78: Chapter 78 New Product Launch

On March 15th, Seoul's wind finally carried a hint of spring. In the meeting room of Shunyi Foods headquarters, Lee Jung-hoon stood before a row of monitoring screens, fingers sliding across the touchpad, his forehead drenched in sweat. The numbers on the screen jumped every few seconds, red and green, making one's eyes dizzy. Chairman Wang Shunyi sat at the head of the conference table, a laptop open in front of him, displaying the backend data he had pulled up himself—he trusted this more than Lee Jung-hoon's flashy dashboard.

"As of 10 AM, online sales of low-calorie fire noodles have surpassed 50,000 packs, instant bibimbap over 30,000 boxes, and the rice wine series 20,000 cans." Lee Jung-hoon's voice trembled slightly, not from nerves, but excitement, though he suppressed it, afraid the Chairman would think he wasn't steady enough.

Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't look up. "What about offline?"

Lee Jung-hoon quickly switched screens. Offline data wasn't as real-time as online, but feedback from the convenience store systems was already trickling in. The procurement department of GS25 had called early this morning, saying the low-calorie fire noodles at the East Daegu Store sold out within two hours of hitting the shelves, and asked when they would be restocked. CU was even more exaggerated; the new product end-cap at the Hongdae store had been emptied once, and the clerk couldn't restock in time. Customers took photos of the empty shelves and posted them on social media with the caption, 'Where are Sunyi's new noodles? Who snatched them all?' People in the comments were already criticizing the company for hunger marketing. Lee Jung-hoon pulled up this post for Chairman Wang Shunyi to see.

Chairman Wang Shunyi glanced at it and pushed the phone back. "Restock."

Park Jae-beom continued the report nearby, his voice twice as fast as usual. "Chairman, the logistics side indeed hasn't kept up. Our partners underestimated the demand for the new products; the delivery trucks were only arranged according to regular stocking volumes. The Seoul area is fine, but there's a huge gap in the provinces. I've temporarily mobilized trucks from two other logistics companies, and we can restock once this afternoon. Starting tomorrow, delivery capacity will double."

Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't mention restocking again and turned his gaze to Kim Tae-ho. "Director Kim, what about quality feedback?"

Kim Tae-ho sat in the corner, holding a tablet showing real-time production line data and consumer complaints summarized by the customer service department. He flipped through it and looked up. "Chairman, currently zero complaints. The konjac powder ratio in the low-calorie fire noodles is stable, and the frozen freshness-locking technology for the instant bibimbap hasn't had any issues. The yield rate of the production line is maintained at 99.3%."

Chairman Wang Shunyi closed his computer. "If the restocking speed doesn't pick up, no matter how high the sales are, it's all for nothing. Park Jae-beom, go sign a backup agreement with the logistics side. If this kind of disconnect happens again, we're changing providers."

Park Jae-beom lowered his head and complied, sweat also appearing on his forehead.

At 3 PM, Kim Young-jun sent over VIVID's debut plan. A thick stack of PDFs, over forty pages, detailing everything from the debut album concept, song selection, choreography team, to the music show schedule, fan meeting arrangements, and media interview plans. Lee Soo-man had signed the last page in blue ink, the strokes heavy and pressing through the paper. Chairman Wang Shunyi flipped to the debut album chapter; the title track was called 'FLASH.' He had heard the melody of the chorus before, and the arrangement had been changed according to his requirements. A video of the choreography was also attached; the six girls stood in a line, their movements as synchronized as if they were copy-pasted.

"Aya, the changes this time are quite good, Young-jun xi. You should listen too. Before the revision, the title track felt no different from the Jackson 5 songs I heard over a decade ago."

He picked up the landline and dialed the extension. "Kim Young-jun, I've looked at the debut plan. Debuting on April 13th, and the M Countdown stage on Mnet is already set?"

"It's set. April 13th at 6 PM, live broadcast. SM has already sent over the stage design; it uses Shunyi Foods' brand colors, and VIVID's logo will be embedded on the large background screen."

"What about the endorsement contract?"

"The endorsement contract has been sent to SM. The six of them sign one together. Shunyi Foods will pay one billion won for a one-year term. They are not allowed to accept endorsements for other competing food products, with triple the penalty for breach of contract."

Chairman Wang Shunyi thought for a moment. "Add one more clause. After debut, each person must participate in at least two offline events for Shunyi Foods every year. Fan signings, new product tastings, and store tours all count."

Kim Young-jun was stunned for a moment. "Chairman, this wasn't discussed before. Will SM..."

"You go negotiate. They are a group raised with Sunyi's money; appearing twice a year isn't too much. If Lee Soo-man doesn't agree, tell him—Sunyi's endorsement fee isn't for nothing."

Kim Young-jun took a breath on the other end of the line, then said 'Understood' and hung up.

At 6:30 PM, Chairman Wang Shunyi left the company; the sky wasn't completely dark yet. He changed into a thin jacket and drove to Auntie Jiang's shop. When the army stew was served, Auntie Jiang gave him an extra dish of pickled radishes, saying they were freshly pickled yesterday and he should try them. He ate alone, the kimchi soup in the pot bubbling, rice cakes floating up and sinking down, like those reports that could never be finished.

His phone vibrated. A message from Park Min-ji: "I saw the backend for the new product sales. Kim Young-jun has already handled the logistics side."

He glanced at it and didn't reply. He picked up a piece of luncheon meat, chewed twice, and swallowed.

On the day of the debut stage, he wore that deep blue custom suit without a tie. Kim Young-jun drove and dropped him off at the back entrance of the CJ ENM Center; the security guard only let them through after checking the list. The studio was on the second floor, and his seat was in the first row on the right, with several SM Entertainment executives sitting next to him, including Choi Ji-yeon. Lee Soo-man sat in the very center, not even looking at him, staring at the stage with an expression like he was waiting for test results.

The lights dimmed, VIVID's logo lit up on the big screen, and the six girls rose from the lift. White skirts, silver sequin decorations, long legs, slim waists, and very white teeth when they smiled. Their dance was very synchronized—not ballet-style synchronization, but machine-like—every angle, every hand raise, every turn seemed measured with a ruler.

The camera cut to the audience, where a few fans were holding slogans and crying their eyes out. Chairman Wang Shunyi watched the entire performance expressionlessly. During the interlude, he checked his phone—sales of low-calorie fire noodles had risen another 8% today, and instant bibimbap was steadily increasing.

The stage ended, and the six girls bowed. Kim Ye-rin was the last to straighten up, glanced in his direction, and smiled. Chairman Wang Shunyi didn't respond. He stood up, straightened the hem of his suit, nodded to Lee Soo-man, and turned to leave.

Kim Young-jun was waiting in the parking lot, the car door already open. He sat inside and closed his eyes for a moment.

"Back to the company. Keep monitoring the sales."

The car drove out of the underground parking lot, and Seoul's twilight spread from the west, dyeing the sky orange-red. He opened his eyes and looked at the passing street scenery outside the window, his mind filled with the six girls' uniform legs and Kim Ye-rin's final smile. Nothing special. Just like those girl groups seen on TV.

He withdrew his gaze and flipped through the sales reports on his phone. Numbers were rising, which was more real than anything else.