Hong Kong Island's New Rich Era

Chapter 289 Separation of Production and Broadcasting
US$5000 per episode is already ATV’s low-price export strategy. At the beginning, Liu Zhicheng allowed Hong Kong dramas to be exported at a low price.

A 20-episode Hong Kong drama only costs 10 US dollars, which is actually not expensive.

Liu Zhicheng said decisively: "Price cannot be an obstacle for us to export Hong Kong dramas to South Korea."

We can make the biggest concessions by occupying South Korea's cultural industry at a price they can afford.

Low-price marketing has left South Korea with nowhere to go. As for whether South Korea will imitate or form a systematic "Korean wave", Liu Zhicheng is not very worried.

First of all, it was the Asian financial crisis in the past that prompted South Korea's "President Kim" to formulate the general policy of "building a country on culture", and only then did the systematic Korean wave culture come into being.

Secondly, ATV's 'Hong Kong Wave Culture' system has taken shape. Strictly speaking, 'Hong Kong Wave Culture' has reached its peak as soon as it debuted. There is no need for trial and error. Instead, it starts with classic works and then drives the follow-up of the entire industry chain.

It’s like giving a perfect template, and all that’s left is for people to imitate it and then surpass it.

Ultimately, ATV's annual investment in Hong Kong culture is in the hundreds of millions, and more and more people are engaged in research and work in this area.

Shi Nansheng nodded and said, "Okay, I'll reach an agreement with SBS TV as soon as possible. It can be seen that they really want to buy our series."

Next, everyone reported on their achievements.

For example, YG Entertainment has become more and more international and has already recruited European and American musicians to join in creating "Hong Kong pop music".

YG Entertainment has also organized many concerts in the mainland and sent Hong Kong stars to participate in cultural performances and exchanges.

T, a boy band under YG Entertainment, is currently developing full-time in Japan and has released two albums, achieving great success.
The results were gratifying. Liu Zhicheng happily said to Yu Xiaoming: "Hong Kong pop music should also have its own exclusive synonym. What do you think of using 'HK-POP'?"

It means hongkong-pop. Hongkong is the English name for Hong Kong and pop is the English name for pop music.

Everyone agreed!

Liu Zhicheng said with satisfaction: "Okay, from now on, the singing and dancing music will be called HK-POP. It is a combination of Chinese, electronic music, DANCE-POP and hip-hop music.

I like HK-POP companies represented by YG Entertainment to move towards better quality.

For example, there are 600 million people in Hong Kong, so there should be more than 10 trainees or people who want to be trainees.

Among these 10 people, 500 are registered trainees from various companies, and among these 500 trainees, less than 50 make their debut each year.

This is the culture of trainees. Everyone wants to be a star, but they have to take a road that is as tough as a thousand horses crossing a single-plank bridge. Cruelty is inevitable. Only those who are finally honed in this way can become the best idols. "

Everyone was shocked, but soon realized that the boss wanted to develop into a high-quality idol.

The early groups relied on innovation and being the first to try new things, so they were able to quickly open up the market.

Of course, after their debut, these Hong Kong idols are still required to undergo intensive training by the company. They have almost no time to spare and the management is very strict.

Yu Xiaoming immediately responded and said, "Okay, we at YG Entertainment will definitely strengthen our own business capabilities while promoting the HK-POP culture throughout Hong Kong."

As Liu Zhicheng's subordinates, they all understood that their boss was never shy about Hong Kong culture, and TVB never had any complaints about poaching people from YG Entertainment.

Even the HK-POP group, which debuted from TVB, won the championship on Music Bank.

After all, if we want to make Hong Kong culture flourish, the entire industry needs to develop together. Hong Kong is a free port, the Hong Kong government has no control over culture, and there are no professional government departments.

This may seem to have disadvantages, but it is actually better, as evidenced by Hong Kong's developed entertainment culture in the 1970s and 1980s.

Liu Zhicheng then said: "We have already established the HK-POP culture, but we are still short of a HK-POP Academy Award. What do you think?"

How could everyone not agree with the boss? They expressed their own opinions, such as what awards to give out and what model to use. After all, everyone was a professional in literature and art, so Liu Zhicheng was able to listen to them.

After everyone finished speaking, Liu Zhicheng said, "Well, this task will be given to Asia Television to plan. The award show is called 'MAsian Music Awards', or 'MAMA' for short, and it will be held once a year.

Our goal is to develop into the biggest feast of Asian pop music in the future, and our deeper goal is to promote our HK-POP exports.

Since we are promoting our HK-POP, we naturally have to first carry out all-round cooperation with places such as Japan, the Mainland, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, and Vietnam for long-term development and long-term consideration.

In the early stage, it will be held in Hong Kong, and others can be invited to participate. After a certain degree of popularity has been accumulated, the award ceremony can be moved overseas to expand the influence."

Everyone was fascinated by what they heard and nodded frequently.

In fact, if ordinary people were to say this, it would undoubtedly be wishful thinking.

But who is Liu Zhicheng? He is Hong Kong's cultural godfather and the king of the media and communications industry. Most importantly, he is rich, powerful, and smart.

Therefore, whenever he made a plan, thousands of people would soon work towards it, and the investment funds would be huge.

Applause rang out, and everyone seemed to see a bright future for HK-POP culture.

"The company currently has sufficient funds. If we want to develop HK-POP culture in depth, we can mobilize hundreds of millions of funds at any time to make advance investments," Liu Zhicheng continued.

ATV Group’s funding comes from three important sources: advertising fees, overseas copyright fees, and works and peripherals.

Since Asia Satellite TV is the first satellite TV in Asia, satellite TV has not yet appeared in R and South Korea, but it will appear soon.

Therefore, the advertising fees are the highest. Asia Satellite TV's advertising fees even exceed those of Asia Television because it has a large audience and its advertisers include many world-class companies.

YG Entertainment President Yu Xiaoming added: "While developing HK-POP culture, we are also developing peripheral products, such as cooperating with Crocodile Group's Hong Kong-style clothing and beauty products to improve the development of the entire industry chain."

Although there was no mention of plastic surgery, YG Entertainment already has cooperation channels in this regard.

The Hong Kong entertainment industry actually hates plastic surgery, but as long as they don’t say it or admit it, that’s fine.

Moreover, YG Entertainment's revenue mainly comes from overseas.

Soon, everyone had a systematic discussion and strategy formulation for the HK-POP cultural industry chain, and achieved very significant results.

The meeting continues.

Liu Zhicheng then turned to the field of Hong Kong dramas, saying: "The drama production department can adopt the "PD" model that combines the responsibilities of producer and director.

Producers do not need to consider fund preparation and market sales, and the series need to be tailored according to the TV station's order requirements.

In addition, Hong Kong dramas can follow the production principle of 'writing, shooting and broadcasting at the same time', and can write the plot direction at any time according to the audience's response."

After that, everyone started to think seriously.

Program director Zhao Zhenqiang said: "In this case, the drama production department must have greater independence, but the TV station must also have a drama production department, which is almost the overseas production and broadcasting separation model."

Liu Zhicheng said: "It's not a separation. The TV station's drama department considers what kind of drama is needed, and then places an order with the PD, who is responsible for the planning of the entire project.

We emphasize the importance of PD, and you guys try to reform it in detail! "

Zhao Zhenqiang nodded and said, "Okay, I understand what the boss means."

Liu Zhicheng still said with concern: "The same is true for variety show PDs, who adopt a model that combines the responsibilities of producer and director.

A good PD is like a brand. To put it simply, it is the Tsui Hark of the film industry, but we need many Tsui Harks.”

Everyone laughed, and Shi Nansheng felt a little shy.

In fact, Tsui Hark has not had a good time in the past year, as several martial arts movies produced by his studio have failed.

It has little to do with him personally, but because Hong Kong martial arts films have reached a low point.

At the end of the meeting, Liu Zhicheng said: "The company will take out another 300 million Hong Kong dollars this year to make basic investments in 'Hong Kong Stream'. I will ask the board of directors to approve it later. You should be prepared. Asia Television must be a leader in 'building a cultural port'."

"Okay, boss!" Everyone was shocked and said one after another.

In ATV, Liu Zhicheng is the uncrowned king. Not to mention the basic investment of 300 million Hong Kong dollars, even if he invested by debt, there would not be much resistance from the board of directors.

As for investors wanting large dividends, that is impossible now. The rising stock price is already the best return.

…………

Crocodile Group.

LEIT Building, located on Des Voeux Road, is currently being rebuilt by merging the former Crocodile Building AB and Chenda Building.

It is expected to be put into use by the end of the year, and the entire construction period is expected to be only 24 months, which is very efficient.

Of course, after all, it is just a small building of more than 20 square feet, and two years is enough to complete it.

In the conference room, Liu Zhicheng was meeting with the group's senior management and the senior management of the Crocodile Shirt Manufacturing Factory. Garment manufacturing and export are still the core industries of Hong Kong. Last year, the total value of Hong Kong's garment exports was HK$1500 billion, second only to Italy.

Toy exports also reached HK$600 billion, ranking first in the world; watch exports reached HK$385 billion, exceeding Switzerland in quantity and second only to Switzerland in value.

Among them, the export of ready-made clothes and toys will sooner or later be replaced by the mainland, so Liu Zhicheng relies on mainland investment to build factories while seeking high added value of ready-made clothes - brand.

In terms of brands, Crocodile and Giordano are continuing the policies of their previous lives, but with better control over marketing, quality and costs.

However, Liu Zhicheng has always been planning to develop the fast-selling brand "Jeanswest" (JEA) to compete with Uniqlo as soon as possible.

"You all know clothes made of polar fleece, right?" Liu Zhicheng said.

Everyone nodded!

Are you kidding? Even the bosses know about it. How can they, who deal with clothes and fabrics every day, not know about it?

Chen Xing, president of Crocodile Shirt Manufacturing Factory, said: "Polar fleece is made by brushing, shearing and then polarizing polyester fiber, so small particles of fleece are formed on the surface of the fabric.

As a substitute for wool, polar fleece has twice the cold-resistance of merino wool and four times that of cotton under the same conditions.

In addition to its cold-resistant properties, polar fleece's lightness, comfort, and strong hydrophobicity have led to it being selected by Time magazine as one of the top 20 inventions of the th century.

For a while, polar fleece was very popular and its price kept rising.”

Liu Zhicheng immediately asked: "Can we produce it?"

Chen Xing thought for a moment and said, “The inventors of polar fleece did not apply for a patent. They were confident that those who imitated them would always be left behind.

Therefore, many manufacturers are trying to break through the technical barriers and get a share of the polar fleece market. We can certainly also conduct research and development of this kind of fabric.”

Liu Zhicheng said firmly: "Researching it is not a skill. What I need is to reduce the price of a fleece sweater to around 100 Hong Kong dollars.

We have reduced the cost of products and achieved high quality and low price.”

Everyone was very surprised.

From the 80s to today, walking down New York's Fifth Avenue in a fleece hiking jacket is like walking down the streets of Harbin in a mink coat today.

The expensive price and novel texture show the extraordinary status. Polar fleece has been invented for more than ten years and it has always been a symbol of high-end.

"Of course! First of all, we have invested a lot in technology research and development, and secondly, we have made use of our supply chain system, which is definitely a huge advantage."

Crocodile Garment Group's factories in the Mainland include the entire production chain including textile, dyeing, and garment making, and have considerable "cost advantages".

Liu Zhicheng nodded with satisfaction. He could understand if you said that you couldn't handle the high-tech industry on your own.

If you say that you cannot compete with foreign players in the textile and garment industries, then Liu Zhicheng really cannot understand it.

"Well, let me tell you my plan. I'm going to create a best-selling item, which is polar fleece sweaters.

My goal is to set the price in the range of HK$100 to HK$200, and to achieve global sales of 1000 million pieces. With this single product, we at Jeanswest will completely establish our important position in the 'fast-moving consumer goods' field.

By the way, the Jeanswest brand should revise its development strategy. We don’t need to spend too much energy on “fashion styles”, but should focus more on basic clothing.

Giordano focuses more on 'fast fashion', while Jeanswest focuses on 'fast sales'."

Everyone wrote it down.

"I have also conducted a survey in this area and found that many people do not pay much attention to fashion. Instead, they prefer 'ordinary' styles, and this group of people is quite large.

If Jeanswest positions itself in this way and continues to develop with high quality and low prices in the long term, it will not be easy to overlap with Giordano and Crocodile’s business.”

Liu Zhicheng likes this kind of discussion atmosphere, where he shares the experience of later generations and everyone discusses together to formulate the company's overall strategy.

With a net profit of over HK$1 billion this year, Crocodile Garments Group is a truly giant clothing company.

It is more powerful than the current Uniqlo and larger than Zara. There is no reason why it cannot succeed.

Liu Zhicheng added: "In the field of production, we can also develop a new model, which is to concentrate all industrial chains in one area in Dongguan.

We handed over some industrial steps to other partner companies and let them build factories near our factories.

In the long run, that area will become a huge factory with a full industrial chain. With high efficiency, low cost and quality, an optimal production process will be formed.

Of course, I just suggest that you, Chen Xing, take the lead on this issue and come up with a plan as soon as possible so that we can discuss it together."

Chen Xing immediately straightened his back and said seriously, "Okay!"

There is a lot to study just for the three brands of Crocodile, Giordano and Jeanswest. It is not easy for a clothing company to grow bigger and stronger.

To this end, the Crocodile Group has a dedicated studio to provide the group with various optimization plans and market research.

In addition to these three brands, Crocodile Group also has many clothing brands, and even has three "Hong Kong style" clothing brands.

There are also hat brands, sunglasses brands, and Crocodile Shirts also has leather products. The group's business is very broad.

In order to expand the business, more stores need to be opened. Liu Zhicheng has always attached great importance to this point.

All Jeanswest brand stores are self-operated and are not open to franchise.

However, Giordano and Crocodile Shirts have opened up the franchise model, but the conditions are very harsh, so the proportion of self-operated stores is still an absolute advantage.

The highlight of the Crocodile Garment Group is that it owns properties worth billions, including more than 60 stores throughout Asia.

When the Asian financial crisis broke out, the Crocodile Garment Group took the opportunity to purchase stores and open a large number of stores for expansion.

Based on this alone, the Crocodile Garment Group was able to leave its competitors far behind. For example, it expanded against the market trend after the financial crisis in 08, or it joined the Internet sales early on.

The effects of these strategies can be said to be no less than those of clothing brand planning.

Early April, Hong Kong.

Liu Zhicheng received Xu Shubiao, who was invited, at the headquarters of Huangpu Food Company, and Yuan Tianfan accompanied him.

"Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Xu. I should have gone to Thailand to visit you!" Liu Zhicheng said politely.

Xu Shubiao is a good person. In his previous life, regarding the rights and interests of Red Bull in the mainland, he used the phrase "you reap what you sow" to describe it.

What this means is that although Yan Bin started the mainland Red Bull brand, Red Bull still belongs to him, and the Xu family only needs to make profits from the raw materials and formula.

However, after Xu Shubiao's death, his descendants were not so kind. As a result, the profits of Mainland Red Bull began to decline due to internal strife.

Of course, the rise of new brands such as Dongpeng and Lehu is also an influence.

Since he knew that there would be such trouble in the future, Liu Zhicheng would naturally clear the mines in advance and would not give Xu Shubiao's descendants any chance to take advantage of it.

Xu Shubiao smiled and said, "Mr. Liu, you are serious. I just came to Hong Kong after finishing my business in the mainland."

Liu Zhicheng immediately said, "Did Mr. Xu's Red Bull get a license in the mainland?"

Xu Shubiao immediately understood that this person must be looking for him for cooperation with Red Bull.

Naturally, he did not get permission, and there was no hope at all as the mainland officials were very tough.

However, after meeting Liu Zhicheng, he felt that perhaps this richest man who had close ties with mainland officials might be able to get it.

Therefore, Xu Shubiao said frankly: "We didn't get it. The mainland is very wary of the Red Bull formula."

Liu Zhicheng nodded and said, "It is indeed a very difficult task, but is Mr. Xu interested in cooperating with me?"

Xu Shubiao asked: "How to cooperate?"

Liu Zhicheng said directly: “If Red Bull wants to be produced and sold in the mainland, it is not only difficult to obtain a license, but also difficult to promote it in the market;

After all, as a high-end beverage, given the mainland's economic level, it may take five to ten years to popularize it.
For various reasons, has Mr. Xu ever considered selling the trademark usage rights in the mainland to me at a high price?

If I can get a license in the mainland, the Xu family can also share the profits from the raw materials."

(End of this chapter)