"The leadership is worried that CEO Tan's future development might deviate from the intended direction, aren't they?"
"Yes, I believe the data in his planning document is real, and his determination to engage in real industries is strong. But he's only 20 years old; in 10 years, he'll only be 30. Will he still have the same enthusiasm then?"
"The leadership's concerns are indeed valid. To achieve success and fame at 20, it's highly possible to lose interest in one's career later. However, I do have some thoughts of my own."
"Oh? Do tell?"
"What will happen in ten years, even we ourselves don't know. But judging from the current plan, as long as Shanchi meets its sales expectations for next year, five years should actually be fine."
"Another thing I've observed is that while this young man is young, he doesn't seem to be the type to indulge in pleasure. He still rents a place in Gold Coast and has only bought a small apartment in Beicang. His car isn't too luxurious either; before, he only had a BMW 3 Series."
"His parents continue their previous normal lives; his dad still goes to work as usual, and they only bought a new house in their hometown, with no other changes. The family is still relatively frugal."
"Almost all his money has been invested, with the largest investment being in Shanchi. It's said that he's currently working non-stop to develop new products."
"Of course, these might just be his reactions to not yet realizing or getting used to being worth over a hundred million. Whether he'll remain this way in the future is anyone's guess."
Zhao Jinsheng merely reported the details he observed; the final decision still rested with the leadership.
Regarding the question the leader just asked, Tan Jincheng's behavior seemed somewhat peculiar to him.
Suddenly rich at a young age, yet he could live so "frugally."
Wasn't that character too steady?
But on the other hand, he was extremely generous with money.
As long as he had funds, he invested them into Shanchi Technology, spending large sums to hire celebrity endorsers and running advertising campaigns one after another.
These all required money, and he treated grassroots employees quite well too.
Shanchi Technology's grassroots employees worked a 12-hour shift system, divided into day and night shifts, with one day off a week.
These were no different from other factories.
However, their average salary was about 15% to 20% higher than typical factories, and their benefits were also good.
Especially the full social security coverage for all employees; this was truly a grand gesture.
In this day and age, a factory willing to pay social security for its employees, and making it actively mandatory, was quite unconventional.
The Human Resources and Social Security Bureau even sent them a commendation banner for this.
If you say he's stingy, he seems somewhat stingy with himself, not having bought a luxury home to date, and his car choices are more for the company's image.
But if you say he's generous, he truly is, not at all stingy with his investment in the factory.
His personal conduct also had no major flaws.
To doubt such an excellent young man, wholly dedicated to his career, simply because of his age and suspect he wouldn't continue his career in the future, is somewhat unreasonable.
At least, this reason cannot hold currently.
The leader's eyes flashed as he said,
"Are you suggesting his style leans more towards a self-made entrepreneur?"
"A self-made entrepreneur? Leader, your description is very apt, indeed. Although he's not old, he started from scratch after all, and his style leans more towards a self-made entrepreneur."
The leader nodded, seemingly agreeing.
From this perspective, his mindset should be quite stable.
Ten years might be too much to say, but five years should be fine.
If nurtured well, it could be a significant political achievement, and perhaps even establish an image as a typical post-80s entrepreneurial youth.
Since that's the case, there's nothing to hesitate about.
"Submit it. Let's see how the higher-ups react."
"Understood."
This submission stirred up a thousand waves with one stone.
Tan Jincheng had no idea that his boast had caused quite a stir in the district.
At this moment, he was taking Gu Qingqing to Hengdian under the guise of visiting the set, while also negotiating a contract with Liu Yifei's team.
"Ms. Liu, our new model follows a light luxury route, so the pricing won't be too low. Additionally, the car is quite compact. Your daughter's style matches our product very well, which is the main reason we are strongly inviting your party for endorsement."
Liu Xiaoli looked at the eloquent young man before her.
She had inquired with Mango previously and heard that the Shanchi boss who invited Chun Ge for endorsement was a young man, but she hadn't expected him to be so young, which was quite a surprise.
"May I ask how old you are this year, CEO Tan?"
Liu Xiaoli suddenly interrupted.
Tan Jincheng, who was explaining the product's features, was taken aback and instinctively glanced at Gu Qingqing beside him.
Gu Qingqing also looked bewildered; she was genuinely here to see celebrities.
"I'm 20 this year. Is there a problem, Ms. Liu?"
Liu Xiaoli smiled and said,
"No, I just heard that your company's boss was very young, but I didn't expect him to be so young. To be worth over a hundred million at 20 is truly remarkable."
"You flatter me. It's all thanks to the nation's good policies. Your daughter is also very outstanding, and my girlfriend is her fan. Here's a request: regardless of whether our cooperation goes through, would it be possible for Ms. Liu to take a photo with my girlfriend later?"
18-year-old Liu Yifei's aura was far from as strong as it would be in later years; she sat quietly to the side.
Tan Jincheng had never met her in his previous life, but from some interviews, he could sense that her personality generally came across as lively, and she spoke quite directly; of course, it could also be understood as confidence.
Her quietness today seemed somewhat unlike her usual character, but it was also possible that this was her true personality.
Celebrities, after all, often have several faces.
To be honest, Tan Jincheng didn't know much about her, beyond her beauty and being frequently slandered online without ever refuting it.
He had only watched the TV series Chinese Paladin, as Tan Jincheng himself was a fan of the Chinese Paladin game series.
From Paladin 1 to Paladin 4, he had stayed up all night to find guides and complete them; this was a memory shared by many born in the 80s.
His choice of her was entirely from a commercial perspective.
A nascent brand paired with a young celebrity endorser, one who could remain popular for over a decade, would be very effective for brand influence.
It's actually quite taboo for companies to frequently change celebrity endorsers.
Like Yadi in his previous life, they couldn't find a good endorser, went through a bunch of them, spent a lot of money, but the effect was not as good as Aima.
The most classic endorser should be Wahaha, with one endorser used until the chairman retired.
Of course, Gu Qingqing being her fan was also a reason.
As for Tan Jincheng himself?
He actually didn't feel much for celebrities; he only liked Zhou Pangzi's songs.
Perhaps it was a chain reaction brought by Shanchi.
It's rumored that some companies in the industry are now actively looking for endorsers.
Yadi seems to be approaching S.H.E, while Xinri, as expected, has found Da Ge Cheng.
Perhaps this was the butterfly effect brought by Tan Jincheng.
The melee among electric vehicle manufacturers seemed to be starting earlier than its original trajectory, which was one of the reasons why Tan Jincheng boasted about wanting to build an industrial base.
Becoming a trailblazer and gaining fame, if one's own strength cannot keep up, they will only be abandoned by the torrent of the times.
Many who were the first to "eat the crab" have been wiped out.
"Oh? What about you, CEO Tan?"
"Me, I was also Ling'er's fan back then; otherwise, I wouldn't have approached your party for cooperation."
"Haha, interesting. Is that why you're offering our Yifei a ten-year endorsement contract?" Liu Xiaoli said with sparkling eyes.
Tan Jincheng smiled and replied,
"That's one reason. Of course, I'm also more optimistic about your daughter's future career."
The Shanchi series shares its name with the company.
As its fame grows in the future, whether or not to have an endorser won't really matter.
Furthermore, regardless of how poorly the Super Girl competition might be run in subsequent years, it still generates buzz annually, and it's good to capitalize on that heat during that period.
If all else fails, they can re-sign Chun Ge for a few more years.
After the 'era of comparisons,' Chun Ge's status in the mainland music scene is not low, and what's more rare is that her reputation has always been good.
However, the Fengchi series is different.
The Fengchi series, following a light luxury route, is priced higher and sells at a premium.
Its endorser must have significant commercial appeal and is indispensable.
When the company's brand is promoted, consumers will naturally know Shanchi, but they won't necessarily associate it with Fengchi.
A ten-year endorsement by Liu Yifei, during her golden age, is worth having.
Otherwise, signing a three-to-five-year endorsement and then changing endorsers would set even higher requirements, demanding an endorser with an even greater status.
"Can I understand CEO Tan's intention as leaning towards signing a ten-year endorsement contract?"
"You can understand it that way, but for a ten-year contract, I'd need to sign it directly with Ms. Liu herself,"
Tan Jincheng said with a smile.
It's a joke; a 10-year endorsement contract definitely cannot be signed with an agency, not even if you're her mother.
Liu Yifei is now over 18 and has the right to sign contracts independently.
"Furthermore, we can pay the endorsement fee in a lump sum, but at the same time, the liquidated damages must be increased to three times the amount."
Endorsement contracts in the entertainment industry are generally paid in a lump sum, but a ten-year endorsement can actually be paid in installments.
The reason for offering a lump sum payment, besides locking in the deal early, is to create a sensational effect.
Receiving a 27 million endorsement fee in one go, regardless of how many years it's for, would undoubtedly be explosive news in the current entertainment industry.
In 2005, there were very few female celebrities with endorsement fees in the tens of millions!
Even in later generations, this fee would be considered top-tier treatment.
Of course, in later generations, a ten-million-level contract for a top-tier star would only be for one year.
Indeed, Tan Jincheng's proposal moved not only Liu Xiaoli but also Liu Yifei herself.
They clearly understood the benefits behind these numbers; how impactful the publicity would be!
Liu Xiaoli, on her part, thought about how they could promote it externally as 30 million yuan, or even higher, as long as both parties agreed on the narrative.
This was a superstar-level endorsement fee.
With this endorsement, it would be much easier to negotiate future endorsement deals, advertisements, and TV drama scripts.
See?
Our Yifei is only 18, and they dare to sign her for ten years and offer tens of millions in endorsement fees.
Isn't your offer lacking sincerity?
As for signing directly with the individual and the triple liquidated damages clause, Liu Xiaoli, without the benefit of foresight, didn't take it seriously.
Signing directly with the individual also made sense, as it was a long-term contract, and only a fool would voluntarily breach it.
In 2005, the concept of trending topics didn't exist yet, and Weibo was still in its initial blog form.
However, Baidu did have search terms, so the promotional effect wouldn't be bad.
This was especially true for Fengchi, which hadn't been launched yet.
Just like signing Chun Ge during the Super Girl competition, Shanchi Technology would hardly need to put in any resources or funds for promotion in the early stages.
With such explosive numbers, the opposing agency team would undoubtedly heavily promote it.
They could freeload another wave of media resources, haha!
(End of Chapter)