America: My Time

Chapter 459 New Cooperation
Chapter 459 New Cooperation

"John, you'll still be attending the reception at the Consulate General in San Francisco this year. Your father and I both have other commitments!" As the Spring Festival approached, John's family received the invitation to the reception as usual, and unsurprisingly, John was the one who attended.

John's house was more lively than usual this year, with celebrities like Cherie Chung and Sally Yeh in attendance, as well as Naoko, Akina Nakamori, and Hitomi Kuroki. However, Sophie Marceau was not there; she had returned to France.

“Okay, I will attend the party. It’s just a bit late these days. I will take Chu Hong and Naoko to the party tomorrow night!” At this moment, John made the decision for Chung Chu Hong directly, because she would be needed to handle many things in the future. John planned to let Chung Chu Hong handle many things in Hong Kong, at least to let her gradually participate in some important occasions.

As his woman, she would have to take on many of the formalities. From now on, John would cultivate Chung Chor-hung's abilities, have her appear at important occasions, let everyone know her presence, and help him handle all interpersonal relationships. Some social interactions in Hong Kong, and even in China, would need to be handled by her.

In this situation, Ye Qianwen is clearly not suited to handle things. Social interactions are no small matter. She could previously disregard them because of her student status, but now everything is completely different, and she needs to take them seriously. Although it's somewhat troublesome, this is a society built on relationships, especially in Asia. Of course, the situation in the US is no exception; soon she'll need to handle everything herself, and cannot rely on others!
When John arrived at the San Francisco Consulate General again, he once again found a corner to sit down, without exchanging any words with those present. John's arrival attracted considerable attention; after all, the appearance of a true financial tycoon was still astonishing. John had undergone a qualitative change, truly standing at the pinnacle of American business. A single dollar devaluation was enough to demonstrate his power to anyone, not to mention the acquisition of Standard Chartered Bank and the great battle in the gaming world.

Because John's status had undergone a qualitative change, no one came to disturb his peace, allowing him to sit quietly and observe the changes at the party. It must be said that there were more people at this year's party than in previous years. Perhaps this was because of the changes in China, which made these people gradually less vigilant, or perhaps there were other reasons.

"Is this a bit unexpected? It's different from what you saw in Hong Kong. This is America. You'll understand as you get to know it better. You'll need to adapt gradually and take on more social obligations." Just as John was explaining everything to Cherie Chung, the Consul General appeared.

A pot of Da Hong Pao tea brought the two sides closer. A lot happened and many things changed in a year. John's investments in China were also developing steadily. Many people had doubted whether John would keep his promises, but facts proved that their worries were unnecessary. John kept his promises, and all the profits from his investments remained in China.

John's current investment in China far exceeds many people's imagination. The supporting facilities for his business are constantly being improved, and he is developing rapidly in every aspect without any obstacles. He can get help from China for all problems, so he can truly develop with peace of mind without any worries.

If we're talking about the fastest-growing sector, it's not the petrochemical industry, but rather the manufacturing of auto parts. With the continuous expansion of auto parts retail in Britain and North America, it has played a huge role in Bentley's investment in China. A large number of parts have entered the North American and British markets through retail, gradually gaining recognition.

Good quality at low prices naturally makes it easier to gain recognition. Not only is Bentley Motors' investment in China developing rapidly, but many parts manufacturing companies have also earned huge profits. As long as their quality is good and their prices are low, they can earn a good amount of foreign exchange through the Bentley Motors Group's retail channels.

The petrochemical industry is not without development, but its development has been somewhat slow. This is due to the overall environment, the huge investment and its own loan pressure, which means that the development of petrochemicals will inevitably be much slower than that of automobiles and food, and even slower than that of steel mills.

The food industry is also developing rapidly, with 7-Eleven's rapid expansion in North America and Asia. The demand for its products is naturally astonishing. Food factories in China are constantly expanding, but even with such rapid expansion, they cannot meet 7-Eleven's demand and there is still a considerable gap.

Although he received strong support from China in this regard, John was still worried about the pressure on food supplies. He knew that Russia would soon be in an even bigger crisis, at which point he would need more food. Moreover, 7-Eleven's growth had not yet reached its limit and still had great potential. At the same time, the emergence of Dollar Tree also required more goods, and Costco was also in John's acquisition plan. All of these would require huge demand for goods.

“Consul General, we will continue to increase our investment in food next year. 7-Eleven needs more food supplies, and Dollar Tree also needs more inexpensive goods. If possible, we will select some companies to cooperate with regarding Dollar Tree, provided that they can meet our needs!” “Mr. John, we warmly welcome such cooperation and investment. As long as you have needs, we will do everything we can to meet your requirements. Price and quality are absolutely not a problem!”

Although Dollar Tree's development in North America has been relatively recent, its growth has been astonishing. This is because the US economy is not currently performing well, creating significant growth potential for inexpensive goods, making discount stores like Dollar Tree very popular among the lower classes. However, its development in Taiwan and Japan has been slower, as their economies are much stronger than the US, especially in Japan, where Dollar Tree's growth lags far behind that of 7-Eleven.

"That's good. We're very pressed for time and can't afford to waste any. Your strong support would save us a lot of time and energy, allowing us to accelerate our market expansion instead of watching our competitors snatch it away. To be honest, our plan went wrong. We seriously misjudged the market size, which led to many problems. We underestimated the demand in the North American market and the potential of the Asian market."

The vast Asian market is even more astonishing than John imagined, as is the North American market. The United States has a much larger low-income population than imagined, and their desire for cheap goods is astounding. Therefore, the development of Dollar Tree is not constrained by the market, but by its own supply chain.

Although John had considered acquiring leftover stock from some companies, such transactions still couldn't meet market demand. The best solution was to build a factory in China and have its own production base. This would ensure that Dollar Tree's development wouldn't be affected and could even prepare for a future acquisition of Costco.

Compared to the lack of food, the problem of the liquor industry has been well solved. Because of the Russians, the Southern Group has invested in a lot of liquor businesses in Asia, with its own brands at all price points, which can fully meet the market demand.

Even in China, there are many wineries. John himself even bought up all the aged wines in China. Although it cost a lot of money, the acquisition was very worthwhile. In the future, you won't be able to buy these aged wines even if you want to.

Many people know about John's dealings with the Russians, leading many to believe that his acquisitions were solely for this purpose. However, this is a misconception. John simply shipped these vintage wines back to the United States for his own collection; there was no actual trade with the Russians. John not only conducted this activity in China but also at various wineries across Europe, acquiring countless bottles of fine wine using this method and then transporting them to his estates in the United States.

John's estate now boasts a vast wine cellar filled with fine wines, and he owns many such cellars—almost every estate has one beneath it. Even the properties he acquired in China contain such cellars, storing unimaginable quantities of exquisite wines.

"Mr. John, I heard that Gulfstream Aerospace has completed the research and development and manufacturing of the Fokker aircraft, and Pan Am is preparing to switch to regional jets. Is this true?"

"That's right, it's true. Pan Am will gradually convert all its regional jets to Fokker 100s. The production lines in Europe and the United States are operating at full capacity to meet market demand. Pan Am alone needs a lot of aircraft, and this is just the beginning!"

Pan Am is now the world's largest airline group, with subsidiaries including easyJet (West Air), Hawaiian Airlines, Cathay Pacific (Hong Kong), Far Eastern Air Transport (Taiwan), Lion Air (UK), Ryanair (Europe), Transatlantic Airlines (Japan), Asiana Airlines (South Korea), Emirates and Qatar Airways in the Middle East! The orders from these airlines alone are enough to keep the Fokker 100 alive, and that's John's plan.

Before acquiring Fokker, Pan Am had made comprehensive preparations. Even if there weren't many external orders, Pan Am could meet Fokker's production needs on its own, not to mention the assistance from Middle Eastern tycoons. When Fokker 100 production began, Middle Eastern tycoons also placed many orders with it.

(End of this chapter)