The reporters at the scene were also convinced. The old man’s demeanor and words had formed an iron barrier. Since then, his magical powers had been refined, making him impervious to swords and firearms.
Of course, the condition is that he must firmly implement the decision to close the shop, instead of taking the wrong steps and fooling the public.
Some reporters didn’t believe he would make such a huge sacrifice, so they asked, “Mr. Erno, are you sure all your stores will close this early? Or are you just playing a trick on us? All the stores will naturally close this early, but they will open their doors and operate as usual the next morning. I want to ask, after your stores across the United States close this early, when will they resume operations?”
Bernard Erno said calmly, “There’s no time limit, but it certainly can’t be too short. I know you’re worried I’m exaggerating to attract attention, but I can promise you one thing: the minimum closing time for all stores in the US is three years, with no upper limit!”
“Damn it! You really are a beast!”
The leader in front of the TV threw his half-finished Coke onto the ground. He was furious and felt utterly helpless.
I am the President of the United States. What I can guarantee is that everyone in the United States, or those who want to live and make money in the United States, will have to see my face. They must do whatever I say, or I will have many ways to deal with them.
But if the other party doesn’t want to live in the United States, or doesn’t want to make money in the United States, then my influence over them is almost zero.
If you go to those underdeveloped countries and ask the local farmers and lower classes, they won’t even know the name of the President of the United States. After Bernard Elno leaves the American market, his relationship with the President will be the same as that of the lower-class farmers in those underdeveloped countries. Although each person’s identity and status are very different, ultimately, no one can do anything to anyone.
Additionally, Bernard Arnault publicly announced that all stores in the United States would be closed for at least three years, and he would likely lose $10 billion in net profit.
To cut costs, he would certainly have to lay off tens of thousands of employees in the United States. At that point, tens of thousands of employees and their families would be his opponents, and public opinion would undoubtedly be in Bernard Arnault’s favor!
The commander-in-chief was furious and wanted to slap the old man hard in the face.
At the time, a CNN reporter at the scene asked Bernard Elno with a sullen face: “Mr. Elno, if you really close all your stores across the United States, does that mean your company will lay off tens of thousands of American employees? Do you think that’s fair to those employees and their families?”
Bernard Elno sneered inwardly, “Layoffs? Don’t be ridiculous. How could I lay off employees? These tens of thousands of American employees are just a ruse I’ve put in to gain experience! Even though the number per person isn’t much, if you add it up, isn’t that an astronomical figure? It must be at least a billion dollars! Doing business is like sailing against the current; if you don’t progress, you’ll be left behind. If I close all my stores here, not only will I lose tens of billions of dollars in annual sales and billions of dollars in net profit, I’ll also have to cover the additional rent for these thousands of stores and the salaries and benefits of tens of thousands of employees. How could I pass up this opportunity?”
He then waved his hand and said magnanimously, “Closing these stores is my personal protest against the U.S. government’s protection of Blackwater. How could I allow tens of thousands of employees across the U.S. to be affected by my personal decision? So, I have one announcement to make to all my American employees: For the next three years of store closures, everyone will be paid their wages as usual!”
“Good grief!”
Washington and his group broke through the defense directly.
This is truly terrifying. Even a god can’t defeat an enemy like this!
The reporters at the scene were also stunned.
They had worked in the news industry for years and had seen many strange things, but they had never seen anything like this.
Due to the personal temperament of a boss, a market worth billions of dollars a year was closed.
That will be fine, the key is that no employees will be laid off and their salaries will continue to be paid.
If I’d known this was going to happen, I would have resigned the day before and found a job at a store under this group. Wouldn’t I have been able to sit back and collect my salary for three years?
At that moment, all the employees of the American stores under the Bernard Elno Group were celebrating wildly. Happiness had come so suddenly. It was an extraordinary thing they had never dared to dream of. How extraordinary was that? Even if you went to church, you wouldn’t be ashamed to offer such a prayer to God.
But now, Bernard Erno has helped them achieve it.
When Bernard Elno said this, he felt a little sad.
As a capitalist, what hurts him the most is not that he loses money, because in his eyes, losing money means making money, because he gets experience points from Charlie by losing money.
The ones who truly feel the impact are the employees. It’s simply too cheap for them to earn three years’ worth of salary without having to work.
The essence of a capitalist is to exploit the surplus value of his workers, but if he cannot exploit the workers he bought with money, then he will feel he is suffering a great loss.
However, he was, after all, a veteran capitalist born in an established capitalist country. He quickly found a solution and said with a smile, “Of course, I want to emphasize here that when I say the store is closing, I don’t mean expelling all employees or closing the doors. On the contrary, I want my employees to remain working in my store, and my store will remain open to all American customers. However, all American stores will no longer have any sales attributes. I am simply using it as a showroom to showcase our products and brand philosophy to the American public!”
As soon as those words were spoken, the employees’ joy suddenly ended.
But that does not affect the public’s admiration for Bernard Arnault.
For Bernard Erno, closing the American market and continuing to pay employee salaries and rent for thousands of stores would severely impact the group’s US financial statements, and the losses would undoubtedly be substantial. This way, he could maximize his experience points with Charlie.
However, thousands of stores that are only open for display and do not make sales, although they cannot contribute to revenue, can provide sufficient publicity for the brand.
As a result, if people across the United States want to purchase their own brand luxury goods, they can only choose to buy them overseas or buy them through overseas purchasing agents or online.
Revenue from these American orders will then be factored into the group’s sales performance in other countries. Not only will you earn money, but you won’t be impacted by ongoing losses in the American market. This means you can earn experience points and continue earning money in other ways. This is truly the perfect solution!