Chapter 44

After all, Hu Wenhai, who makes at least several hundred dollars per second, can't possibly handle these matters personally. Even if he were to try, it would be an impossible task.

Not to mention, where is the Vibram company's U.S. branch? Which way does the door open? He wouldn't even know where to start looking. In this era, there are no search engines or e-commerce, and the internet hasn't even been invented yet. It's a terrifyingly primitive time.

So the best approach is to leave professional matters to professionals. Hu Wenhai decided to start a trading company first.

"What, two months!" Hu Wenhai stared at Aiverson in disbelief, asking, "I didn't hear wrong, this is in the U.S.? It takes two months to set up a company?"

Aiverson, who was sent by Elkan Company, shrugged innocently and explained, "Sir, a normal company wouldn't take that long; Americans are quite efficient. However, since you're from China, you have to deal with the Immigration Bureau, the Federal Tax Bureau, and you also need to hire a lawyer and an accountant. After determining the business scope, you need to apply for a business license. If you're involved in import and export trade, the procedures will be even more complicated."

"Oh, I see." Hu Wenhai nodded helplessly, forgetting that it was 1984, not the era after China joined the WTO. At that time, exporting goods to communist countries was still a very sensitive matter.

He thought for a moment; he couldn't give up just because of this. But waiting two months was too long. By then, it would already be past 1984, and he should be returning to China.

"In that case, I can only acquire an import and export trading company. There should be quite a few in New York. Can you find out if there are any small trading companies that have done business with China and are for sale?"

When Aiverson heard Hu Wenhai's question, he actually smiled proudly, "Boss, I've already investigated this. The trade volume between China and the U.S. last year was 8.3 billion dollars, but most of it was large-scale business by big companies. In New York, I only found a dozen or so small trading companies that have done business with China. Three of them are currently for sale. Here are their details."

Hu Wenhai was genuinely surprised; Aiverson was definitely a talent!

In the company, he generally categorized employees into three types. One type is the push type, who only move when pushed and only do what they are told. Another type is the sycophantic type, who are more proactive and try to show their abilities in front of the boss, but often fail to understand the boss's intentions due to their different perspectives. The last type is the reliable type, who can fully understand the tasks assigned to them, execute them flexibly and accurately, and almost complete the work before the boss even asks. For such employees, you can entrust all tasks to them—unless your company can no longer meet their development needs.

In Hu Wenhai's view, Aiverson was indeed a reliable type. He was originally just supposed to prepare for setting up the company, but he gave Hu Wenhai a pleasant surprise.

Clearly, after learning the procedures for Chinese people to set up a company in the U.S., Aiverson realized that Hu Wenhai wouldn't have the patience, so he had already investigated potential acquisition targets.

Having such a subordinate, over time, one wouldn't even need to think about problems. This is truly a lucky break for a boss!

"Good job, you've handled this well!" Since his subordinate did a good job, he shouldn't be stingy with praise. It's just a matter of saying a few words; why not do it?

"My abilities are not limited to this. If Mr. Hu thinks I've done well, I'm very willing to continue serving you!"

"Oh?" Hu Wenhai raised an eyebrow and asked, "What, are you not doing well at Elkan?"

"Of course not, I am also highly valued at Elkan!" Aiverson patted his chest, half boasting, "There were a few times the company wanted to promote me, but I turned them down because I would have to leave New York."

Hu Wenhai chuckled. If he was really so valued at Elkan, why would he be assigned to work for him? However, Hu Wenhai had worked with Americans before and knew they were always good at self-promotion, so he didn't take it too seriously.

But in management, many principles are universal. With Hu Wenhai's experience, he quickly understood why Aiverson did this.

To put it bluntly, Hu Wenhai couldn't stay in the U.S. forever; he would eventually return to China. Would he just let go of the U.S. side? Clearly not. Hu Wenhai would need an agent here, and Aiverson saw this opportunity and took a risk by choosing this path.

Since the normalization of relations between China and the U.S., with the advancement of reform and opening up, trade between the two countries has grown rapidly. From Aiverson's responses, it was clear he had done his homework on Sino-U.S. trade and recognized the huge potential market.

Hu Wenhai had the capital and connections in the U.S.—Scott, Bada, and Douglas aside, his novel's publication would surely make him well-known.

Who else could succeed in Sino-U.S. trade if not someone like him?

Aiverson wasn't lacking in ability, but he lacked motivation. At Elkan, he had no chance to stand out, so he just went through the motions. However, after interacting with Hu Wenhai, he keenly sensed the business opportunity and was not hesitant to show his talents to attract Hu Wenhai's attention.

But of course, this wasn't a bad thing for Hu Wenhai. He indeed needed an agent in the U.S. to manage the company's affairs. Since Aiverson had this desire, Hu Wenhai wouldn't be stingy about giving him the opportunity.

In this regard, Chinese people could learn a lot from Americans. Not just self-promotion, but sometimes taking the initiative in the workplace and selling oneself can make the boss see you in a different light.

Those with talent but who keep it hidden—how would the boss know if you're a genius or a dud?

"Alright, let me look at the details of these companies, and then we'll discuss it further." Hu Wenhai didn't make a decision immediately but opened the folder in his hand.

Three detailed reports listed almost all the information about three New York trading companies. These small companies had little in the way of assets, and their office space was often just a basement in a rented building. If there were any talented people in the company, they wouldn't be selling it, so there was little value in choosing among them.

After a quick read, Hu Wenhai simply chose a company called Eastwood Trading, priced at $12,000. The office space was 20 square meters, and there were four staff members—barely better than a shell company.

However, for Hu Wenhai, spending $12,000 on a company was his limit. After all, he only had a little over a million dollars left, and he had given most of his bonus to the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. He still needed to save some funds for future large purchases.

"This Eastwood Company, Aiverson, go negotiate with them. Whatever you can reduce the price by, you can take half of that as a bonus."

Hu Wenhai handed the folder back to Aiverson, giving him one last test. It was foreseeable that this "Eastwood Company" would eventually become a giant, and Aiverson's ability to serve as an agent still needed to be observed.

"Sure, boss, rest assured, I won't let you spend an extra penny!" Aiverson pledged, then suddenly remembered to ask, "By the way, boss, should we change the name after acquiring Eastwood Company?"

"Yes, we should change it!" Hu Wenhai nodded decisively and said, "Let's call it Six Ear Company."

"Raul Company?"

"No, it's Six Ear Company!"

"Loire Company?"

"It's Six Ear!"

"Lever?"

"..."

"Sixear, in Chinese it's 'Six Ear.' Forget it, let's just call it Leuer Company."

Hu Wenhai gave up on correcting Aiverson's Chinese pronunciation and compromised with an English transliteration. Aiverson practiced for a while but clearly underestimated the difficulty of Chinese pronunciation and couldn't get the two syllables right, so he gave up in shame for not meeting his boss's expectations.

"I'll leave this to you. The procedures can take time, but the company must start operating first." Hu Wenhai pulled out a piece of paper from his bag and pushed it in front of Aiverson, saying, "Have the current staff of this company investigate the market for the items on this list. I'll make the final decision when I return."

"No problem, boss, I'll make sure they act quickly." Aiverson patted his chest confidently and asked, "But where are you going? How can I contact you during this time?"

"That's a problem." Hu Wenhai was also at a loss. In this era, there were no mobile communication methods, and even the first-generation car phone network wasn't fully covered, making it difficult to find people.

"Here's what I'll do. I'll tell you my contact information when I get there. If you can't reach me, you can call Stanford University and ask for the Computer Center Director, Leonard Bosack, or his wife, the Business School Computer Center Director, Sandy Lerner."

Hu Wenhai wrote their names on a piece of paper and added, "I'll be staying at Stanford for about two weeks. Make sure to get the work done quickly!"