God-Given Business Genius - Chapter 199

Kim Jong-chun and I faced each other. After the soup rice restaurant's operating hours had ended, we were in the empty store with only the fluorescent lights on and the door closed.

On the table were a few pieces of leftover meat from the day's business as snacks, and a barely-touched bottle of soju occupied one corner.

'It was Ahjussi who suggested we meet first.'

It wasn't an unusual proposal.

Except that our usual meeting place was Happy Snack, not Hapjae Soup Rice.

'Moreover, out of consideration for Owner Han who works until dawn, we usually meet quite late. But today, he asked to meet right when the soup rice place closes?'

I had a hunch at that point.

Kim Jong-chun had something to discuss with me in private.

'But why Ahjussi?'

At first, I couldn't guess. Business is going well, he's sending his attendance confirmations regularly. What could be the problem that he's requesting a private meeting with me?

'It could be something unrelated to the store.'

Just like how I told the two of them that Baek Jae-ha seemed to be going through puberty. Kim Jong-chun might want to share concerns about family matters or issues related to Lee In-cheol.

But still, I couldn't imagine what he needed to discuss without Han Mi-ae present. That's when,

Kim Jong-chun added one last thing.

-I have something to say on behalf of the franchisees.

It felt like I'd been hit on the back of the head. On behalf of the 'franchisees'?

'Was he acquainted with other franchisees?'

Well, at first, the only stores to introduce were either Lee In-cheol's or Kim Jong-chun's. Before the system was properly established in the early days, franchisee training was conducted at those two locations.

When explaining about franchises, seeing is believing, so we often showcased Kim Jong-chun's store, which was close to the company.

'So naturally, they would have exchanged numbers during that process, and it wouldn't be strange if they kept in touch afterward.'

They're running the same franchise, and Kim Jong-chun is at the forefront. He was a much closer advisor than the headquarters.

It wasn't hard to imagine a scene where they would contact Kim Jong-chun to ask questions if they had any perplexing issues. Given Kim Jong-chun's personality, he would have responded jovially.

'But even so...... that doesn't mean he's in a position to speak of being a representative.'

Or was he gathering and communicating with franchisees separately behind the scenes?

I scrutinized Kim Jong-chun's face. I needed to figure out if he was plotting something like that, and if it was true, what his intentions were.

'Collective action by franchisees is trickier to deal with than you might think.'

Perhaps sensing my coldly settled gaze, Kim Jong-chun flinched for a moment. Then, as if making an excuse, he added:

"Don't misunderstand, Woo-yeon. It's not like I'm trying to act as the franchisee representative or anything. It's just that there have been a lot of complaints from franchisees, and they needed someone to organize these opinions and propose them to the headquarters......"

Kim Jong-chun continued, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Since I'm an early member, and I'm close to the company, and I have a personal relationship with you, Woo-yeon."

I could roughly understand how things were going.

"The franchisees wanted to talk before lodging direct complaints to the headquarters."

Even Kim Jong-chun's naive face could be a ploy to make me let my guard down.

But if that were the case, the way he brought up the topic was too clumsy.

If Kim Jong-chun had made up his mind, he could have dropped the information in a much more casual atmosphere, as if in passing.

Not by meeting me one-on-one in such a serious atmosphere.

So, fiddling with the glass in front of me, I asked:

"What kind of talk is it that you're like this?"

Kim Jong-chun was silent for a long time.

When he finally opened his mouth after much deliberation, out came something I had half expected.

"There's a lot of talk about wanting to raise prices."

"Prices."

"We haven't raised the price of this soup rice even once. In two years, the prices of meat and vegetables have gone up a lot, not to mention labor costs."

Kim Jong-chun continued as if he had been preparing for a long time.

"While ingredient and operating costs have gone up, prices have been frozen, so profit margins have been continuously falling."

I gestured for him to continue.

"Originally, we set the price of our soup rice at 6,500 won because at that time, soup rice was usually between 6,000 and 7,000 won. Now it's mostly between 7,000 and 8,000 won."

"That's right."

"So we were thinking... what if we raise it by 1,000 won to 7,500 won. That would give the franchisees some breathing room."

Kim Jong-chun kept glancing at me nervously until he finished speaking.

But it would have been difficult to read anything from my consistently expressionless face, merely nodding calmly.

Finally, unable to gauge how I would react to this proposal, Kim Jong-chun asked with a face full of tension.

"What do you... think, Woo-yeon?"

I quietly looked at Kim Jong-chun with my arms crossed.

No matter how I thought about it, this idea didn't seem like it came from Kim Jong-chun's head.

I asked about the first thing I needed to confirm.

"Which franchisees are you in contact with?"

"Huh? No, well..."

"It would be difficult to name names, right? It might seem like snitching. Well, there's bound to be some corner where franchisees communicate. I won't tell you not to build friendships."

After all, even the king gets cursed behind closed doors. What's wrong with franchisees badmouthing the headquarters? As long as it doesn't reach my ears.

"But at least, it would be better to stay away from the person who pushed you to bring up this talk."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't understand?"

This is clearly a trap.

Kim Jong-chun had fallen for it spectacularly. But he himself seemed bewildered.

I explained step by step.

"First, if this is really the comprehensive opinion of the franchisees, they should formally propose it to the headquarters."

"That's..."

"You're saying it could worsen relations between headquarters and franchisees? Sure, that's possible. But that would be better."

Kim Jong-chun's eyes widened.

"On what basis did that person claim this was 'the opinion of all franchisees'?"

"Huh?"

"<Hapjae Soup Rice> is now a nationwide franchise with franchisees numbering in the triple digits. How could that person possibly gauge 'everyone's opinion'?"

Even the headquarters would find that difficult.

At my words, Kim Jong-chun pressed his lips together. It was clear he hadn't thought deeply about this.

"Probably just their own opinion, or at most, the opinions of four or five nearby franchisees they hang out with."

And then they likely committed the fallacy of generalization, thinking 'Wouldn't everyone think similarly to us?'

"Did that person bring a statement? Have you seen how many percent of nationwide franchisees agree with this opinion and signed their names?"

"...No."

"Right?"

So, the claim that this opinion represents all franchisees is completely baseless nonsense.

"That's true."

Kim Jong-chun looked like he hadn't considered this before.

It's easy to be misled if there are one or two instigators around. Especially if they're on friendly terms.

"...I'm sorry, Woo-yeon."

Kim Jong-chun apologized quickly. But I wasn't finished.

"And even if they had brought hundreds of signatures, and this really was the general opinion of franchisees, there's still a problem."

"Huh?"

"The fact that they tried to convey this through you."

All franchisees have means to contact headquarters. So if they wanted, they could have expressed their opinions directly.

"They're hiding behind you, using you as a shield, aren't they?"

"Is, is that how it is?"

"Yes. Absolutely."

I kindly added a detailed explanation.

"What if I got upset about this and became estranged from you?"

"......"

"What if we accepted this opinion and actually raised prices, but then lost price competitiveness and sales dropped instead?"

Can Kim Jong-chun take responsibility for all of this? Did he really bring this up prepared to bear all these consequences?

In my opinion, the answer is 'no'.

"Ahjussi. Let's be honest."

My gentle tone gradually hardened. The temperature around me seemed to drop by at least 2 degrees.

A piercing gaze was directed at Kim Jong-chun.

"You took this lightly, didn't you? Because you have a personal relationship with me."

"......"

That must have been it.

Maybe he even felt a bit smug. I could see right through it.

'He probably became friends quickly with the franchisees because they have a lot in common. Then at a drinking gathering, someone must have lamented that the prices are too low. Others would have agreed.'

With rising costs but unchanged food prices, it's understandable they'd be frustrated.

'Then someone must have pushed Ahjussi to talk to me about it.'

Kim Jong-chun probably agreed lightly.

Without much thought or worry. Rationalizing that he could at least bring it up once in conversation.

But this clearly crossed a line.

"Ahjussi. No, Owner Kim Jong-chun."

When I addressed him again with this formal title, Kim Jong-chun looked startled.

Probably because whenever I called him this way, something serious was about to happen. Even if he regretted it now, he couldn't take back the words he had spoken.

"Are you aware that proposing such an important matter as a price increase through this private channel is disregarding proper procedures?"

Even to my own ears, my voice sounded ice-cold.

A strictly business-like tone, completely devoid of personal emotions like anger or displeasure.

"And that this undermines the transparency and fairness of the system?"

A sharp gaze shot towards Kim Jong-chun.