Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 473

As Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young finished his question, Chairman Shin Chun-oh asked again, as if to confirm the details.

“So, Chief Secretary Choi, you’re wondering, if the *minimum* is 60 billion, what would the *maximum* be? Is that what you’re asking?”

“Yes, that’s right. I can’t even imagine what that amount would be.”

“Well… I think 100 billion would be sufficient.”

“Pardon? A, a hundred billion?”

Choi Jin-young stuttered at the mention of a hundred billion.

A hundred billion?

It was a hundred billion, but he still couldn’t quite grasp the magnitude of that sum.

However, he was also curious about how they arrived at that figure.

Driven by curiosity, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young inquired further.

“Chairman, I apologize, but how is that 100 billion figure possible?”

“Are you curious?”

“Yes, to be honest, that amount is unimaginable, but I’m still curious about the calculation. How can you generate 100 billion in profit in a year?”

“I see. Well, let’s calculate it together. To estimate the annual sales, we need to determine the monthly sales first. What do you think the restaurant’s total monthly sales will be, Chief Secretary Choi? Of course, that includes the cafe sales as well.”

“That’s…”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young couldn’t answer easily. He had considered it briefly, but he couldn’t even venture a guess as to the monthly sales.

“Chairman, I’m sorry. I’m a bit weak with numbers, so I can’t calculate it…”

“You can’t calculate it?”

“No, I can’t.”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young nodded.

Then, Chairman Shin Chun-oh nodded as if he understood and immediately continued.

“First of all, I estimate the total monthly sales to be about 20 billion won [approximately $15 million USD]. My basis for that is today’s sales.”

“Pardon? Today’s sales?”

“Yes, today’s sales were 1 billion won, weren’t they?”

“Ah, yes, that’s right. So, today is Sunday, so it’s 1 billion won, but it won’t be that much on weekdays, so you calculated it as an average of 700 million won per day? And you rounded the numbers to make it easier to calculate, and you set it at 20 billion won?”

“That’s right. Now your head is working properly, Chief Secretary Choi. Now, let’s calculate again. 20 billion won a month, so that’s 240 billion won a year, and we multiply that amount by the profit margin. First of all…”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s calculation method was simple.

It was to multiply the total sales by the profit margin.

The first profit margin applied was 25%. The net profit from that was 60 billion won. That was the basis for calculating the minimum amount mentioned at the beginning.

The next profit margin applied was 40%. The net profit from that was 96 billion won. But he said he mentioned 100 billion won to make it easier to calculate.

As Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s explanation ended, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young immediately asked.

“Then, what is the typical profit margin calculated in restaurants?”

“It’s not in this range.”

“Pardon? It’s not?”

“No, usually it has to be about 30% to be considered a decent business. The figures above are just theoretical calculations.”

“Ah, I see. So that’s why you said at least 60 billion won?”

“Yes, with that much sales, it’s basically that much.”

“Ah, yes…”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young seemed to be thinking for a moment, then immediately asked again.

“That profit margin, is it usually calculated including the rent?”

“Of course.”

“Then the situation changes in Kim’s case, doesn’t it?”

“Why?”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s face showed a subtle smile as he asked. It was as if he had anticipated that the other person would ask that question.

“Kim doesn’t pay rent, does he? He’s the landlord.”

“That’s right, what do you think that implies?”

“Not paying rent means that the profit margin increases, and if that happens… Ah, that’s it? A hundred billion!”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young finished speaking and looked directly at Chairman Shin Chun-oh. He was asking if his reasoning was correct.

Then, Chairman Shin Chun-oh smiled and continued.

“Are you getting a sense of it now?”

“Yes, now I think I know why you said the maximum amount was 100 billion won at the beginning. In Kim’s case, he doesn’t have to pay rent, so that kind of profit margin could be achieved?”

“That’s exactly it. It’s almost impossible to get a profit margin of more than 40% while operating a business in a rented building. And if it were another landlord instead of Kim, the profit margin could be more than 50%. But I only calculated about 40% because it’s Kim.”

“Pardon? Why is that?”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young couldn’t understand how the profit margin could change depending on the person.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s answer followed.

“The reason is in the labor costs.”

“Labor costs?”

“Yes, as you know, Kim pays more in labor costs than other employers, doesn’t he?”

“Ah, you mean…”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young nodded as if he understood what he was talking about, and immediately continued.

“So, you’re saying that in Kim’s case, he pays more in labor costs than other people, so the profit margin decreases accordingly?”

“That’s right. Honestly, where in Korea would a restaurant pay 1 million won in salary [approximately $750 USD per month to part-time employees]?”

“That’s true. In the end, Kim is sharing his profits with his employees?”

“You could say that. Anyway, no matter how I analyze it, it’s undeniable that the young man is amazing.”

“Yes, I think you’re right, Chairman. People usually become more greedy as they accumulate more wealth.”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young had no choice but to nod.

There’s even a saying that a person with ninety-nine things takes the one thing from a person with one thing to reach a hundred.

That’s how boundless people’s greed can be.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s words continued again.

“Now, back to the main point, that’s just the restaurant.”

“Pardon?”

“I heard you’re going to build a wild vegetable factory in the future? If that happens, you’ll get a lot of profit from there, right?”

“Ah, that’s right. From 2 years later, even there… Wait a minute.”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young stopped talking and seemed to be thinking about something again.

After a while.

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young urgently called out to Chairman Shin Chun-oh.

“Chairman!”

“Haha, you’re calling me so urgently, you must have realized something again?”

“It’s really no joke.”

“What is it?”

“The total profit. The restaurant alone is 100 billion won, and if you add the wild vegetable factory, that amount is…”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young stopped talking and shook his head. Even with a quick calculation, the amount was enormous.

Then, Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s words continued again.

“Now, let’s put that problem aside. What’s the last thing to report?”

“Ah, yes. That’s the housing supply.”

“Housing supply? Are you saying you’re going to supply houses now?”

“Yes, that’s right. The new business that Kim is starting in conjunction with the wild vegetable factory is housing supply.”

“Haha, housing supply…”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.

Hyun-sung had undertaken many ventures so far, but the word ‘house’ made him laugh involuntarily. The reason was that the meaning of a house was so significant.

An individual supplies housing?

That means he’s going to enter the real estate development business.

Real estate development…

After thinking for a while, Chairman Shin Chun-oh looked at Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young and asked.

“Are you saying that Kim is going to enter the real estate development business now?”

“Real estate development?”

“Yes, didn’t you say a little while ago that Kim is going to supply housing in the future? That means he’s going to build houses and sell them, and that’s real estate development, isn’t it? Am I wrong?”

“Huh? But that’s a bit…”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young tilted his head as if it wasn’t quite right, and couldn’t continue.

Then, Chairman Shin Chun-oh, seeing that, immediately asked.

“Um? What’s that reaction? It seems like there’s something wrong with my interpretation. Did I make a mistake?”

“No, it’s not that. Chairman, you said real estate development just now, right?”

“Yes, that’s right. Chief Secretary Choi, you clearly said a little while ago that Kim is going to supply housing in the future, didn’t you? Did I misunderstand?”

“Ah, no. That’s true.”

“So, what I’m saying is that supplying housing means building houses and selling them, and that’s real estate development, isn’t it?”

As Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s words ended, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young shook his head from side to side and immediately continued.

“I don’t think so.”

“You don’t think so?”

“No, isn’t the fundamental principle of business making a profit?”

“That’s obvious.”

“So, I’m saying I don’t think it’s real estate development.”

“Um? What does that mean?”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh looked at Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young as if he didn’t understand what he was talking about.

Then, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young immediately continued.

“There’s no profit.”

“There’s no profit?”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s voice suddenly grew louder. That’s because he heard something that didn’t make sense.

The purpose of business is naturally profit. But since he said there was no profit, Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s voice grew louder without realizing it.

“Yes, there’s no profit calculated in the housing supply that Kim is planning.”

“No, does that even make sense? Who would do that unless they were crazy…”

“It’s true. There was clearly no profit in the housing supply that Kim described.”

“Haha, this is really… I see. I understand. First, tell me in detail what the housing supply that Kim is talking about entails.”

“Yes, I understand. So, Kim is going to…”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young began to explain about the housing supply method that Hyun-sung had outlined. As his explanation continued at length, Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s expression gradually changed over time, in stark contrast to his initial reaction.

And finally, as his explanation ended, he immediately asked with an incredulous expression.

“So, Kim is saying that he’s going to supply houses by only receiving the cost of construction?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“And he’s not even receiving the land price?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Haha, this is really…”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh was speechless.

Does this even make sense?

He’s building houses and supplying them, but he’s only going to receive the cost of construction. Furthermore, he’s not even receiving the land price; it’s free.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh asked again.

“What’s the reason for doing that?”

“It’s for welfare.”

“Welfare?”

“Yes, as I mentioned before, 50% of the employees at the wild vegetable factory are going to be disabled, right?”

“So you’re going to build houses for those people?”

“Yes, that’s right. Of course, there are conditions. He plans to supply ten houses a year to people who meet those conditions.”

“…”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh had nothing more to say.

At first, he naturally assumed that Kim was going to build houses and sell them because he was supplying houses. There would be no better business than that.

But he couldn’t say anything more because he realized that all of that was just his own assumption.

Then, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young opened his mouth again.

“It’s 30 years.”

“30 years? What does that mean?”

“It’s the period for paying off the construction cost. Once the house is completed, you move in first, and then you pay off the construction cost for 30 years from the following year.”

“…”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh nodded in response.

Then, Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young shook his head from side to side and continued.

“I don’t understand.”

“Honestly, it’s the same for me. This is not something that can be done just because you have money.”

“That’s what I’m saying. How…”

Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young still shook his head from side to side as if he couldn’t comprehend it.

Pfft.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh, seeing that, laughed at some point. He immediately addressed Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young.

“Chief Secretary Choi.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Neither you nor I, people like us, can understand it even if we die a hundred times and come back to life. So let’s not bother trying to understand it.”

“Yes, I understand. So from now on, I’ve decided to just memorize it.”

“Memorize?”

“Yes, Kim is just a person from another planet. I think that’s better for my mental health.”

“Haha, hahahaha…”

Chairman Shin Chun-oh laughed loudly instead of answering.

Maybe it would be better to just memorize it, like Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young said. Otherwise, it would be impossible to understand him in any way.

After a while.

Chairman Shin Chun-oh quietly called Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young.

“Chief Secretary Choi!”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“How do you think that place will change in about 2 years?”

“Well, by that time, the wild vegetable factory will be completed and the farm will be three times its current size… Oh! By that time, shouldn’t we be preparing to go there too?”

“Are you talking about the village school?”

“Yes, didn’t you make a promise with Kim?”

“Of course. That’s natural, and what I’m curious about is the change in that village. I wonder how much change there will be.”

A strange smile began to spread on Chairman Shin Chun-oh’s face, perhaps because of anticipation. It was the same for Chief Secretary Choi Jin-young next to him.

Who knows how the world will change in 2 years.

476

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