America: My Time

Chapter 142 Layout
Chapter 142 Layout
John was well aware of the situation of American financial groups, and it was precisely because of this understanding that he did not compete with them in the industries they were familiar with from the beginning, but instead chose emerging industries as his pillar industries. In doing so, John avoided industries controlled by financial groups, such as finance, energy, and steel, giving himself ample time to accumulate capital.

Although the storm gradually subsided as time went by and John returned to his normal school life, the halo surrounding him did not disappear; on the contrary, it grew stronger.

When the acquisition of the car company was handed over to Mary Barra, it was completed in no time. The Bentley Motors Group was established. Although it consisted of only four companies, and the cars were all high-end brands, and the production was not in the United States, this did not diminish the shock that everyone felt towards John.

Just as Mary Barra had feared, Bentley Motors' car brands encountered significant resistance when negotiating with dealers, who offered terms unacceptable to Bentley. At this crucial moment, the well-prepared Mary Barra gave the order, and Bentley dealerships began appearing in major US cities.

Land is not valuable in the United States, and before the establishment of the car group, major cities had already acquired the land for 4S stores. When the car group took action, it caught those dealers off guard.

Although the 4S stores do not cover all cities in the United States, the main cities are all in Bentley Motors' plans, and the construction speed is lightning fast, making it clear at a glance that all of this was planned long ago!

They've been tricked! After learning of Bentley's actions, the car dealers finally realized they'd been fooled. The Bentley Motors Group had made thorough preparations and anticipated their reactions. It was impossible to control the Bentley Motors Group in the sales process!

Does building your own sales channels require a lot of investment? Actually, it's not as much as you might imagine. Car sales are all outside of cities, and such land isn't valuable in the US. Moreover, 4S stores are all steel structures, which are easy to build and take little time. And because it's a high-end brand, it doesn't need to cover the entire US.

Can it make money? This is the first thought many people have about the Bentley Motors Group. From production to sales, everything is integrated and controlled by the group, which seems incredible to many. John didn't care about any of this. He ignored whatever the media said and let them analyze it. It was precisely because of the media's surprise that the Bentley Motors Group was able to quickly gain attention in the United States. However, although it gained fame, sales were not as good as expected.

John didn't care about temporary gains or losses, and Mary Barra wasn't under pressure either, because John assured her that she didn't need to worry about whether the company was profitable for the first three years; as long as it remained stable, that was enough. It was just a newly established car group, and everything needed time to mature.

Opinions on the frenzied expansion of John's companies are mixed. Many believe that such rapid expansion will inevitably put enormous pressure on the cash flow, and once financial problems arise, the trouble will be huge. Especially given the current sluggish global economy, John's aggressive expansion in the luxury brand sector is even more perplexing.

Not everyone misunderstands John's strategy; some do, recognizing that he's buying at the bottom. However, while they understand, few are willing to enter the market. The sluggish luxury goods market is a consensus, and no one wants to invest in such a market, one that may take an unknown amount of time to recover.
If the time frame is too long, the funds will be completely tied up in the market. Moreover, those in the know understand that they are not John, and do not have the power of Legendary Entertainment Group to rely on. Only by controlling the power of the media can they provide strong support for these luxury brands.

At this time, some people also saw the power of the media, but everyone's focus was still on print media. The profits of television stations and film studios could not compare with those of print media at all. Most importantly, Hollywood giants were not doing well, so not many people dared to make a move to buy at the bottom like John.

It's not that no one wants to learn John's methods, but not everyone has the ability, nor can everyone have the huge support of the Neon Bank. Financially, they can hardly achieve the kind of crazy expansion that John did.

While Legendary Entertainment has a presence in print media, it's not their primary focus. They are well aware of the future decline of print media, even if it's profitable for the next decade or so. With the rise of the internet, print media's glory will be gone. Legendary Entertainment sees no need to invest heavily in print media; their plan is simply to maintain influence. Television, film, and record production are their core focus.

With most issues handed over to professionals, John was also considering the next steps. Now that Forever, Bell Labs, and Bentley all had professional CEOs, his focus was on future development: how to quickly increase brand awareness and how to appreciate the assets. The Bentley Motors Group's problems weren't significant, and it didn't require much attention in the short term, at least not until the major plans were completed and new high-end products were produced. A low profile was also beneficial; at least the automotive giants wouldn't be focusing their attention on Bentley Motors Group.

Compared to Bentley Motors, Forever Group cannot wait any longer. Although they have a CEO, this is only applied to management. In terms of group integration, the brand's value will not skyrocket because of Andrea Jung's arrival. This is the key point that John needs to pay attention to. He also needs to have a talk with Andrea Jung and cooperate well in brand promotion.

The time left for them is not much, only two years. Two years later, when the Plaza Accord arrives, Japan will usher in a crazy bubble era, and luxury goods will flourish in Japan. In two years, they must establish the reputation of the brands under the Eternal Group and let the Japanese people know about the existence of these brands.

Door-to-door delivery—that's John's plan. During the bubble economy, he aims to seize a massive market share from the Japanese, encompassing everything from cars and clothing to cosmetics and even wine. This plan requires perfect coordination from all sides, and of course, his own hard work.

Victoria's Secret's promotional strategy can serve as a model for others. They can simply continue with their existing development approach, hold a Victoria's Secret Fashion Show to make the brand known throughout the United States, and then directly enter the Japanese market to let the Japanese people know about Victoria's Secret and deliver products directly to their doorsteps.

However, Victoria's Secret's brand promotion requires models, especially top models. They don't want to see the future situation where the models that Victoria's Secret has invested heavily in cultivating leave the brand and become weapons in the hands of their enemies.

The key figures Victoria's Secret needs to promote, at least its core members, must be its own people. Currently, Elite Records doesn't have enough elites to fill these roles, so this needs to be addressed. At least two of the five Angel models should be from their own company. As for the singers, they must naturally be from their own record labels. This isn't an issue; Legendary Records is more than capable of supporting a Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, so there won't be any problems.

Launching the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show at this time means my previous knowledge of Victoria's Secret supermodels is useless, and my knowledge of the older supermodels is also limited. It all depends on the capabilities of elite agencies. Although I had made some arrangements beforehand, I don't know how much success they have achieved.

Previously, I had focused all my energy on rapid expansion, and small things like talent agencies were not within my scope of attention. I didn't value talent agencies too much, nor did I expect them to make me a lot of money. Now, I need to see the strength of talent agencies themselves.

John didn't have high hopes for his elite talent agency. He just wanted some results so he wouldn't leave empty-handed. After all, the company had only been around for a short time and had no reputation. It was understandable that he wouldn't make any progress. Compared to top talent agencies, his own company was too weak!

Elite Agents is not in a hurry for short-term gains or losses. Once Legendary Entertainment and Phoenix Group have completed their expansion, Elite Agents will surely reap huge benefits!

After contacting Elite Company, John finally breathed a sigh of relief when the secretary placed the documents in front of him. Three of the five original supermodels, Christy Durrington, Linda Evangelista, and Cindy Crawford, were all in the company. It seemed that the management of Elite Company had not disappointed him.

Unlike regular fashion shows, the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show is broadcast directly to American audiences on NBC. Being eighteen is a threshold and a strict requirement, and John didn't want Victoria's Secret to be affected by this, or for his plans to be disrupted!
With the strict age requirement of 18, only Linda Evangelista among the three original supermodels met the age requirement. Under these circumstances, John had to change his Victoria's Secret endorsement plan, reducing the original five Victoria's Secret ambassadors to three!
(End of this chapter)