Story of a Big Player from Gangnam

“You said you are living somewhere in Mapo District, right?”

“Mangwon Town in Mapo District to be exact.”

“Did you lease it with a monthly rent?”

“Yeah. It has two rooms. The security deposit is 10 million won with 500,000 won of monthly rent.”

“You are paid 3 million won per month, right?”

“Right. After tax, I’m taking about 2.7 million won home.”

“You said you are still paying for your debt. With the payment for the debt and for the rent, nothing much would be left.”

“Well, my wife is making money now. We are doing okay.”

“I went to the book café the other day to have coffee, and I met your wife. She looked calm and stable.”

“Calm? Well, she is moody. She used to write poetry; maybe that’s why she is so moody. We both were working as an editor when we first met. We started living together without a formal wedding ceremony.”

“Hmm, yeah, I think you told me about it before.”

“We were separated for a while, and I didn’t want to restart our relationship like this. But we were both suffering from financial difficulties, and we decided to live together again and relied on each other. I once asked her what her dream is. She said that she wants to wear a wedding dress.”

“Ha, really?”

“Anyway, so what did you want to talk to me about? What is GH transportation?”

“Well, I want to establish a transportation company that handles certain freight.”

“Transportation? Like delivery or shipping service?”

“Not for any goods though. I want a company that handles freight only for companies not for individuals. I’m planning to grow that company gradually.”

“You will need a good connection with companies that require freight service then maintain a steady stream of clientele.”

“As a start, the company will have two freight trucks. It will handle Dyeon Korea’s shipment work. The company will grow as it adds more clients.”

“I see. So the company already has a client. And Dyeon Korea is the only client for now.”

“The founder of Hanjin Group—Joong-Hoon Cho—started his company with two trucks as well, even though his granddaughters are ruining his company now.”

“Passenger transportation is safer than freight transportation as far as revenue is concerned, I guess. I’ve never seen an express bus company go bankrupt, have you? Intra-city bus companies are getting a subsidy from the government. That’s why there is no passenger transportation company on the market for sale. On the contrary, the market for freight transportation is very competitive. Well, as long as you have clients, you should be fine though.”

“I’m actually thinking of expanding the service to other countries too if I can’t find enough clients nationally.”

“International shipment?”

“Yeah. Dyeon Korea’s market is not limited to Korea. It can sell its products to Southeast Asia as well. The transportation company will expand its market as Dyeon Korea will.”

“Hmm.”

Jae-Sik seemed to have a lot to think about.

“Let’s have some coffee before it gets cold.”

“Why don’t you acquire an already-established transportation company? Rather than forming a new one? Many transportation companies are owned by an individual, so I don’t think it’s expensive to acquire.”

“Is there any company on the market for sale?”

“There is a company that our publishing company has worked with. The owner hasn’t officially registered the company as a business entity, but he is just an individual running the service. I heard he said the other day that he wanted to sell his company.”

“Really? Where is that company located?”

“It’s in Paju City. But since that company handles the shipment of books, they must have a storage space. If he is renting the storage, then that’s good. But if he owns it, it will cost more to buy it from him. Shipping companies that handle a publishing company’s books usually are not making much. So, my guess is that he is probably renting the storage. It only takes one storage space, one forklift truck, and two freight trucks. Some owners drive the truck themselves.”

“Can you get more information on that company? You don’t have to worry about the acquisition cost.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah, I’m serious. We don’t have much time though. The executive officers already started talking about getting a freight truck for Dyeon Korea. That transportation company already has clients in the publishing industry. If we add Dyeon Korea to its list of clients, I believe you can make your salary by running it.”

“By the way, people usually don’t say ‘transportation service’ when it comes to handling work for companies like Dyeon Korea.”

“What do you say then? GH Transportation Company doesn’t sound good?”

“We say ‘logistics’ instead. I guess that’s because it focuses on the overall service that they provide, not just shipment. We used to call it ‘express’ in the past, but now we call it ‘logistics’.”

“Hmm, then we call our transportation company ‘GH Logistics’, huh?”

“That’s right. That sounds more like it.”

“GH Logistics... I like it.”

“Okay, then I will talk to the owner of that transportation company in Paju City.”

“Don’t forget to see your wife before you leave.”

“You know I live with her, right? I see her every day at home.”

Jae-Sik Moon walked out of Gun-Ho’s office. He seemed excited.

In the evening, Gun-Ho received a call from Jae-Sik Moon.

“It’s me, Jae-Sik.”

“Did you have a chance to talk to the owner?”

“Yes. That company in Paju City has two employees, and it’s a sole proprietorship. The storage is rented. He currently has two freight trucks and one forklift truck. Since he stores books mostly in the storage, a thermo hygrostat is installed there.”

“Did you ask him about the price?”

“He said he wants 150 million won. It’s obviously a rip-off.”

“I guess he will include the list of his clients.”

“It seems that he has only fifteen clients. The books he has in his storage are owned by publishing companies, not him.”

“He is storing them for his clients, I guess.”

“Yes. He charges the clients with some small fees to store their books in his storage.”

“I will go meet him tomorrow.”

“Can you come in the afternoon? I have some editing work that I have to finish in the morning.”

“Sure. I will see you tomorrow afternoon then. Let the owner know that we are coming to see him tomorrow.”

Gun-Ho wanted to register the transportation company as a business entity after acquiring it from the owner. And it would provide exclusive transportation service to Dyeon Korea. GH Mobile had its own transportation department with truck drivers and they were employees. So, it wouldn’t be able to include GH Mobile as its client, at least for now.

“Jae-Sik Moon might not be able to handle manufacturing work, but I guess he can handle a transportation business.”

Gun-Ho made a phone call to President Jeong-Sook Shin.

“Chief Editor—Jae-Sik Moon—will have to leave GH Media soon.”

“Sir? Why?”

“I’m opening a transportation company, and I want him to work there. You might have felt a bit uncomfortable working with my friend in GH Media.”

“Not at all, sir. He has been very helpful.”

“Well, I’m letting you know this now, so you can prepare to fill up his position.”

“Okay... I will do that.”