Chapter 567: Acquiring Jeanswest
Chapter 567: Acquiring Jeanswest
Qian Xiaoxiao rubbed her buzz cut and asked Sister Xin for a hat. "If I go back like this, my parents will nag me again about how I'll never find a husband," she said.
Knowing that they would fret over her appearance and insist that she grow her hair out and cover her pale skin, she shuddered at the thought of marriage. From a young age, she had heard countless restrictions and expectations, making the prospect of marriage seem daunting and restrictive. Now that she was older and more exposed to the world, she was even more reluctant to tie herself down. Men without money were as good as deadbeats, and those with money tended to stray. Why bother with marriage at all? She much preferred the freedom and peace of being single.
Lu Jiaxin, however, didn't like hearing such talk. "Our worth as women isn't defined by marriage and childbearing. If they keep nagging you about finding a husband, just stand up to them. You don't owe them anything, so there's no need to hold back. Otherwise, they'll keep badgering you nonstop. Put a stop to it, and they'll have no choice but to shut up."
"Okay," Xiaoxiao agreed.
The next day, when Jiaxin woke up, Xiaoxiao was already gone, off to see Gu Wenfeng. Everyone had their own business to attend to, and Jiaxin was no exception. Her plan for the day was to visit some of the stores. Instead of bringing along a large entourage, she decided to go incognito as a regular customer.
In the morning, she visited nine stores and observed them from a consumer's perspective, uncovering several issues. Some sales assistants were overly enthusiastic, bombarding customers with nonstop chatter as soon as they walked through the door. Others were too lackadaisical, leaving customers to browse on their own and offering only perfunctory responses to inquiries. There were even cases where sales assistants abandoned sales simply because the requested size was unavailable, never considering transferring stock from another store.
After a lunch break outside, Jiaxin returned home, only to be greeted by a familiar voice and silhouette. Smiling, she asked, "When did you get back?"
"Over an hour ago," he replied. "The butler said you went out. Who did you go with?"
Jiaxin shook her head. "I didn't go out for leisure; I was inspecting our stores and found quite a few problems. Previously, I was focused on expanding and capturing more market share, but now I realize that if we don't address these issues, the more stores we open, the more losses we'll incur."
So, she decided against further expansion for the time being and instead chose to focus on improving the management of the hundred or so stores already under their umbrella. Otherwise, the slightest disturbance could lead to their downfall.
Nie Zhan nodded in agreement. "It's best to take a steady and cautious approach."
In truth, he had long noticed the issues with Green Forest but had refrained from mentioning them. Sometimes, one had to experience and resolve problems firsthand to grow into a capable boss. Offering too many pointers could create a dependency.
Jiaxin then brought up Xiaoxiao's return. "The money we spent on her wasn't wasted. In just two years, she's transformed completely. With her and Yan Yi around, my safety is assured."
Nie Zhan smiled. "You're the only one who would spend so much money sending someone for training. That amount of money could pay the annual salaries of an entire team of bodyguards and then some."
"But can your bodyguards do what Feng and Xiaoxiao can?" Jiaxin countered. "They can take bullets for me."
"Ah Hu and Ah Jie can," Nie Zhan asserted.
Jiaxin didn't argue further, seeing no point in it. "I heard you're off to Australia, but not for a hotel acquisition. I heard it's for a clothing brand?"
Given that Nie Zhan had been on a hotel acquisition spree over the past two years, she had naturally assumed that his trip to Australia was for a similar purpose. However, she would have been none the wiser had she not asked, as he had no intention of sharing those details until now.
Smiling, Nie Zhan confirmed, "Yes, I'm acquiring a clothing brand called Jeanswest."
Jiaxin was taken aback. "Jeanswest? You're acquiring Jeanswest?"
Nie Zhan pulled out a document from his briefcase, a broad smile on his face. "It's not that I'm acquiring Jeanswest; I already have. It's now one of my subsidiary companies."
Jiaxin took the document and confirmed that it was indeed about the acquisition of Jeanswest. As someone in the fashion industry, she was familiar with the brand. Originally an Australian fashion label, it had been acquired by Hong Kong's Rising Sun and turned into a subsidiary, though she wasn't sure when that had happened.
Setting the document aside, Jiaxin turned to Nie Zhan with sincere admiration. "You have a good eye."
Previously, Nie Zhan had expressed his intention to break into the international market, and acquiring a company with established sales channels was the quickest way to do so. She never expected that after all this time, he would settle on Jeanswest. Little did she know that this clothing company would go on to become the largest garment manufacturer and exporter in Asia.
Nie Zhan pulled her into his arms and gave her a kiss. "I've always had a good eye. It's just that you never noticed. Have I fallen so low in your regard that you don't care about me anymore?"
He had wanted to surprise her with the news but was disappointed that she wasn't as thrilled as he had anticipated.
Jiaxin laughed and pushed him away gently. "I've been out all day, and I'm sweaty. If you don't mind the stench, I certainly do! I'm off to take a shower."
As Jiaxin headed downstairs, Nie Zhan shared his intention to hand over Jeanswest to her management. "You're more experienced in the fashion industry, so it makes sense for you to handle it."
Jiaxin didn't refuse, but she did express her concern. "I just realized today how many issues Green Forest has!"
Once, their teacher had even used Jeanswest as a case study. The brand's success was a testament to the management's meticulous attention to detail. To protect and enhance the brand's image, they focused on various aspects, including store hygiene and environment, product displays, patient and smiling customer service, comprehensive after-sales service, and the recruitment, promotion, and training of sales assistants. All these factors combined to create a welcoming atmosphere that made customers feel right at home.
"That's not an issue," Nie Zhan reassured her. "You only officially took over the company in March, so it's understandable that there might be some oversights due to lack of experience. But the fact that you're managing and learning at the same time, identifying and rectifying problems as you go, already makes you a capable boss."
Jiaxin appreciated his words of encouragement. While fashion was her forte, being a designer was different from being a boss, so she, too, was learning as she managed the company.
"If the service at Green Forest isn't up to par, we can hire people to train the staff," Nie Zhan suggested. "The staff at Xiao Ri Cheng have excellent service attitudes, and we can engage them to train your employees."
He knew that Jiaxin disliked Xiao Ri Cheng, but when it came to business, personal preferences had to take a back seat to profit. "Jiaxin, we're paying for their services so that we can make even more money from them in the future."
Hearing this, Jiaxin smiled as she thought about how she was still profiting from the Japanese. "You're absolutely right. We pay for their services now so that we can turn around and make even more money from them later."
Mo Hongbin, Sang Wen, and Deng Weihai were all helping her with the Nikkei index. From the end of last year until now, her investment had grown fivefold, and she continued to ride the wave, leaving the principal amount while profiting from the rest. In fact, her foray into the financial market had begun with the yen, and she had made a killing from the very start.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
