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Chapter 321 Layout in the Maternal and Infant Industry

In March, the heat of summer has faded in Sydney, and a slight coolness permeates the air, as if foreshadowing the approaching cold winter.

For Ernst, this was his first time living in the Southern Hemisphere for an extended period of time, and he had not yet fully adapted to many of the details of daily life.

In his mind, this time of year should be a time when the temperature gradually rises and the warmth intensifies. But in Sydney, every morning when he wakes up, he can clearly feel that the temperature has quietly dropped a notch. This climate pattern, which contradicts his usual understanding, always catches him off guard.

At the entrance of the manor, Nicole Kidman, ever since she finished her postpartum confinement a couple of days ago and was able to leave her room, showed an unusual longing for the fresh air outside.

Every day she would stroll around the manor for a long time, looking like someone who had just arrived in a strange place, carefully familiarizing herself with every inch of her surroundings, her eyes full of curiosity about this world.

When she saw Ernst walking back dressed in peasant clothes, she acted like a gentle wife, quickly stepping forward to take the hat and coat from Ernst's hands.

As she turned around and carried the items to the tool shed to hang them up, she said with a hint of surprise, "I never expected you to be so skilled at farm work. You look quite professional."

Ernst rolled his eyes at her and said with a sense of entitlement, "Of course, I grew up on a farm. These farm chores are a piece of cake for me."

Nicole Kidman then suddenly remembered that there had been media reports about Ernst's maternal grandfather's family before, and she thought they were a large landowning family.

"But then again, I've seen people keep cats, dogs, and horses as pets for their children, but this is the first time I've ever seen someone raise pigs for their child. Your idea is really unique."

In the West, many families choose to raise an animal after their child is born to accompany the child as they grow up and witness every moment of their childhood.

Experts and scholars have also offered their professional interpretations, believing that keeping pets can teach children how to care for life, cultivate a sense of responsibility and love in daily care, and help them understand the meaning of giving and taking responsibility.

At the same time, pets can effectively reduce children's loneliness and provide them with warm emotional companionship.

More importantly, spending time with pets can continuously enhance children's cognitive abilities and desire to explore, and stimulate their curiosity about the world.

In Ernst's view, these so-called expert interpretations are all bullshit, mostly marketing ploys designed by businesses to empty the wallets of ordinary people.

However, he also had to admit that compared to other various marketing tactics, this marketing campaign about the benefits of pet ownership was a lucky accident, making people feel that these capitalists, who are usually only interested in profit, had a rare moment of conscience and that their views did have some merit.

In any case, having a pet by a child's side can certainly make their childhood happier and more fulfilling.

Moreover, some intelligent pets can help parents take care of their children to a certain extent, so parents are very happy to let their children have such a special growth companion.

Ernst was no exception; he also chose a childhood companion for his daughter, Katie.

However, he chose neither docile cats nor loyal dogs, but a group of pigs.

In response to Nicole Kidman's teasing, Ernst retorted, "What's wrong with pigs? I think you're just being prejudiced and discriminatory towards pigs."

"I think they are much better than cats and dogs. They are gentler and friendlier than dogs, more intelligent, and more friendly to humans. Apart from not being able to protect their owners like dogs, I think they are absolutely the perfect companions for growing up."

Ernst had initially considered getting a dog for Katie, but when he saw Rowe and Ron, who had been herding sheep on the estate for a month and hadn't lost any weight, he immediately abandoned the idea.

I don't know how Liu Huiying feeds these two guys. Their weight is like an American aunt's waist. No matter how much she does it, they just don't lose weight.

Two dogs are enough for the house. If Katie really likes them, she can keep the two little guys with her.

Just as Ernst was hesitating about whether to get another cat, he stumbled upon a pig breed he had never seen or even heard of before: the New Zealand Kunkun pig.

These Kunkun pigs are incredibly friendly; they will immediately run over to any living creature they see, eager to make friends.

Their way of expressing friendliness is also quite unique: they rub their round bodies against each other to act cute and affectionate.

Because of their short noses, Kunkun pigs cannot attack others with their snouts like other pigs, making them completely non-aggressive and much safer than cats and dogs, which is perfect for young Katie.

Moreover, Kunkun pigs have a very high intelligence. Under normal circumstances, their intelligence can reach the level of a six-year-old child, and some highly intelligent Kunkun pigs can even reach the intelligence level of an eight-year-old child.

Therefore, training them is not difficult at all, and there is no need to worry about them not obeying commands.

However, these Kun Kun pigs are not perfect. Their only drawback is that they like to live in groups. If you only raise one Kun Kun pig, it won't be long before you find that the pig becomes depressed and listless all day long because of loneliness.

But if you raise a group of Kunkun pigs, they will immediately become full of energy, showing you what animal social skills are all about. They will call out to their friends in the manor every day, making it incredibly lively.

Kun Kun pigs are very easy to raise. They mainly eat grass. As long as you give them a grassland, you don't need to worry about feeding them. They can eat their fill on their own, which is both worry-free and labor-saving.

Ernst just went with Muller and others to build houses for these Kunkun pigs. Once they've been taught basic life skills like designated toileting spots, they can be released onto the manor's grasslands, and we won't have to worry about their daily lives anymore.

After returning to his room, Ernst casually tossed his work clothes aside, knowing that a servant would come and collect them for washing shortly.

Nicole Kidman affectionately linked arms with Ernst, snuggling close to him like a young girl in the throes of first love, her eyes filled with adoration for Ernst.

There was no way around it; Ernst's strengths were too outstanding, especially in certain areas, which were absolutely captivating to Nicole Kidman, who had just given birth, making her feel completely conquered.

His financial power is a huge plus. Everything Ernst did for Katie, every detail was full of love, making it hard for any woman not to fall for him.

The two went to the living room together, and when Ernst learned that Cass was already asleep, a look of disappointment was clearly visible on his face.

A one-month-old baby is at a sleepy age, sleeping for fifteen or sixteen hours a day, which makes Ernst's biological clock very chaotic.

Because he had no idea when Cass would wake up, as soon as Cass woke up, no matter what he was doing, he would immediately put down what he was doing, get up and spend some time with Cass, showing a gentle fatherly smile.

"I heard MGM is in talks with Douglas Pharma about an acquisition?" Nicole Kidman leaned against Ernst, a happy smile on her face, and asked softly.

"It's just a normal requirement for the company's business expansion, nothing special," Ernst replied casually, his tone indifferent, as if it were just a trivial matter.

Nicole Kidman turned her head with amusement, glanced at him, and said with a knowing but unspoken tone, "Keep pretending. Do you think I don't know what you're thinking?"

MGM's acquisition talks with Douglas Medical are not aimed at acquiring the entire company, but rather at acquiring one of Douglas Medical's infant formula brands, Karicare, Australia's national infant formula brand.

"What's there to pretend about? MGM entering the maternal and infant industry, isn't that a perfectly normal thing? It's essentially just IP."

"It's part of the development." Ernst pursed his lips, trying to justify himself.

"Disney has its own mother and baby products, so why can't MGM?"

Many people think that Disney is just a film and television company, but in fact, Disney has long since developed into a large-scale mother and baby brand.

Disney merchandise is available for everything from baby clothes and toys to everyday toiletries, and it's very popular in the market.

"They're deeply ingrained in the children's market. What cartoons does MGM have? It's just Tom and Jerry."

MGM suddenly announced its entry into the maternal and infant industry, and in the past month, it has acquired a number of small maternal and infant brand companies.

Nicole Kidman knew very well that Ernst made this decision largely because of the birth of his daughter, Katie.

He wanted to give Katie the best of everything, which is why he was so actively investing in the maternal and infant industry.

Now, MGM has set its sights on Karicare, Australia's national baby formula brand. It's no surprise that Ernst is preparing for little Kathy's future, hoping that Kathy will eat and use safe and reliable products from childhood to adulthood.

It was Ernst's deep love for Katie, coupled with his irresistible wealth, that made Nicole Kidman increasingly enamored with him; it was hard not to be charmed by such a man.

However, Nicole Kidman was only half right. Ernst did have some consideration for Katie, but his bigger goal was to make money.

Although MGM's influence in the children's sector is still far behind Disney's, who can predict what will happen in the future?

With Marvel and Pixar as its trump cards, MGM will inevitably expand into the amusement park and baby product sectors in the future.

Children have limited brand awareness, and it is ultimately the parents who decide to buy these maternity and baby products.

Are there more parents who watch Pixar and Marvel movies, or more parents who watch Mickey Mouse movies?

The profit margin of maternal and infant products is very high. Coupled with the additional revenue brought by brand premium, it is undoubtedly a huge pie. He has no reason to let go of this good opportunity to make money.

It's just that the birth of Casey accelerated his expansion into the maternal and infant industry.

Seeing that Ernst didn't answer further and remained silent, Nicole Kidman suddenly leaned into his arms and asked with a hint of reluctance, "How many more days can you stay with me?"

Ernst smiled and held up two fingers, indicating that he could stay with her for two more days.

Nicole Kidman immediately pouted, lightly punched Ernst with her little fist in dissatisfaction, then gave Ernst an affectionate kiss and said in a slightly coquettish tone, "Carry me back to the bedroom."

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