“Growing as tall as a ‘tree’?”
It was an apt and fresh expression to signify explosive growth.
So, Lee Hyun-woo smiled and said this:
“By the way, we should expand the office before bringing in more people, right?”
“Oh? That’s true. It’s too cramped now. Seeing the interview earlier, if those people work in one office, it might burst at the seams.”
“And we can’t stay in the current place if we need to secure space for more servers.”
It was true.
Both people and servers couldn’t be increased in the current cramped space.
But hearing Lee Hyun-woo’s words, Lee Jung-woo quickly said as if something came to his mind.
“Oh, right. We might be able to release the beta version of the email by next week. I thought of it because of the servers.”
“Already? That’s really fast.”
“We increased the number of programmers to four, but the work speed is 2.5 times faster.”
“That’s great.”
Curiosity was slowly building up.
How will the four major PC communications respond if they declare the email beta service free?
I didn’t know, but one thing was certain.
‘It will become a really interesting website with various things mixed in.’
Starting with auctions, online shopping was added, and now email service.
Although he didn’t tell the developers, including his younger brother, he was even thinking about a portal site internally.
In the future society, the market dominator was the platform industry.
And it wasn’t just one, but already planning three…
‘Did something like this exist in my past life?’
Depending on where you focus, there could be similar places, or not.
For example, [Single] operated a portal site and a smartphone operating system called ‘Druid’ and a content purchase site.
Even so, there was no IT company that started with online auctions and combined it with internet shopping and a portal site.
‘What if it didn’t exist in my past life? Anyway, my goal in this life was to do what I couldn’t do in my past life.’
Is there any law that says you can’t do it in business as well?
If you limit human imagination, you’ll be trapped.
From now on, I will challenge the infinite world.
Thinking this way, Lee Hyun-woo’s heart was already pounding with excitement.
After much deliberation and review, they selected four people from the last interview.
Two were for sales, and one each was assigned to materials management and marketing.
Of course, their first day of work was on the day the office was expanded.
This meant that Lee Hyun-woo ran around and handled the office expansion like popping popcorn in a flash.
The office they acquired was four times larger than the previous space, and additionally, they rented a separate warehouse and server management room.
At this point, Lee Hyun-woo called Kim Yoon-soo.
It wasn’t really necessary, but when he said he had something important to discuss, Kim Yoon-soo came to the office.
“Wow, there might not be any place that has grown this fast in a few months.”
After seeing the office, warehouse, and server management room, he clicked his tongue.
In fact, Kim Yoon-soo was also preparing to expand his factory.
Receiving a compliment, Lee Hyun-woo immediately returned it.
“You’re also moving the factory to a bigger place, aren’t you, boss? You’re amazing. At this rate, you might end up making all the computers in Korea.”
“No way. There’s still a long way to go.”
“Wow, so humble.”
“It’s true. Ah, but what was the important thing you wanted to say?”
“I wanted to give you the deposit.”
“What? Already?”
“I can’t live with debt. I think I can give it to you now.”
“Can’t you not give it?”
“Why?”
“If you give it, you’ll feel relieved. Then you won’t visit our factory often, right?”
“No way.”
“So, you’ll visit often?”
“I received a favor at the beginning, and I’m not someone who changes just because I succeeded a little. Please take it, and continue to receive my advice in the future.”
“Phew, now I feel relieved.”
Seeing him actually sigh with relief, Lee Hyun-woo laughed.
But what he just said was true.
Without Kim Yoon-soo’s help in the beginning, they might have faced quite a bit of difficulty, let alone this rapid growth.
“By the way, I should repay that money to my father.”
“Why not use it for expansion?”
“I’ve already set aside enough for that. Anyway, I’ve already started repaying the money I received as an investment from my father.”
“Already?”
“To gain more trust, I have to repay. But since this is the first time, my father seems to be a bit surprised.”
The confidence was evident in Kim Yoon-soo’s voice as he spoke with a slightly straightened posture.
“He should be surprised. Your company is making 5 billion won in monthly sales.”
“It’s thanks to your help, Lee. My father still wants to invest in your company.”
“Thank you so much for your interest.”
“You’re just thanking me and not accepting it, right?”
“Yes, you’re right.”
“Well, I can’t force an investment, so my father will have to give up. But if you ever need money, let me know anytime.”
It sounded as if he would take it out of his own pocket, making Lee Hyun-woo laugh.
“But when there are so many good things happening, I wonder if something bad will suddenly pop up.”
“Are you talking about ‘Hosa Dama’ (Good things followed by bad things)?”
“Yes, as the business is going smoothly, while it’s enjoyable, there’s a slight unease in my mind.”
“Is there something in particular that’s bothering you?”
“There is.”
“What is it?”
“Various things. Among them, expanding the business raises many concerns. Didn’t you feel the same, Lee? When you expand the scale, fixed costs increase, but you can’t be sure you’ll earn more than that.”
“Of course, I felt the same way.”
It’s a lie. I’m not worried at all. But humans find more comfort in similar situations.
Lee Hyun-woo deliberately acted even with facial expressions and said this.
“We expanded the office and hired many people. If I said I wasn’t worried, it would be a lie.”
“That’s true.”
“But if you and I support each other, there won’t be a big problem.”
“I always depend a lot on you, Lee. This time, I’m also considering how to sell more as we increase production from 5,000 to 10,000 units per month.”
“What’s the conclusion of your consideration? You don’t mean to rely entirely on me, do you?”
“Not rely, but I want to consult.”
“Go ahead.”
“Half of the computers we sell are online. The other half are offline. Although online sales are increasing, offline doesn’t have a limit either.”
“Did you find a way to expand the limit?”
“I did. It’s by breaking into retail stores.”
Hearing that, Lee Hyun-woo’s eyes sparkled.
Does a position grow a person’s ability?
Or is it desperation?
They have been selling through companies and institutions offline, but since there’s no certainty that this will continue, they might have thought of this clever move.
“But to supply retail stores, you’ll have to lower the price. Are you okay with that?”
“As I said, producing and selling 10,000 units a month without stock is already a success. Although the profit per unit will decrease by selling at wholesale prices, the overall company’s profit will increase.”
This is called economies of scale, and theoretically, it was correct.
However.
“There’s one problem.”
“What is it?”
“The place where the most computers are sold in the country is Yongsan, but I wonder if the retail stores here will accept it.”
“I’ve thought about that too. So, I’ll try it out, and if it doesn’t work, I’ll look elsewhere.”
These days, in Yongsan, [Jungle] and [One Computer] are frequently mentioned.
The complaint is that computer prices have dropped too much because of these two places.
It was a predicted issue.
The owners of the stores who had been making excessive profits wouldn’t look favorably at these two places.
‘They probably won’t accept it.’
Especially, Kim Yoon-soo, whose sales skills aren’t that great, negotiating with those retail stores?
I didn’t think so.
After thinking for 1 or 2 seconds, Lee Hyun-woo mentioned one place.
“Have you ever heard of [Sejun Computer Land]?”
“Oh? I know it. But it’s not in Yongsan, right?”
“Not yet.”
The reason Lee Hyun-woo thought of [Sejun Computer Land] was simple.
In his past life, that place dominated the computer retail market with its terrifying marketing.
Of course, it eventually went bankrupt due to excessive expansion, but that was several years from now.
This means that the period of explosive store expansion is coming soon.
‘Maybe seeing us selling computers online will inspire them to expand their business even more.’
If they can push [One Computer] into [Sejun Computer Land] in line with its expansion, it might be stable for a few years.
“Their operating policy is direct purchase, right?”
“Direct purchase means?”
“Buying cheap in bulk and displaying it in their own stores to sell. So if One Computer can supply to them, we can create a somewhat stable transaction.”
“That sounds… good. It’s like securing one place first?”
“There are also big companies like [Electronics World] and [Hyper Mart], so you’ll have to run around a lot.”
“I’m prepared for that.”
Expanding the factory comes with responsibilities and obligations.
That seemed to motivate Kim Yoon-soo.
Lee Hyun-woo smiled and gave one more piece of advice.
“And never accept promissory notes.”
“You’ve said that so many times that I have scabs in my ears.”
“It’s dangerous. That’s why.”
“Got it. I won’t accept promissory notes. Even if it means not doing business.”
“Computers are cheap, so retailers will definitely take them. Use that well and don’t accept promissory notes.”
Kim Yoon-soo needs repetitive learning.
Lee Hyun-woo emphasized it more because he had seen countless small companies go bankrupt due to promissory notes.
‘Even if I do this, I wonder if he’ll do well.’
Even though he’s older than me, Kim Yoon-soo feels like a child left by the river.
But I can’t always clean up after him.
Especially in business, he has to do it himself, so I have no choice but to watch.
Fortunately, a few days later, Kim Yoon-soo returned with a triumphant expression after negotiating with [Sejun Computer Land].
“We are supplying [Sejun Computer Land] with cash transactions instead of promissory notes.”
“Wow, things are going so smoothly. That’s really great.”
“They are expanding aggressively. They plan to add five more direct stores this year alone.”
Lee Hyun-woo nodded and briefly checked the numbers in his memory.
[Deokseong Trading], the company he worked for, also focused on analyzing the cases of bankrupt companies.
It was to use them as a lesson and avoid repeating failure.
Wouldn’t a memory-savvy Lee Hyun-woo remember the information about [Sejun Computer Land]?
‘There were a total of 238 stores nationwide.’
Currently, there are fewer than ten direct stores in places like Seoul, Busan, and Bucheon.
In a few years, there will be a boom in the computer market, so such a storm of expansion will draw industry attention.
Until then, [One Computer] will likely supply stably.
