The Tyrant Billionaire
Chapter 148 - 148 Business Negotiation

But when they drove to the St. Regis Hotel, they saw Hardy and Taylor leaving, accompanied by a few others. The couple exchanged a glance and hurriedly approached.

"Mr. Hardy, do you remember me?" Mrs. Lauder asked with a smile.

"Ah, of course, I remember, Mrs. Lauder. I didn't expect you to come so soon. I was just about to attend a party," Hardy said, gesturing to Johnny Fontaine and Judy Garland beside him.

Only then did Mrs. Lauder clearly see the two of them and was startled. Johnny Fontaine and Judy Garland were real stars.

At this moment, she no longer had any doubts about Hardy's identity.

"I'm really sorry to disturb you," Mrs. Lauder said a bit nervously, stepping back to make way.

At this time, Mrs. Lauder was not yet the head of an international brand, but merely the owner of a small cosmetics company.

Hardy looked at Mrs. Lauder and her husband and smiled. "Why don't you join us at the party?"

"ah!"

Hearing this, Mrs. Lauder was very surprised. She had never attended such a star studded gathering and immediately became excited.

"Is it appropriate?" Mrs. Lauder feigned modesty.

Johnny Fontaine also invited them to the party at this moment. Since Hardy was the guest of honor, anyone he invited would naturally be welcomed by Johnny.

They all drove to Johnny's villa.

Inside Johnny's small villa, there were already twenty to thirty people, all from the entertainment industry. When Hardy and Taylor entered the villa, everyone stood up and applauded to welcome them.

The party was lively, with everyone chatting, drinking, and laughing. Since they were all from the entertainment circle, they had common topics to discuss. Hardy, being a film company owner was fawned over by everyone who seized the opportunity to have a word with him.

Mrs. Lauder and her husband sat in a corner, watching Hardy being surrounded. She thought to herself that Mr. Hardy might not have time to talk to them tonight.

Mrs. Lauder then considered approaching other celebrities to strike up a conversation and expand her network for the future.

Just then, Hardy walked over.

"Sorry for bringing you here when you don't know anyone," Hardy said.

"Oh no, it's an honor to attend such a party," Mrs. Lauder quickly responded.

Hardy sat down and said, "Mrs. Lauder, what do you think about my proposal from earlier today? Are you willing to accept my acquisition?"

"What does Mr. Hardy have in mind for the acquisition?" Mrs. Lauder asked.

"I plan to invest in buying a portion of the shares while letting you continue running Estée Lauder," Hardy said.

Hearing this, Mrs. Lauder felt slightly relieved. At least the other party wasn't looking to completely take over, leaving only the question of how much of a stake he wanted.

Hardy was optimistic about Estée Lauder because he believed in Mrs. Lauder's potential. Many cosmetic brands existed, but only a few succeeded in the end, largely due to the differences in managerial capabilities.

Time magazine once listed the 20 most influential business geniuses of the 20th century, and Mrs. Lauder was among them, the only woman in the group.

She had grown a small business with tens of thousands of dollars into a billion dollar enterprise, which spoke volumes about her capabilities.

"So, how much of a stake does Mr. Hardy intend to acquire?" Joseph asked.

"I hope for 80%, but I can leave the management rights to you. This can be written into the agreement. Unless it's a matter of life or death for the company, you two will handle everything," Hardy said.

Hearing 80%, the couple's hearts sank. They had guessed correctly; he indeed wanted a major stake.

"You're asking for too much. I'm afraid we can't agree to that," Mrs. Lauder said.

Hardy smiled and didn't press further on the shares. Instead, he shifted the topic. "I'd like to hear how you plan to operate moving forward."

Mrs. Lauder glanced at her husband and said, "We currently have four main products: cleansing oil, cream, moisturizer, and all purpose skin serum. We plan to heavily promote these four products, advertise in newspapers to increase brand awareness, and once sales improve, continue to develop new products, expand our range, and increase production capacity."

Hardy nodded. "And when do you think you can achieve these plans on your own?" Hardy asked.

Mrs. Lauder fell silent.

"It will take a long time," she admitted.

Hardy smiled again.

"Would you like to hear my plan for Estée Lauder?"

"Of course," Mrs. Lauder said, perking up.

"The direction of your strategy is correct, but the pace is too slow. The reason it's slow is that you lack sufficient foundational strength. To accelerate, you must raise funds."

"Mrs. Lauder, when you were helping clients with makeup in the mall, the experiential service indeed helped attract customers. This model should be retained. In the future, every department store counter should have one or two makeup artists. Also, offer free samples to customers. When they take the samples home, they will naturally try them, and if they like the results, they might become customers."

People love freebies. Giving women samples would ensure they use them, and they might become loyal Estée Lauder customers.

"Advertising to boost brand value is a great concept. My plan is to advertise extensively in newspapers, magazines, and even on television and in movies to increase Estée Lauder's brand awareness."

"In films, the leading actress could use Estée Lauder products while applying makeup."

This proposal completely astounded Mrs. Lauder.

If they followed Hardy's advertising strategy, Estée Lauder would quickly become a household name.

However, she knew such an advertising campaign would cost a fortune. She had previously inquired about advertising in newspapers. Small papers cost thousands a year, while major ones like the New York Times cost tens of thousands. This was why Estée Lauder hadn't advertised yet small newspapers were ineffective, and big ones were too expensive.

Hardy continued to persuade.

"Mrs. Lauder, your idea of celebrity endorsements is also correct. Celebrity influence is a powerful promotional tool. Look at the stars at tonight's party. If they endorsed Estée Lauder, imagine the reputation boost."

"Ava Gardner is an artist under my company and very popular right now. She could be the exclusive spokesperson for Estée Lauder."

Although this sounded great, Mrs. Lauder knew that the endorsement fee would be astronomical.

"Barbie dolls now have counters in major cities across the United States. I remember there are a total of 78. Estée Lauder wants to open counters in all these cities. How much capital would be needed? Probably no less than four to five hundred thousand dollars."

"More money being thrown around again. If I had money, I would play like this too."

Mrs. Lauder sighed inwardly.

Unfortunately, what she lacked was money.

"After establishing the Estée Lauder brand, it needs to go global, conquering the European market. Mrs. Lauder's goal is to make Estée Lauder a brand that can rival L'Oréal."

Previously, Mrs. Lauder considered this just a slogan. Now she realized how difficult achieving this goal would be.

"Once sales increase, a larger modern cosmetics production enterprise needs to be established, as well as dedicated cosmetics laboratories. My idea is for Estée Lauder to produce all types of cosmetics women can use."

"Lipsticks, perfumes, eye-shadows, makeup kits, eyeliners and so on, with thousands of varieties."

"The brand should have different tiers primary, secondary and top level to meet the needs of different customer groups."

Following Mr. Hardy's approach, this company would require astronomical investment. Estée Lauder is currently just a small workshop, unable to bear such costs.

Hardy felt that Mrs. Lauder was a little confused by what he said, and smiled.

"Mrs. Lauder, to be honest, with the business model I described, I could choose any cosmetics company and rapidly grow it, quickly capturing the market and becoming a well known brand."

Mrs. Lauder looked a bit panicked. She was a smart woman and knew that Mr. Hardy's approach was extremely powerful. It was the most comprehensive and effective development plan she had ever heard. It could be applied to many businesses, and any company could succeed with this strategy.

What did Estée Lauder have? Only her four products. She felt they were not enough, as any cosmetics company could develop similar products.

Mrs. Lauder gritted her teeth.

"Mr. Hardy, we are willing to sell 75% of the shares."

Mrs. Lauder's decisiveness was impressive. When she saw an opportunity and a crisis, she made a quick decision.

Hardy smiled. he had initially asked for 80%, aiming high to negotiate down. If the operating partner's shares were too low, the investment would be wasted due to lack of motivation. His bottom line was 60%. He hadn't expected to negotiate up to 75%.

So he decided to accept it.

"Alright, tomorrow let's discuss the details of the funding and promotional aspects, then sign the agreement. For now, I'll take you to meet some of New York's celebrities. You might find them useful in the future," Mr. Hardy said.

Mrs. Lauder was overjoyed.

She immediately stood up to follow him.

This was one of the reasons she was willing to partner with Mr. Hardy. Not only did he have money and resources, but he also had an immense network of connections.

Any celebrity would be beyond her reach, yet these people would speak respectfully in front of Mr. Hardy.

Now that she had become Mr. Hardy's partner, her status had instantly risen to a new level.