How can you become a star without money?

Chapter 82 Going public is better than going bankrupt [2 chapters, please subscribe]

"Mr. Wang, Hu Dong would like to come over for a drink." Li Rongyu, who was organizing the first dinner for the new company, knocked on the door and came in, asking in a low voice.

"Oh, please let him in." Wang Yao stood up.

"Mr. Wang, it's nice to see you again." Jiang Hudong's large face was plastered with a fawning smile, and his attitude was extremely humble.

Lee Eun-hye was somewhat taken aback. It was one thing for her, a marginal figure in the industry, to be so humble, but how could a big shot like Kang Ho-dong be so humble in front of Wang Yao?

Wang Yao exchanged a few pleasantries with him, and they sat down for a chat. Jiang Hudong showcased his skills as a top-notch host and barbecue chef, creating a very lively atmosphere.

"Thank you for reminding me of that, Mr. Wang. I checked and there was indeed a big problem. I can't thank you enough, so let me toast you first." Jiang Hudong demonstrated by drinking a whole bottle of wine in one gulp.

“Mr. Jiang has a great capacity for alcohol, so I will drink tea instead of wine,” Wang Yao replied.

"This second bottle is to wish Mr. Wang and the two Presidents Li a prosperous opening and abundant wealth for their new company." Jiang Hudong downed another bottle.

Li Rongyu and Li Enhui quickly followed, as they didn't have the same influence as Wang Yao.

"For this third bottle, I'll shamelessly recommend myself. I've fallen out with my old company, and I wonder if I'd have the honor of working with Mr. Wang?" Jiang Hudong had just finished speaking when Wang Yao grabbed his hand.

"Mr. Jiang, have a bite of your food."

Kang Ho-dong blinked, chuckled, and put down the bottle, waiting for what was to come.

"To be honest, Mr. Jiang, my collaboration with the two Presidents Lee is to bring outstanding employees from Korea to China, and our future development focus may not necessarily be Korea."

"Of course I'd love to have an industry giant like Mr. Jiang join us, but I'm afraid our small temple can't contain such a great talent. What if he rips the roof off? Where will I go to cry then?"

Wang Yao smiled and spoke kindly, but his refusal was also very clear.

At Kang Ho-dong's level, it's impossible for him to be without any messy affairs. Wang Yao is here to make money, not to cause trouble.

Jiang Hudong was a sensible man; he smiled sheepishly and pondered without speaking.

Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, Li Rongyu changed the subject, "Hu Dong is coming and a bunch of people are coming with him. My small company can't support so many mouths. Besides, since you've fallen out, you might as well start your own business. It'll be tough, but at least you'll have peace of mind, right?"

"You know I only cooperate with entertainment companies because I'm afraid of trouble. If I wanted to start my own company, I would have done it long ago. I'm not smart enough," Kang Ho-dong said with a mournful face.

"President Li's suggestion is good. Mr. Jiang can set up his own company. If there are suitable businesses in China in the future, we can cooperate together." Wang Yao narrowed his eyes, thought for a moment, and then spoke.

As a grassroots celebrity, Kang Ho-dong still had a decent influence on the Korean public before the tax evasion scandal, and he also had some commercial value.

“I’d definitely be willing to expand my business in China. I’ll listen to Mr. Wang and start my own company first.” Jiang Hudong chuckled.

“My two older sisters and I will be promoting a social media platform in Korea, and Mr. Jiang can be among the first celebrities we invite to join,” Wang Yao said with a smile.

"Social media platforms? Don't laugh at me, I know absolutely nothing about electronics. People say I'm an old-fashioned person." Kang Ho-dong was taken aback.

“It’s alright. The internet is the trend, and in the future, all entertainment professionals will gradually shift to this kind of marketing. It’s basically moving the artist packaging from television to the internet. I happen to work in this field. If Mr. Jiang trusts me, we can cooperate.” Wang Yao waved his hand.

"Mr. Wang, could you elaborate?" Jiang Hudong glanced at Wang Yao, unsure of his purpose.

What kind of collaboration invitation is this? It's not an endorsement or a TV program, how are they going to make money?

"The cooperation method is very simple. You authorize me to operate the internet business, and I will be responsible for packaging and operation. There will be many profit models, such as small endorsements that do not require a contract."

Let me give you an example. Suppose you have a barbecue restaurant and you have 100,000 followers on the platform. If you promote your barbecue restaurant, 100,000 people will see it, and you'll receive payment for each post.
"If you want to deepen the cooperation, you can discuss a promotional price with the store, such as issuing a coupon. You'll receive a certain percentage of the revenue from all customers who use this coupon," Wang Yao briefly explained the method of soft advertising.

"Sounds a bit like it, TV shopping, huh?" Kang Ho-dong's eyes lit up.

He looks honest and simple, but he's actually very shrewd, especially when it comes to making money. Otherwise, he wouldn't be the first celebrity to monetize his fame and open a chain of barbecue restaurants.

He immediately understood Wang Yao's method of making money.

If that internet platform has a really big influence, wouldn't my barbecue restaurant be able to do better business?
"The logic is similar, but the internet is a place for real-time communication, not a place where you can make money in the short term," Wang Yao nodded.

“I think we can give it a try. I believe Mr. Wang wouldn’t use my name to do anything shady,” Jiang Hudong said, feigning naivety.

“Of course, affecting your reputation means affecting your earnings, so you don’t have to earn every kind of money.” Wang Yao smiled.

"It sounds a bit like YouTube influencers, but they make money by getting views on their shows." Li Rongyu is a creative person and pays close attention to these kinds of trends, otherwise he won't have any inspiration.

“Yes, for example, I see that Mr. Jiang really enjoys eating. We could find some food companies to sponsor us, take pictures of some food items, and then sell them online through eBay and earn commissions,” Wang Yao said with a smile.

"Which platform is Mr. Wang talking about? I'll go back and look into it." Jiang Hudong became interested.

“Myspace’s first batch of partner merchants includes the Shilla Hotel,” Wang Yao said with a smile.

?

Does the Shilla Hotel need advertising?
Besides, why would someone who can afford to go to the Shilla Hotel need a discount coupon?
Kang Ho-dong paused, a multitude of thoughts flashing through his mind. Why would he specifically mention the Shilla Hotel?
Everyone in Korea knows that there are three stars behind it. Could it be that Wang Yao is hinting at something to him?
Why three stars in particular?

The agency that almost caused my tax evasion was backed by three stars.

This, combined with Wang Yao's coincidental yet abrupt reminder of his tax issues and his refusal to let him join the company, further reinforces this impression.
Kang Ho-dong felt that he had found a reasonable explanation.

"Okay, then this platform must be fine. Shilla Hotel is one of the face of Goryeo." Kang Ho-dong laughed heartily, trying to hide his unease.

“Mr. Jiang’s barbecue restaurant is even more famous in China. Basically, all the fans who come here will eat here. How many branches are there now?” Wang Yao asked casually.

"We've almost reached a hundred stores. We were originally planning to open ten more this year, but we've only just filled the gap," Jiang Hudong said with a sheepish smile.

"It basically covers the entire territory of Goryeo. Have you thought about expanding into China?" Wang Yao asked.

Kang Ho-dong's BBQ restaurant is now probably one of the top businesses in Korea. This guy really knows how to make money. Even his later focus on outdoor travel and food variety shows was partly a way to attract customers to his BBQ restaurant.

"Hmm?" Kang Ho-dong's heart skipped a beat, but he remained calm and said, "Mr. Wang is also in the food service industry?"

“I do a lot of different things. The catering industry is a great cash flow industry, and it’s easy to make money by combining it with the celebrity effect. I also have a friend whose catering project is about to be listed in China. Mr. Jiang’s future is limitless,” Wang Yao exclaimed.

Upon hearing this, Kang Ho-dong's expression changed, and his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally died.

He can now confirm that Wang Yao is acting on behalf of the people behind him, and they have their eyes on his barbecue restaurant!

No wonder they brought up taxes as soon as they met; it was a warning!
Compared to his barbecue restaurant, the money he earned from his entertainment career was just a drop in the ocean. However, the barbecue restaurant was closely related to his celebrity status, so the tax scandal had the most serious impact not on his career, but on his barbecue restaurant!
Alright, now the truth has finally come out!

No wonder they looked down on me joining the company; they had ulterior motives all along!

Those damned tycoon bloodsuckers!
It's just collecting taxes! Here you go!
Kang Ho-dong maintained a smile on his face, but in his heart he was already cursing Wang Yao to the core. "Mr. Wang is right. Indeed, my barbecue restaurant has almost expanded in Korea."

"If Mr. Wang is interested, how about we collaborate and test the waters in the Chinese market? If it works out, my little barbecue shop might actually become a multinational corporation."

Wang Yao was taken aback when he heard this. Why did this suddenly come up?

If you're going to start a restaurant chain, you should definitely find people domestically. Ren Quan is a ready-made candidate, so why bother looking for someone like you?

“Mr. Jiang, you misunderstand. I’m not very interested in asset-heavy industries. What I’m good at is packaging, marketing, and operations,” Wang Yao said with a smile.

But Kang Ho-dong was more enthusiastic: "I understand what you mean. Don't worry, I have a complete plan and strategy for offline management. As long as the supply chain issue is resolved, operations won't be a problem."
What we lack is a reliable operating partner in China. So, I'll invest 10 billion Korean won for a 60% stake, and Mr. Wang will take the 40%. Let's invest in one company in China first and see how it goes.”

Nearly 5 million RMB is enough to open a mid-to-high-end barbecue restaurant in Shanghai. If it is managed well, the annual profit can be quite good. But Kang Ho-dong's proposal is too strange. Even if you believe in his ability, you shouldn't give him 2 million RMB worth of shares right away.

What's the difference between this and giving money away?
"Mr. Jiang, you've really misunderstood," Wang Yao said, feigning confusion.

“Oh, I was being presumptuous. Let’s change the cooperation method. I’ll open the store, and you’ll be responsible for the operation, with an annual operating fee of 4 million won.” Kang Ho-dong’s smile was sincere.

Okay, so you don't just want my barbecue restaurant business, you want cash, right? Here you go!

“Mr. Jiang, I really don’t have much experience in the catering industry.” Wang Yao was increasingly puzzled.

"It's okay. I've run a barbecue restaurant for so many years and I've never lost money. Besides, Mr. Wang even invited me to join Myspace to help me with product packaging, right?"
"Just consider it helping with the internet marketing and branding of my store. Maybe, like you said, it'll have a chance to go public someday?" Kang Ho-dong gritted his teeth.

Are you trying to force me to kneel down and beg you?!

Wang Yao fell silent. This reason was plausible, and it could be considered a third-party operation project.

Li Rongyu and Li Enhui were completely bewildered. What was going on?

Kang Ho-dong was very determined to give him the money, seemingly very ambitious about taking the barbecue restaurant public. Wang Yao couldn't refuse, so he finally agreed to give it a try.

We'll set up an official account for him on platforms like Myspace for promotion, and see if it helps the business. We'll start by charging him 4 million won per year for operation fees plus a 5% commission on online sales.

As for whether Huaxia should open a store, let's wait and see how it goes.

He was having a meal when someone inexplicably offered him business. Isn't that ridiculous?

Wang Yao had other things to do that evening, so he left early.

"Hu Dong, are you really going to take this barbecue restaurant public? Isn't that too risky?" Li Rongyu asked with some doubt.

Listing a company in Korea is like serving a dish; it's not a good thing.

"Going public is better than going bankrupt," Kang Ho-dong remarked meaningfully.

　Thanks to AngelDevil, 720, WaveMoon, StartlingWind01, and GreatAtmosphereDisciplineCourage.

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(End of this chapter)