Whenever businesses enter into competition, three outcomes are most common.. one side works to reduce or eliminate rivals, weaker players fall out of the market, or a single company rises to dominate and claim the lion's share.
Monitoring and managing competition is a core part of running any business. Ignore it, and you'll quickly find opportunities slipping away, and your plans falling apart.
At the moment, the drink market was in complete disarray.
…
Shells Merchant Company, Shells Town.
One of the largest and most established merchant companies in the East Blue had been thrown into disarray. Panic gripped its meetings as news spread, competitors had gotten their hands on a product so outrageous that the profits bordered on the unbelievable.
At first, the rumors seemed laughable. But the truth hit fast and hard. Iron Bull was no joke. It had exploded across the East Blue, captivating markets in every port it touched.
Initial prices ranged between 220–250 berries per bottle. Yet as supplies "ran out" and eager merchants scrambled to secure bulk pre-orders, prices shot even higher.
Smaller companies, desperate not to miss out, began offering extortionate prices in hopes of turning a profit. Instead, their reputations crumbled and their treasuries bled dry.
In the end, the Wayne Group had maneuvered them into a corner, bleeding them for every last berry through their own haste and greed.
…
"Idiots." Sanemi's voice was calm, almost casual. An emergency meeting had been called, and most of his so-called board of directors now sat around the long table.
An eerie smile tugged at his lips as he leaned back, exhaling slow. "Ahhh… Liora, start the game. Let's see how they react." His laughter broke out sharp and sudden, echoing in the attic like a man savoring madness.
As dozens of merchants scrambled to secure pre-orders, Wayne Group's capital surged, nearly forty million berries in just days. The smaller companies, blinded by greed, realized too late they had already sold their "souls.".
And when they began to flounder, drowning in their own desperation, Sanemi would appear from the shadows. He would extend a hand, not to save them, but to buy them out. To claim their companies with the very money they had poured into his pockets.
By then, it wouldn't even be a negotiation.
Sanemi's true goal with Iron Bull was never about simple profit. The drink was bait, an irresistible lure designed to draw in capital at a pace no ordinary venture could match. Every bottle sold was another stone laid in his foundation.
What he wanted was leverage. With the surge of wealth pouring in, he could swoop down on struggling merchants and buy out smaller but valuable companies. Each acquisition meant more than just assets, it brought trained laborers, seasoned employees, and loyal subordinates under the Wayne Group's banner.
And just as important, every purchase cut another rival out of the game.
In a single motion, Sanemi would expand his empire and starve the competition.
What the Wayne Group needed now wasn't more connections, nor another craze to flood the market. What it needed were people, employees, workers, entire teams who could keep the gears turning and the empire thriving.
When the production lines were filled to the brim with laborers, when the warehouses could churn out enough supply to feed nearly all of East Blue…
That was when Sanemi would make his real move.
Only then could he dictate the market, not as a competitor, but as its master.
…
Alfred's Merchant Company.
A humble yet well-respected firm, its foundation had always been its hard-earned reputation. Trust and reliability kept their ships sailing and their name clean across the East Blue.
But recently, their management had stumbled into dangerous waters. Desperate not to fall behind, they dove headfirst into the Iron Bull craze, purchasing bulk after bulk, even securing costly pre-orders. In doing so, the owner had all but drained the company's savings and current capital.
On the surface, their ships still set sail, delivering goods and conducting business as usual. But beneath that calm exterior, unrest spread like rot. Rumors of the owner's "blunder" whispered through every corner of the company, infecting both workers and management alike.
And in a business built on reputation, the cracks were beginning to show.
Whispers turned to complaints. Complaints turned to fear. And fear, in business, was blood in the water.
Sanemi could smell it from miles away.
When Alfred's Merchant Company was on the brink, bleeding coin and drowning in overstocked Iron Bull they could no longer move, the Wayne Group made its approach. Not loudly, not forcefully, just a quiet offer behind closed doors.
Relief capital. Enough to pay off debts, steady their shipping, even keep their workers employed. All Alfred had to do was one thing.
Sign.
And he did.
The ink wasn't even dry before the Wayne Group's insignia replaced Alfred's name on company documents. The workers, the ships, the routes, everything folded neatly into Sanemi's growing empire.
The East Blue thought Iron Bull was a drink. Sanemi knew it was the bait.
And Alfred's Merchant Company was just the first to be swallowed whole.
..
Lighthouse Trading Co.
A modest operation based out of Gecko Islands, known more for reliability than ambition. For years, their simple business model kept them afloa, ferrying staple goods between villages, never taking risks, never drawing attention.
But when Iron Bull fever swept the seas, their young manager, desperate not to be left behind, convinced the board to sink nearly everything into pre-orders. A "calculated gamble," he called it.
It wasn't.
The demand spike came and went, leaving their ships' holds packed with bottles they couldn't move at inflated prices. Customers balked, rivals undercut them, and within days their profits bled dry. Workers began skipping pay, and the company's once-steadfast crews muttered about jumping ship.
That's when Wayne Group appeared. Not with threats, but with salvation...
An offer. Partial debt coverage. Job security for every worker. Access to a wider trade network than Lighthouse had ever dreamed of.
The board hesitated, but the young manager, whose reckless gamble had led them here, was first to break. He signed, and the rest followed.
Lighthouse Trading Co. became yet another candle snuffed out, its business absorbed into Sanemi's growing blaze.