After that, Lee Hyun-woo detailed the plans for 【Jungle World】 to the reporters.
The summary of the interview, conducted in a conference format, was as follows:
First, 【Jungle World】 is a provisional name. Initially, it was 【Jungle Universe】, and they are currently deciding on a better name.
Second, this project plans to build the headquarters on Jeju Island, provided by the 【Guseong Group】. The construction period is set to be as short as 2 years and as long as 5 years.
Third, the headquarters will include not only office spaces but also a second data center, various recreational facilities, and accommodations.
Fourth, since the headquarters will be located on Jeju Island, the residential environment for employees will be quickly established in consultation with the government and Jeju Island.
Fifth, they will make every effort to avoid harming the natural environment of Jeju Island. Therefore, the project plans will be carried out through thorough discussions with the government, Jeju Island, and environmental organizations.
The reason for kindly sharing all this information was to maintain good relations with the media, boost the information’s spread, and encourage the government and various companies to take an interest in Jeju Island.
On the plane, he openly discussed the matter with the two chiefs of staff.
Simply building the headquarters on Jeju Island would not solve everything.
Infrastructure is, of course, important.
Since residential living, as mentioned in the interview, is crucial, construction companies must be the first to get involved, followed by various convenience facilities.
【Jungle】 could not handle all of this alone.
Besides the money, how could they solve problems like building schools and roads?
IT infrastructure is also important.
Although South Korea’s ADSL is world-class, it is not laid out in every corner of the country.
Upon checking Jeju Island, he found that most places still lacked ADSL.
Therefore, companies like Samjin Computers had to collaborate with local cable providers in Jeju to resolve the communications issue.
After discussing various other issues with the two chiefs of staff, they both clicked their tongues.
“Wow, when can we possibly get all this done?”
“Indeed. This isn’t something a few companies can handle alone, nor is it possible for the government to do it by itself.”
“Of course. The private sector and the government must work together, and Jeju Island residents and the mentioned environmental organizations must also get involved.”
The two had heard Lee Hyun-woo mention 【Jungle World】 several times.
Each time, they honestly didn’t think much of it.
After all, 【Jungle】 is online-centric, and given the success of remote work recently, they thought it wouldn’t matter where the headquarters was located. However, seeing how much needed to be done, it felt like a corporate project turning into a national project.
Why not Seoul or the metropolitan area?
This thought now led Kang Dong-ho to ask a question.
“Wouldn’t it be better to have the headquarters in Seoul or a nearby city? Then we wouldn’t have to go to such lengths.”
“Such places would be done by someone else even if we didn’t. And I want to draw on a clean canvas. Continuing a drawing someone else started doesn’t bring out the original idea.”
Though his answer was slightly philosophical, Kang Dong-ho understood instantly.
In short, Lee Hyun-woo wanted to design from start to finish and complete the Jeju Island headquarters project himself.
Meanwhile, Han Se-jin began to define it in his own way.
“In a way, it’s necessary. The economy hasn’t been doing well recently, so the government and companies need to invest capital to revitalize it. Doing it in Jeju or other far-off places rather than in Seoul or the metropolitan area will spawn numerous businesses, boosting the economy.”
“You say that, and it feels like I’m embarking on some grand national project. In reality, it was just my selfish idea.”
“Selfish idea?”
“Yes, it was. I wanted to live in a place like Jeju Island after getting married. For that, having the headquarters nearby would be nice… Haha, saying it out loud, it does sound really self-centered. I’ll reflect on it.”
“Oh, CEO.”
“Oh… no need to go that far… I also think living in Jeju would be nice.”
The two quickly responded to Lee Hyun-woo’s words.
As always, Lee Hyun-woo had changed or was changing many things in Korea.
Initially, they would follow his instructions without knowing the reason, only to be amazed by the completed picture later.
Thus, to them, Lee Hyun-woo was almost a subject of faith, and they believed there was something hidden in the Jeju headquarters project that had not yet been revealed.
That’s why the term “grand national project” slipped out, delving deeply into that context.
Therefore, when Lee Hyun-woo said it was a self-centered decision to establish the Jeju headquarters project, they didn’t know what to do.
Kim Ah-young, too, was surprised to learn about Lee Hyun-woo’s grand project throughout the interview, contrary to her initial impression.
‘Right. It’s not just about building a single headquarters.’
She had heard that 【Jungle】 currently had about 500 employees.
Given the company’s growth, the number might increase tenfold during the construction period.
That would be a whopping 5,000 people.
If they were to commute to the Jeju headquarters, 5,000 housing units would be immediately needed.
‘No, that’s not all. There will be partner companies too, right?’
Since it wasn’t manufacturing, it was hard to estimate how many partner companies there would be.
Still, she had heard that some projects were occasionally outsourced.
She already knew one of them was the 【Online Headhunter】 project.
So, the immediate need for housing would not be 5,000 but could increase several fold.
‘And their families would come too, right?’
Most of the employees at 【Jungle】 were young.
So, there were quite a few young people who hadn’t yet started families.
However, by that time, many of them could have wives and children.
Thus, childcare and educational infrastructure for the children would also be necessary.
Countless other infrastructure needs would arise, making it clear that it wasn’t something that could be resolved in a year or two.
Although curious about Lee Hyun-woo’s thoughts on undertaking such a difficult task, Kim Ah-young did not ask until she got home.
Instead, she could only guess.
‘When I went to Jeju Island this time, it certainly felt like it had fallen out of people’s interest.’
Being under constant public scrutiny to the point of having no privacy.
She had grown up like that since childhood, but it never became comfortable.
Therefore, living in Jeju with Lee Hyun-woo didn’t seem bad.
‘Is there anything I can help with?’
She thought about leasing the land for free and wanted to help beyond that.
This was why she brought up Jeju over breakfast the next morning.
“An article will soon break out, but it seems 【Jungle】 will build its headquarters in Jeju Island.”
Just like the reporters, the 【Guseong】 family also always had an interest in Lee Hyun-woo.
They had been surprised numerous times, so they thought no news would surprise them.
“Jeju Island?”
“Building a headquarters in Jeju Island, how would they conduct business there?”
“Indeed.”
Kim Sung-moo, Jang Hee-jin, and Kim Tae-hyun reacted this way, while the two younger sisters said nothing but their eyes showed they were impressed by Lee Hyun-woo’s boldness.
Kim Ah-young calmly explained Lee Hyun-woo’s plan.
Even though the newspaper would describe it in detail, she emphasized the positive aspects since she couldn’t predict how the articles would be written.
“Leasing the land in your name? That’s… well…”
“2 to 5 years? Will that be enough?”
“Building a second data center in Jeju headquarters? Then I need to talk with him again.”
After the explanation, the three discussed from their perspectives.
The perspectives were simple.
Chairman Kim Sung-moo was curious, Jang Hee-jin didn’t want her daughter to live far away, and Kim Tae-hyun saw a business opportunity.
Still, all three were more accepting of Lee Hyun-woo’s plan than when they first heard it.
In other words, the weight shifted from impossible to possible.
Next, a conversation between father and son, who understood the realities of business, ensued.
“But the government doesn’t have money right now.”
“Jeju Island is no different. It’s not a high-tax area.”
“Hyun-woo will need a lot of money.”
“But he should be doing well financially these days. Investors will soon flock to him with money. He already received 50 billion won from us.”
“Which construction company will he hire?”
“Father, who else? It has to be us. We also need to build the data center. I’ll go see Hyun-woo today and finalize it.”
“Will you?”
“Yes, we are major shareholders with a 1% stake. We have the right to make such claims.”
“Hahaha.”
And so, Kim Tae-hyun went to see Lee Hyun-woo again.
Lee Hyun-woo expected Kim Tae-hyun to bring up Jeju Island as soon as he arrived.
“Heard you’re building the headquarters in Jeju Island?”
Nodding his head, he immediately asked for help.
“I think I’ll need your help, hyung.”
“What’s this? I came here to assert my rights as a major shareholder.”
“What rights?”
“If you’re building the headquarters, give our company some orders. You’ll need us to build an additional data center anyway, right?”
“Of course. In fact, the plan aims for a win-win situation. Think about it. Besides the data center and headquarters, the government and Jeju Island will plan residential areas. Then you can build apartments too, right?”
“Hmm? That’s true…”
“We also plan to use eco-friendly energy for power supply. I was going to ask for your help with that too.”
“Eco… eco-friendly?”
“Yes, Jeju Island is a tourist destination. To avoid damaging nature, we must be prepared for that.”
Eventually, IT companies will primarily rely on eco-friendly energy.
It’s better to set it up early.
The era of environmental issues had arrived.
“Moreover, the UN recently declared its intention to establish an international agreement to address climate change. Eco-friendly energy will become a leading industry along with information and communication technology. Preparing early is a wise choice.”
“Well, I get that, but 【Guseong】 can’t handle all that alone. We need to collaborate with the government.”
“That’s why I’m asking for your help.”
“Huh?”
“You know many people in politics and government.”
“Well… that’s true…”
“I’ve also established an external cooperation team to handle government agencies and hired executives from public enterprises, but we can’t keep up with 【Guseong Group】. Nor do we intend to. My father-in-law and you will help, right?”
Nodding unconsciously.
Kim Tae-hyun thought again.
‘Why am I being swayed by this guy again?’
