Back to 80: My literary life.

Chapter 715 Investing 200 million to become the second largest shareholder
invest?!
The couple looked at each other and were immediately overjoyed.

I was short of money to start a business, and someone actually brought it to my door!

"Mr. Fang, please wait a moment. I'll go get you my business plan." Bezos immediately went to the garage.

"No need to be so troublesome, just tell me briefly." Fang Minghua said.

Bezos briefly explained the original intention of creating the website and the commercial interests contained therein.

"Mr. Fang, the annual inventory turnover rate of most physical bookstores in the United States is only 2.7 times, but my Amazon can do it 20 times! This can greatly improve the capital turnover rate. This data is not fabricated. You can go to the Book Publishers Association to check it out!" Bezos added at last.

"No need. I just bought a bookstore called Ashley Press in San Francisco. I have read the publishing house's previous financial statements and the bookstore's annual inventory turnover rate is only 1.5 times." Fang Minghua said with a smile.

“You bought a publishing house?!”

The couple looked at each other and saw each other's fear.

A rich man.

Bezos continued speaking quickly, and Fang Minghua nodded repeatedly.

To be honest, what Bezos said about these people who innovate in business sounds commonplace.

What about customer experience, focusing on long-term users to increase user stickiness, and price discounts. But now is the 1990s, the early stage of the Internet economy!

I have to say that this bald guy who always has a smile on his face not only has great skills, but also has a forward-looking business vision.

After Bezos finished speaking, Fang Minghua asked, "Mr. Bezos, how much money do you plan to raise in total?"

"$100 million."

"Oh, then how much is your website worth now?" Fang Minghua asked again.

Bezos immediately looked at his wife, MacKenzie, who was the site's accountant and in charge of finances.

"Mr. Fang." Mackenzie was not as enthusiastic as the fans just now looking at the star. He became calm and pondered for a moment.

She hesitated.

MacKenzie studied finance. After valuation, she believed that the business value of the Amazon website founded by her husband and herself should be around 600 million.

But this data has scared away several investors - how could a small website that has been losing money be worth 600 million US dollars?
Are you crazy about money?

So she decided to be conservative and not scare away the rich man in front of her.

"Mr. Fang, according to our valuation, Amazon.com has a certain commercial value, which is estimated at around 400 million."

400
Fang Minghua hesitated for a moment and said, "How about this, Mr. Bezos, I invest 200 million and acquire 50% of the shares of your company?"

Damn
That’s an underestimate!
The couple looked at each other and could read the meaning in each other's eyes.

Of course they are unwilling to give up 50% of the shares, as this would mean they would lose their position as the website’s largest shareholder!
After bargaining between the two parties, Fang Minghua finally acquired 200% of Amazon's shares with an investment of 38 million US dollars, becoming the second largest shareholder after the Besos.

The two parties immediately signed the investment contract, and Fang Minghua called Li Li and asked her to transfer 200 million US dollars to the bank's Amazon website account immediately.

Both parties were happy.

To this end, the Bezos couple specially hosted a dinner for Fang Minghua at their home. MacKenzie cooked him a delicious steak and brought a bottle of champagne to express her congratulations.

During the dinner, Bezos held up his glass and looked at Fang Minghua: "Mr. Fang, I have a question."

"Oh, you say." "You are a writer, you own a physical bookstore, and you are not short of funds. Why don't you set up an online bookstore yourself? Just like Barnes & Noble." Bezos raised his own question.

Barnes & Noble is a bookstore with a long history, older than other book companies such as Simon & Schuster and Random House. It was founded in 1873 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1993.

Unlike book publishing companies such as Simon and Random House, Barnes & Noble also created an online bookstore, which mainly sells books published by its own company, so Bezos asked this question again.

Hearing her husband ask this question, Mackenzie also looked at Fang Minghua. She also wanted to know the answer.

Fang Minghua played with the champagne glass in his hand and smiled, saying, "It's very simple. Barnes & Noble's online bookstore is just an extension of traditional bookstores on the Internet. I am not interested in this business model. I prefer Amazon's model. This is the real Internet economy."

"Besides, I am a lazy person and hate trouble. Also, I am more optimistic about you, Mr. Bezos."

“Thank you.” “Of course it’s a very happy thing to be favored by investors.”

"I won't say any more. Just work hard and prepare the website for listing." Fang Minghua said finally.

"Don't worry, Mr. Fang, the listing issue is already in my plan. I will provide you with a detailed listing plan soon."

"OK, let's have a drink." Fang Minghua raised his glass.

The three of them clinked their glasses together.

Fang Minghua did not stay in Seattle for long and flew back to San Francisco that night.

Li Li drove to the airport to pick him up.

On the way home, Fang Minghua told Li Li the details of the westward journey to Seattle to invest in Amazon.

Li Li was surprised to hear this.

"For just a website, 200 million US dollars can only get 38% of the shares?"

"Haha, don't underestimate it, Lili, you can also invest in it. It's still cheap now, but it will become more and more expensive in the future." Fang Minghua said half-jokingly and half-seriously.

"Okay, I'll listen to you. I'm not as rich as you, so I'll only invest 20 yuan," said Li Li.

"Only 20? I'll give you some and try to become the third largest shareholder of the website." Fang Minghua said.

But Li Li refused.

"No, I can't take your money. Your money will be very useful in the future. I can't spend it carelessly."

Investing is not just spending money recklessly.
However, seeing Li Li's determination, Fang Minghua said no more.

As Fang Minghua expected, one year later, Amazon was listed on the NASDAQ. Before the listing, it received the largest investment of US$800 million from the famous American investment company KPCB (Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers). At this time, Amazon's valuation had reached more than 13 million US dollars, but in the end, it only exchanged for % of Amazon's equity.

Fang Minghua had finished all his work in the United States and was completely free. In addition to writing, he also went out for a walk.

I also went to San Francisco State University to meet Howard Goldblatt and his wife, famous sinologists. It was Howard Goldblatt who introduced Li Li to teach in San Francisco.

Together with Li Li and some colleagues, he formed a team specializing in translating outstanding contemporary Chinese literary works.

Time quickly arrived and it was December 12th. Today is Christmas, the most important festival in Western society.

Li Li has already had her vacation. She got up early this morning and packed her luggage. She and Fang Minghua have already agreed to spend the holiday in New York.

Of course, the most important thing is to go to Times Square and watch the advertisements on the MiFi big screen standing in the square.

(End of this chapter)