David arrived in Korea.
And he didn't come alone—he brought along a Starbucks executive.
There was no need for me to persuade or negotiate anything; David had already handled everything smoothly.
We secured exclusive rights to Starbucks in Korea by agreeing to split the local subsidiary's shares 50-50.
Once the deal was finalized, David and the Starbucks executive left for a sightseeing tour of Korea.
I gathered the contract and returned to the strategy office, where the director was waiting with his report.
"We've begun negotiations to acquire shares in Shinsaege Telecom, but they're asking for an unreasonably high price. The talks aren't progressing well."
"I see. They must be trying to cash in after hearing that we acquired CL Telecom."
"We might need government intervention. While KORON is a private company, POS Iron & Steel is still heavily influenced by the government."
"The Chairman is at the office now, right? I'll bring this up with him."
I took the Starbucks contract and headed upstairs to the chairman's office.
He was on the phone, making one call after another.
"Are you busy? The assistants said you've been making calls for hours."
"Ahem. I changed my number, so I have to update my contacts. A true businessman rarely changes his number, but since we acquired CL Telecom, I switched to 019."
"You really like this acquisition, don't you? I'm glad we bought the telecom company."
"Ahem. I do like it, but it also feels daunting. I never realized it before, but now that we own a telecom company, the thought of catching up to KS Telecom seems overwhelming."
That was my opening.
Without hesitation, I brought up Shinsaege Telecom.
"That's why we should acquire Shinsaege Telecom. CL Telecom alone will take too long to catch up to KS Telecom. But if we merge with Shinsaege, we can shorten that timeline dramatically."
"Hah! And here I thought I was the one with big ambitions. We just acquired CL Telecom, and now you're already after Shinsaege?"
"Because if we don't move now, we'll lose the opportunity forever. If KS Telecom gets its hands on Shinsaege, we'll never have another chance to catch up."
The foreign exchange crisis was both a risk and an opportunity.
An opportunity like this wouldn't come again.
Sure, economic downturns would happen from time to time, but nothing on the scale of a national financial crisis.
"You really think KS Telecom will take back Shinsaege? They had to give it up once before."
"Back then, they had to consider the political climate. But now, with a new administration in place, they won't have to hold back."
"Hmm. Better us than KS Group. So, what do you need from me? If this was something you could handle on your own, you would've already done it and just reported afterward."
As expected, no one knew me better than my grandfather.
I took out the strategy office's report on Shinsaege Telecom's share structure.
"KORON is the largest shareholder, and POS Iron & Steel is the second largest. But both companies seem to have dollar signs in their eyes—they're trying to sell their shares at outrageously high prices."
"Tsk. They think we're an easy target."
"That's why we need the government's help. Especially with POS Iron & Steel—one word from the government, and they won't have a choice but to comply."
POS Iron & Steel was a state-owned company.
However, due to the foreign exchange crisis, it was in the process of transitioning into a private entity. Still, the government retained a significant stake.
"So, you need the government to step in."
"And acquiring Shinsaege Telecom would justify our acquisition of CL Telecom. The government's policy is that higher-ranking companies acquire lower-ranking ones, isn't it?"
This had already happened in the semiconductor industry.
Hyunjae Semiconductor was ranked third, while CL Semiconductor was ranked fifth.
So, using rankings as justification, the government had all but forced CL Semiconductor into a merger with Hyunjae.
"Looks like I'll have to visit the Blue House after a long time."
"By the way, what's that document in your left hand? You brought it to show me, so stop dragging it out and just tell me."
"It's about a project we're working on to grow our distribution business. One of the projects has already succeeded, so I wanted to report it to you."
I handed him the exclusive Starbucks Korea contract and the Coca-Cola distribution plan.
My grandfather quickly skimmed through the documents, then tilted his head 45 degrees and looked at me.
"Are you trying to expand into the beverage industry now? The government keeps warning against large conglomerates expanding into too many sectors, but you're doing the exact opposite."
"To be honest, it's a business that's guaranteed to make money. How could I just sit back and watch?"
"You're not wrong. If there's money to be made, we should go ahead regardless of what the government says. But are you sure coffee and cola will be profitable?"
To be fair, it wasn't a business that would bring in immediate profits.
But for the future, it was crucial. I needed to package this idea in a way that would convince my grandfather.
"On average, each Korean adult drinks over 350 cups of coffee a year. That's at least one cup a day. But because of the financial crisis, companies are cutting down on secretaries, meaning people will have to make their own coffee or buy it themselves."
"So you're saying coffee shops will become a trend?"
"It's a guaranteed success. We're talking annual revenues ranging from hundreds of billions to over a trillion won."
My grandfather still looked skeptical.
But since the contracts had already been signed, he didn't press the issue further.
"Fine, I'll give you coffee. But why are you trying to secure the Coca-Cola distribution rights?"
"Do you know Warren Buffett?"
"That famous investor from Wall Street, right?"
"His favorite stock is Coca-Cola."
"And that means Coca-Cola will sell well in Korea?"
The truth was, Coca-Cola wasn't that popular in Korea at the moment.
The companies that held its distribution rights were bleeding money every year.
"Coca-Cola is the key to expanding Taewoo Group's distribution business. And right now is the best time to acquire the rights at the lowest price."
"Is the company holding the distribution rights struggling?"
"That's right. Three companies currently hold shares, but if we consolidate them into one acquisition, we can reap significant benefits."
"Hmm, well, it doesn't seem like a particularly costly endeavor, so handle it as you see fit."
As expected, my grandfather was incredibly lenient when it came to corporate acquisitions.
With Starbucks and Coca-Cola now under our control, even if Taewoo Distribution simply maintained its current state, revenues would steadily climb.
***
I was caught up in the whirlwind of corporate acquisitions.
Today was another one of those busy days, but the moment I saw the report brought in by the head of planning, I temporarily put acquisitions on hold.
"Carlos, the CEO of Kia Motors, is making aggressive moves. He has laid off 8,000 employees, terminated contracts with over half of the subcontractors, and ousted nearly half of the company's executives."
"That's definitely aggressive."
No wonder he had earned the nickname The Devil from France.
As soon as he took office as CEO of Kia Motors, he initiated a large-scale restructuring.
With the IMF pressuring the government to push for corporate restructuring, Carlos had the perfect excuse to go on his rampage.
"He wouldn't have just canceled contracts with subcontractors without cause. Were there kickbacks between executives and those subcontractors?"
"It was more of a customary exchange rather than outright corruption. Most of the executives who were dismissed had close ties to the subcontractors."
"Coming from France, he probably didn't understand the business customs of Korea."
"Employee dissatisfaction at Kia Motors is mounting. It wouldn't be surprising if things escalated at any moment."
A strike wouldn't be out of the question.
After all, 8,000 people had lost their jobs, and even long-serving executives who had dedicated decades to the company had been ousted.
"There won't be a strike. Right now, people consider themselves lucky just to still have a job. If anything, there will be overwhelming opposition to any strike."
"That seems to be the case. The Kia Motors labor union is actively moving, but nothing major has happened yet."
"This is the perfect opportunity to completely change the labor union at Kia Motors."
"You can't just eliminate the union altogether."
A labor union was a legally protected workers' right.
Naturally, those rights had to be respected, and I had no intention of dissolving the union.
I just didn't want power to be concentrated in a single faction.
"Then let's create more unions. If we establish over ten different unions within Kia Motors, won't their influence be diluted?"
"You're suggesting we increase the number of unions?"
"Right now, the existing union only represents the interests of its leaders. We should form a union exclusively for employees with less than ten years of experience and another one for workers who oppose the current union leadership."
When power is concentrated in one place, it inevitably seeks an external target.
Historically, after the Warring States period ended, nations sought external enemies to fight.
For Kia Motors, the most likely external enemy would be Taewoo Group. So instead, we needed to create our own Warring States period within the unions to fragment their power.
"Understood. We'll draft a plan to encourage union expansion."
"Make it as easy as joining a club. Also, consider providing financial support at the group level."
Carlos Ghosn's strategy was truly fascinating.
Taewoo Motors had always looked down on Kia Motors, confident in its superiority.
But once Kia Motors completed its restructuring and management reforms, it would no longer be an easy opponent.
If Taewoo Motors and Kia Motors were pitted against each other internally, it would be beneficial for the group as a whole.
"Oh! And make sure to track and publicly announce the productivity levels of both Taewoo Motors and Kia Motors. That way, they'll push each other to improve."
"That's a great idea. No matter the field, having a competitor always pushes you to do better."
There was a reason marathon runners trained with running mates.
Having someone running alongside you encouraged improvement, and the same principle applied to businesses.
Before I knew it, half of 1998 had already passed.
My grandfather convened an executive meeting for the mid-year financial review.
Inside the conference room, the CEOs of each subsidiary were seated, and the mid-year reports began with the president of Taewoo Electronics.
"Taewoo Electronics' revenue has increased by more than 20% compared to the previous year. Despite the mobile division being spun off, sales have actually risen."
"What was the key driver of this revenue growth?"
"One factor is that Apple's MP3 player, the iPod, is available exclusively at Taewoo Electronics stores. Customers seeking the iPod visit our stores and often end up purchasing other electronics as well."
"So you're saying revenue increased solely because of Apple?"
"Not at all. Taewoo Electronics has revamped its product designs across the board, and our products' functionality is on par with—or even superior to—our competitors. This has earned us strong consumer preference."
President Woo Sung-il delivered his report in a confident, booming voice.
Raising one's voice in front of my grandfather was no easy feat, but with sales and operating profit soaring, Woo Sung-il had every reason to be self-assured.
Especially since market share was rising not just domestically but internationally as well.
His confidence was well-founded.
"Next, let's hear the report from Taewoo Construction."
The real concern was Taewoo Construction.
While subsidiaries like Taewoo Electronics and Taewoo Motors were seeing significant revenue growth, the lingering effects of the financial crisis had caused the construction industry to shrink dramatically, putting Taewoo Construction in a precarious situation.