[Chapter 734: The Bentley Special Edition]
A mobile phone that cost a whopping six thousand dollars entered the market in a very low key manner, with little to no marketing or advertising -- it just quietly appeared.
"Oh my gosh, Annie, your phone is gorgeous!"
"Really? My boyfriend gave it to me. I heard it's a limited edition."
Annie beamed with pride as she soaked in the envious looks from her friends. However, if she knew the price of that phone, she might have felt a bit of a sting. If she truly married that wealthy guy, it would be a tough pill to swallow.
$5,999? That was practically the price of a car!
...
"When did Bentley start making phones?"
"Sir, this just came in from the marketing department, and the little tag below says it's Motorola's."
"Andy, I hadn't heard anything about a new product. What's going on?" The old-timer at Morgan Stanley was feeling a bit irked. He knew all too well what was happening in the mobile communications market. If a leading company had a new release, its stock price would definitely reflect it.
When a new product gained popularity, stock prices soared. The opposite was also true; if it flopped, prices fell flat. And now, they were selling these phones blindly unaware.
"Sir, there was no press conference, no advertising. We just can't figure out what they're up to. Plus, the phone's price tag is six thousand dollars."
"Cough, cough. They've lost it. A Bentley brand could command such a high price? Is this some sort of intellectual tax?"
"Well, sir, the phone really is quite nice, made of fine calf leather with all kinds of embedded gems. From what the marketing team said, they almost fought over it."
The old man was stunned. He could hardly believe that a communication tool could be marketed in such a way. Was this selling a phone or peddling jewelry? Had this guy's diamonds piled up so high they didn't know what to do with them anymore?
...
Okay, so William White wouldn't ever admit it, but his diamond inventory was indeed sizable, especially the ones under a carat.
A diamond that held monetary value was worthless if it wasn't at least a carat; no one had the time to examine them one by one. Although William White wasn't actively hunting for these diamonds, he had indeed robbed a couple of Kazakh miners.
"Filson, have the old geezers gone mute?"
"Cough, yes, sir. They used to complain about the price, and now they're all quiet. Today's board meeting felt like a silent movie."
What more was there to discuss? The idea of selling phones as art pieces was something they could never have imagined.
Truth be told, this phone was anything but ordinary. With an increased battery capacity, it could stand by for twenty-four hours -- far exceeding the norm for standard phones of the time.
The phone featured a titanium alloy frame and was built tough. But that wasn't the most important part; the reality was that making a metal phone wasn't easy. For the foreseeable future, this kind of product wasn't going to be commonplace.
The mindset for the wealthy was straightforward: if it was something their buddies had, it was best if no one else could afford it. Naturally, they didn't want any knock-offs. If everyone walked around with fake Louis Vuitton bags, it would ruin the allure. At least a true wealthy person wouldn't appreciate seeing only fakes around.
Are you kidding me? I treat this thing like gold, and you're using it to buy groceries? That's just ridiculous!
Somebody chimed in, pointing out that all the bags were made of synthetic leather, calling them frauds.
Well, arguing about that simply led to eco-warriors jumping in to dispute it, spouting a load of irrelevant talk.
Cowhide wasn't environmentally friendly? William White could hardly believe his ears when he first heard that. It wasn't even as harsh as what the drug sellers were pulling; it was just a matter of adding a few zeros to costs.
Do you see this? If I were a con artist, could I really be buying my way to the top as the world's richest man?
What he was working with was, truthfully, not too different. He had already been pretty kind about it -- titanium alloy, right? High-end, wouldn't you say? Flawless diamonds? Sophisticated, for sure. Global limited edition? Absolutely top-notch.
A price tag of six thousand dollars was the very definition of a conscientious business venture. He was practically giving it away.
...
"My throat's dry, Lisa, get me a drink."
"Sure thing, sir."
Across from them, Nastassja had just jabbed him as a schemer but soon found herself on the receiving end of a barrage of jibes. For a brief moment, she looked dazed. As for the little assistant who had just stepped away, her eyes sparkled with admiration.
"William, people used to say you were a marketing genius, but I didn't really buy it. Now, it seems you truly are a genius. Damn it, you actually believed your own words just now, didn't you?"
"Ha! Nastassja, if you can't even trick yourself, how could you possibly fool anyone else? If you think this phone is overpriced, how will you convince someone else to buy it?"
William White wasn't too impressed by Nastassja's sarcasm. The fact that his buddies came looking for help when they couldn't nab one of the phones proved he had once again succeeded. The sudden 10% stock spike reflected the true value of this phone.
"I have to admit, your shamelessness won me over. Three phones, no haggling."
"Come on! I thought you were missing me; instead, you talk like that? I'm truly hurt."
"Cut it out! You've hardly been out and about lately. It seems like your family doesn't care about you anymore."
As they exchanged glances, the little assistant discreetly excused herself. Of course, a few teasing remarks were simply unavoidable.
...
William White's antics left everyone in America in shock. Meanwhile, his European partners had basically fallen numb.
When it came to tech, they were outclassed. In the realm of fashion design, they didn't stand a chance either. Watching a table full of various phone parts left the Europeans utterly speechless. It wasn't that they couldn't learn; even if they did, what use did it serve? This simply wasn't a product meant for mass production.
As for why someone would buy this phone, beyond just enhancing their status, it was hard to find an alternative explanation.
The most popular purchases came from wealthy buyers living in desert regions, which said a lot. Due to limited production, black market prices had already soared to eight thousand dollars.
Yet, despite this, the wealthy folks seemed less than satisfied. Rumor had it, there were to be super custom editions to follow.
They believed that William White wasn't selling phones at all -- he was selling treasures that could easily fit in a jewelry store.
...
Of course, Bentley's brand encompassed far more than just these items. Luxurious sofas, ergonomically designed executive chairs.
You could tell that Bentley, having achieved great success in the automotive industry, was beginning to delve into the luxury goods market.
The term ergonomics had been around since the end of World War II. Typically, those chair-bound folks cared deeply about such things. You could experience it on their trains; the design choices, from getting on and off to the seats themselves, were far more comfortable.
Now William White had taken to saying that if you felt uncomfortable sitting for long stretches, it was due to poor chair design. "Look at my chair; it's fantastic! You could sit all day without so much as a backache."
And the price? "It's under twenty thousand dollars -- isn't that a steal?"
Despite all the complaints, Bentley sofas and chairs practically sold themselves. If they could manage to get those out in six months, they'd consider it quite a success.
*****
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