large in scale, but its net profit was much smaller than expected.
The margins themselves were not high, and because they planned so many items, they carried a lot of inventory. Then they turned leftover inventory into discounted goods to generate cash flow—a structure that was not very healthy.
After leaving the company, Hyeonu continued thinking even on his way home.
Where should he start?
At what point could he find a profit model capable of producing groundbreaking results?
His first solo project—how could he produce results with it?
He was pondering this as he rode the subway when two boys and three girls who looked like high school students entered, laughing loudly.
A bitter smile came to Hyeonu’s face as he recalled his own high school days, which had passed in darkness—but then his gaze suddenly sharpened.
Something was strange.
Two boys, three girls.
And yet the padded jackets they were wearing were all the exact same product.
The brand was the same, and even the color was the same black.
No, why…
Hyeonu still had several stations to go before reaching home, but he got off at the next stop.
Because near that station was a bustling district packed with clothing stores.