105: Chapter 105 Entertainment Business Segment

On November 27th, the Seoul sky was heavy with lead-gray clouds. A thin mist condensed on the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Shunyi Foods headquarters' top-floor conference room, blurring the city's outline outside into a gray-white silhouette.

Kim Young-jun arrived half an hour early, tested the projector twice, and arranged the printed materials according to the seating. He moved very quietly while doing this, afraid of disturbing Chairman Wang Shunyi, who was already seated at the head of the table.

Chairman Wang Shunyi arrived earlier than everyone else. He wasn't looking at documents or his phone; he just sat there, hands on the armrests, his thumb slowly stroking the leather surface.

Kim Young-jun was startled when he came in, thinking the Chairman had something on his mind today, but upon closer inspection, there was no expression on that face. He asked...

"Would the Chairman like some coffee?"

Chairman Wang Shunyi said, "Serve it once everyone has arrived."

At nine o'clock sharp, the conference room was full. Kim Young-jun, Lee Jung-hoon, Park Jeong-ho, and Kim Tae-ho were lined up on both sides, while Choi Soo-jin sat at the other end of the table. Spread out before her was a research report she had prepared for nearly a month—a thick stack held in a loose-leaf binder, with colored tabs stuck to the corners of the pages.

Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't let her speak first. His gaze swept across everyone present, and the conference room fell silent.

"The investment in JYP Entertainment was completed last week. 14.8 billion, eight percent. The money has been paid, and the contract has been signed. How to use that eight percent next, and how to turn that 14.8 billion into 148 billion, is what we're talking about today."

He leaned back against the chair, his tone not sounding like he was in a meeting, but more like chatting in his own living room.

"I'll state one principle first." His voice wasn't loud, but everyone had to hear it clearly.

"The entertainment business is not Sunyi's main business. Sunyi's main business is food. Whoever gets this order backward doesn't need to come to work anymore. Acquiring JYP isn't for a transformation; it's to make Sunyi's products sell better. To sell them for more, to sell them faster, and to sell them to more people. That is the sole purpose."

After speaking, he looked at Choi Soo-jin.

"Team Leader Choi, you may begin."

Choi Soo-jin stood up, walked to the projection screen, and pressed the remote. The first page was a chart of the market size of the Korean entertainment industry. The bar graph rose from 2019 to 2023, with the figure of 15 trillion won marked in red.

"Everyone, the market size of the South Korean entertainment industry is approximately 15 trillion won. The music industry accounts for 30%, the film and television industry for 40%, and variety shows and advertising endorsements for 30%. The three major companies—SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment, and JYP Entertainment—account for about 70% of the idol market. HYBE has been catching up quickly over the past two years, but they are more dependent on a single group, which concentrates the risk."

She flipped to the next page, where a dense shareholding structure diagram filled the entire screen.

"SM Entertainment's shareholding structure is the most complex. Lee Soo-man holds about 18%, but the conflict between management and him has become public. YG Entertainment's shareholding is relatively concentrated, but its performance fluctuates greatly. JYP Entertainment is the most stable; Park Jin-young's shareholding is reasonable, the management team is stable, and the artist pipeline is healthy. This is why JYP was our first choice."

Chairman Wang Shunyi listened, his fingers motionless on the armrest.

Choi Soo-jin flipped another page. The title read:

"Shunyi Foods' Three-Step Strategy for Entertainment Business"

Chairman Wang Shunyi looked at those few words without expressing an opinion, merely gesturing for her to continue. She took a breath.

"First, deepen cooperation with JYP. We currently hold 8%. I recommend increasing our stake to 15-20% to obtain a board seat. It's not about controlling JYP, but about ensuring the stability and continuity of endorsement cooperation. JYP's groups have a higher average contract renewal rate than the industry average, and fan loyalty is high; this is what we need."

"Second, lay out a plan for SM Entertainment. SM possesses South Korea's top female artist resources—Bae Joo-hyun, Kang Seul-gi, and Yoo Ji-min. The fan bases of these individuals highly overlap with Sunyi's target consumers. However, SM's current stock price is on the high side, and internal conflicts remain unresolved, so it's not the time to step in. I recommend observing and waiting for a stock price correction before choosing an entry point."

"Finally, establish an independent entertainment business sector. Through acquisitions and integration, gradually build Sunyi's own entertainment subsidiary responsible for artist management, content production, and entertainment marketing. But the premise of these three steps is that they do not affect the cash flow of the main business."

After she finished, the conference room was silent, save for the hiss of the air conditioning vents. Everyone was looking at Chairman Wang Shunyi. He lifted his hand from the armrest and flipped through two pages of Choi Soo-jin's report, his gaze lingering on the "Three-Step Strategy" chart for a few seconds.

"Three steps is too far. Let's take the first step first." He closed the report.

"We won't increase our stake in JYP. Eight percent is enough; any more would be overstepping. A person like Park Jin-young doesn't like others sitting on his board. If we sit on his board, can we still guarantee priority for endorsements? It's hard to say."

He looked at Kim Young-jun. "Team Leader Kim, has the shooting schedule for the JYP endorsements been set?"

Kim Young-jun quickly flipped open his notebook.

"It's set for early next month. All of TWICE will appear; all nine members will be there. Print and TV ads will be filmed simultaneously. JYP has already sent over the initial design drafts for the co-branded products, waiting for the Chairman's confirmation."

"What about the name of the co-branded product?"

"The working title is 'TWICE spicy noodle.' The packaging will use TWICE's official colors."

Hearing this, Chairman Wang Shunyi frowned slightly.

"The name must include Sunyi. 'Sunyi × TWICE Co-branded fire chicken noodles.' The order cannot be messed up. The official colors can be used, but the Sunyi logo must be on the front and larger than their group name."

Kim Young-jun scribbled quickly in his notebook, the tip of his pen almost piercing the paper.

Chairman Wang Shunyi turned to Choi Soo-jin. She had worked at SM for five years and knew SM's inner workings better than anyone present. When she mentioned the conflict between Lee Soo-man and management earlier, her speaking speed had unconsciously quickened a bit.

She knew Lee Soo-man better than anyone, but she had deliberately maintained her distance while speaking, as if talking about someone who had nothing to do with her. Chairman Wang Shunyi noticed this but didn't ask.

"Team Leader Choi. Keep an eye on the SM situation. Don't initiate contact, and don't go through third parties. Wait. Wait for them to descend into chaos themselves, then we'll step in. When we go in, we're not saviors; we're businessmen. If the price is cheap, we buy; if it's not, we wait."

"Understood, Chairman."

It was nearly twelve o'clock when the meeting adjourned. Kim Young-jun was the last to leave the conference room, closing the door behind him. Half the lights in the room were turned off. The thin mist outside hadn't dissipated, making the streets of Seongdong-gu look as if they were behind a pane of frosted glass.

Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't leave his seat at the head of the table. Choi Soo-jin's report lay by his hand, open to the "SM Entertainment Shareholding Structure Diagram" page. He looked at the percentage next to Lee Soo-man's name—18 percent. Park Jin-young's was 17-something percent; he couldn't remember the exact figure.

Two old foxes, each holding a rope with the other end tied to half of the entire South Korean idol industry. He hadn't gotten the rope in his hands yet, but he had already touched the end of it.

He closed the report and stood up, the chair legs letting out a short scrape against the floor. As he reached the door, his phone vibrated; it was a message from Park Min-ji.

"Come over for lunch. Sister Lee made ginseng chicken soup."

He replied with a "Good." The motion-sensor lights in the hallway brightened and then dimmed. The elevator descended to the first floor, and the receptionist in the lobby greeted him: "Good day, Chairman!"

He gave a slight nod.

The car was already waiting at the entrance. The driver opened the rear door, and he sat inside, closing his eyes for the entire journey. His phone vibrated again; this time it was Kim Young-jun sending the confirmation for the TWICE advertisement shooting schedule.

He didn't reply after reading it, resting the phone face down on his knee. It wasn't until the car reached her building that Kim Young-jun received the reply.

"Got it. Proceed as planned."

He put the phone back in his pocket and went upstairs. The door was left slightly ajar, and the scent of ginseng chicken soup wafted out from inside—rich and white.