Black Label [EN]: Chapter 38

Black Label 37

38. Accelerando

Jae-seung’s eyes were immediately drawn to the ‘profile picture’ at the very top of the resume file attached to the email.

A young man with a kind and very familiar face was wearing a faint smile.

Jae-seung quickly checked the three-letter name written in the ‘Name’ field.

– Name: Lee Kang-jun

Jae-seung rubbed his eyes. He looked again and again.

His initial guess quickly turned into certainty.

“Good heavens….”

Designer Lee Kang-jun.

Before Jae-seung experienced the bizarre phenomenon of regression, [time travel]. A figure who possessed skills that would rank him among the top five designers in Korea.

A designer from ‘Christian Diom,’ a brand with a deep history and tradition that has produced famous designers such as Yves Saint Laurent, Mark Bohan, and John Galliano. He later launched his own brand, ‘Diamond Look,’ gaining great fame.

A person who would later prove his skills through prestigious collections in various overseas locations and receive rave reviews from famous celebrities had submitted a resume to Wall Flower.

‘Of course, he’s just a college student on leave right now….’

Click-.

Click-.

As Jae-seung scrolled down the resume, his gaze turned to the ‘Reason for Applying’ section.

– I was deeply moved by designer Lee Jae-seung’s design philosophy and mindset after reading the interview in ‘FTV Magazine.’ If I have the opportunity, I would love to work at Wall Flower.

“Huh….”

He felt quite strange. On one hand, he was amazed, and on the other hand, he felt a sense of incongruity. His mouth was smiling, but a smile mixed with emptiness kept leaking out.

He had thought many times about how his actions might have a significant impact on other people’s lives.

That’s why he struggled to lead the lives of those around him in a slightly more positive direction.

Jae-seung had actively tried to intervene in the lives of his family, his close friend Yeong-guk, and President Song, trying to bring about positive changes.

However, his connection with Lee Kang-jun felt quite different.

‘What should I do….’

Is it really the right choice to be happy about the fact that he has a connection with a promising future world-class designer?

Maybe his connection with me could completely change his life?

Just as he treats his own life carefully, he should treat the lives of others carefully as well.

Jae-seung, lost in deep thought with his face cupped in his hands, began to write a text message to Lee Kang-jun’s cell phone number listed on the resume.

Typing- Typing-.

– Hello? This is ‘Wall Flower.’ Please visit our office anytime tomorrow. The office address is Madu-dong, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do….

Let’s meet first. Let’s meet once and talk.

Even if he’s only planning to stay for a short time, I’m willing to embrace him.

What if he wants to work at Wall Flower for the rest of his life?

The finger that was in front of the ‘Send’ button momentarily stopped moving when his thoughts reached that point.

And then.

‘I just need to make him more successful than he was in my past life.’

Jae-seung, who muttered to himself, pressed the send button.

Soon, a clear notification sound rang, indicating that the message had been sent.

* * *

Around lunchtime the next day, Jae-seung, who had fallen asleep on the sofa in the studio, groggily opened his eyes.

“Ughhhh-.”

A few rays of sunlight seeping in through the window were gently tickling his face.

Jae-seung squinted and immediately picked up his cell phone.

It was already two in the afternoon.

He had finished working around eight in the morning and fell asleep, so he had slept for about six hours.

“I slept for a long time….”

Jae-seung muttered to himself and immediately picked up his notebook to check his schedule.

– 3 PM: Lee Kang-jun (Design Team Applicant)

– 4 PM: Choo Ji-hoon (Design Team Applicant)

– 5 PM: Yoo Seung-woo (Logistics/Delivery Part-Time Applicant)

Chewing on the end of his pen, he nodded a few times.

‘Okay. Good.’

Fortunately, things were progressing smoothly.

He felt uneasy because of Lee Kang-jun, whom he would meet in just an hour, but he encouraged himself, saying, ‘I have to do what I have to do,’ and diligently stepped on the sewing machine pedal all night.

Thanks to that, he was able to definitively select the main fabric for the paint jeans to be released this time.

Now, all he had to do was hand over the samples and related documents to the production factory, and he could start full-scale production right away.

‘There’s no way I won’t be able to meet the quota within the deadline.’

I have to finish the interview first.

Jae-seung got up, pulled back the curtains, and opened the window. It was to ventilate the room.

The cold air touched his skin, and the remaining drowsiness disappeared.

Looking in the mirror, he was a mess. He grabbed a few simple toiletries and started walking towards the shopping center’s restroom.

He was going to wash his face and wet his messy hair to calm it down.

He couldn’t conduct the interview looking so shabby.

* * *

“Sorry for looking a bit scruffy. I couldn’t go home because I was working on samples all night.”

At 2:50 PM, Lee Kang-jun arrived at the office, exactly ten minutes before the scheduled interview time.

Lee Kang-jun nodded slightly, as if he fully understood Jae-seung’s quiet words.

‘Hmm….’

Jae-seung first examined Lee Kang-jun’s appearance. He was tall and had a decent appearance that could rival a model.

A person he had only seen on TV screens, monitors, or in magazines was standing in front of him.

After a moment of silence.

“Would you like to sit down?”

Lee Kang-jun replied, “Yes,” to the question, gesturing to the sofa.

Jae-seung neatly arranged Lee Kang-jun’s printed resume and began to take out the questions he had prepared in advance.

“You said your name is Kang-jun? Where do you live?”

“I live in Yeongdeungpo. It’s not too far.”

It was a close distance, about forty minutes away even with heavy traffic. Just as Jae-seung was about to ask the next question.

“I’m sorry, but….”

“Yes.”

“There’s something I need to tell you before the interview.”

“Yes. Please tell me.”

Lee Kang-jun, wearing an awkward smile, carefully began to speak.

“I don’t think I can work full-time. I have something I’m preparing for, so I can only work for about a year at most.”

“I see. May I ask why?”

It didn’t matter much. He wasn’t in a position to force full-time employment in the first place. Rather, it was a good thing to hear that reduced his mental burden. Lee Kang-jun nodded once at Jae-seung’s quiet question and asked back.

“Do you happen to know the brand Supreme [a popular streetwear brand]?”

“Yes, I know it.”

It was a powerful street clothing brand that sold out every time it was released, even though a single T-shirt cost over 200,000 won [approximately $150-$200 USD].

How could he not know such a brand?

“Then do you also know that ‘Supreme’ is a brand created by a designer who used to work at ‘Stussy’ [another streetwear brand]?”

“Yes.”

The story that ‘Supreme’ was a brand launched by a designer who left Stussy.

It was a fairly well-known story in the fashion industry.

The fact that Supreme, which started in a container, now collaborates with ‘Stussy’ in a way that helps each other, as it has grown into a global brand.

Lee Kang-jun brightened his eyes and brought up the main point.

“I am currently preparing to transfer to a prestigious overseas school. For the next year, I need to raise funds for studying abroad.”

“Please continue.”

“In the meantime, I saw a job posting for Wall Flower, which I had been watching with interest.”

After finishing his words, Lee Kang-jun took a deep breath and spoke again.

“Although I may not be able to be with Wall Flower for a long time, I want to be with you at the ‘starting point.’ And in the future, I want to form a relationship like Stussy and Supreme.”

“Hmm, well. Wall Flower is not yet a brand as big as Stussy.”

He tried to sound stern, but he was struggling to hold back the pleased smile that kept leaking out.

How could he say such pretty things? If we were to collaborate, would we have a title like ‘Wall Flower X Diamond Look’?

While Jae-seung was caught up in such thoughts, Lee Kang-jun continued with a tone full of conviction, without a single waver.

“I have no doubt that it will be so soon. The same goes for the brand I will launch in the future.”

“Shall we take a look at the portfolio you’ve prepared first?”

“Ah, yes.”

The portfolio was at an average level. There was nothing to exclaim about, but there was nothing to frown upon either.

It was only natural, as he was still unrefined, even though he was going to be a world-class designer.

Anyway, a few definite strengths could be seen.

‘The basics are quite solid. The ideas seem to be unique as well.’

Jae-seung returned the portfolio and asked again.

“Lee Kang-jun, it may take quite a while before you get the job you want. Is that okay?”

He was subtly informing him that he might end up doing various ‘miscellaneous tasks’ or ‘errands’ under the guise of outside work.

This was the biggest and most frequent disappointment for fashion design graduates.

They spent a lot of money on tuition, studying for a short 2 years or a long 4 years, but most of their first jobs at the companies they struggled to get into were errands, so they couldn’t help but be disappointed.

Lee Kang-jun nodded once and replied in a rather firm tone.

“Yes. It’ll be much better than a large company’s design department.”

That wasn’t wrong. Just looking at the ‘salary,’ it was set at a much higher amount than a large company’s design department.

He was also planning to give him various opportunities to have his designs made into clothes.

Jae-seung spoke again.

“Lee Kang-jun, the salary and working hours are as stated in the job posting, the dress code is free. You can start working tomorrow.”

“Yes?”

“If it’s too hard, please tell me in advance. I’ll try to adjust your days off somehow. Unauthorized absences are absolutely forbidden.”

While Lee Kang-jun was blinking his wide eyes in surprise.

Jae-seung reached out his hand to him, asking for a handshake, and continued.

“Let’s get along well in the future.”

“Ah….”

After a moment of silence behind a soft groan, Lee Kang-jun grabbed Jae-seung’s hand tightly and said.

“Thank you! I’ll work really hard!”

The moment when the hiring of Lee Kang-jun, the first employee of Wall Flower’s ‘Design Team,’ was confirmed.

There was quite a bit of strength in Lee Kang-jun’s hand that he was holding.

He had a vague feeling that they could develop a good working relationship.

* * *

Several more days passed.

In the meantime, many things were handled smoothly. First of all, the samples of the rider jacket and cotton t-shirt that he had commissioned from President Song’s Taeyang Corporation were completed and ordered from the production factory.

The ‘paint jeans,’ which could be said to be the main item, already had the initial sales volume ready.

All preparations for entering the main banner were complete.

And today….

– Jae-seung, as scheduled, the main banner will go up at noon in 5 minutes. Please check the real-time sales status periodically and make sure the quantity doesn’t run out. Got it?

Kim Min-hyuk, the person in charge of the Kuba Kuba Store Select Shop. Jae-seung looked into the elevator mirror and replied quietly to the words he heard over the receiver.

“Ah, yes. I’ll try to match it as much as possible.”

It was a very historic day. Wall Flower was entering the main banner of the Kuba Kuba Store.

– Okay, good. There’s no need to be too nervous. You know, if it sells out, please let me know.

“Yes, I understand.”

– Then I wish you good luck. If you have any other problems or need help, please let me know right away.

“Yes.”

The moment the call with Kim Min-hyuk ended.

Ding-!

The elevator doors opened. Jae-seung put his cell phone in his pocket and started walking towards his office.

Soon, the moment Jae-seung opened the office door wide.

“Welcome back!”

The employees, who were engrossed in their respective tasks, began to greet him.

“Yes, can everyone gather for a moment?”

Including Lee Kang-jun, a total of four employees had started working at Wall Flower.

First, Lee Kang-jun; Choo Ji-hoon, a student on leave from Hongshin University; Nam Gwang-min, who seemed to be passionate despite being a high school graduate; and finally, Yoo Seung-woo, a part-time worker in the delivery and logistics department.

They were employees selected according to very simple conditions.

First, was there any possibility of them rebelling or creating conflict by using their age as an excuse?

Second, did they have an affection for the ‘Wall Flower’ brand itself? Even if they didn’t, had they done even a simple investigation?

If they met these two conditions, he hired them without hesitation, without even looking at their education, age, or experience.

With a few desks and computers added to the office, the space had become quite cramped.

As the employees gathered in groups of three or five in front of the sofa, Jae-seung stood in the center of the office and continued in a very solemn tone.

“As you all know, we will be on the Kuba Kuba Store main banner starting at noon.”

After hearing “Yes!” from various places, Jae-seung began to speak again.

“There are less than 3 minutes left. Gwang-min, please organize the order details and print them out, and Ji-hoon and Kang-jun, please help Seung-woo from the logistics team to organize the paint jeans by size and package the products according to the details.”

“Yes!”

“I understand!”

Jae-seung clapped his hands once and said energetically, “Let’s all do well,” and immediately sat down in his seat. He turned on the computer and immediately accessed the Kuba Kuba Store.

The banner had not been posted yet.

“Hoo….”

He took a rough breath and rubbed his hands for no reason, looking at the clock on the wall.

At times like this, time is truly relative.

The clock hands that usually moved so quickly seemed so slow today.

At that time.

“I’ve confirmed the banner has been posted.”

Jae-seung quickly pressed the ‘refresh’ button at the words of Nam Gwang-min, a design team employee, in a very serious tone.

Click-!

And then.

[Wall Flower – Exclusive Release of ‘Bullet Paint Jeans’]

Lee Jae-seung of Wall Flower, selected as one of the Top 10 Promising Figures in the Fashion Industry by FTV Magazine, is back with new sensibility jeans.

‘Bullet Paint Unique Washing Jeans’, limited-time sale for two days.

249,900 won [approximately $190 USD] → 199,900 won [approximately $150 USD]

Sale Timer: 47 hours 59 minutes 56 seconds

The main banner appeared on the refreshed monitor screen.

The main banner with a familiar design that he had seen several times during the confirmation process.

The sale of the new street clothing, ‘paint jeans,’ had officially begun.