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Chapter 180

─HOT Bulletin Board

[‘Joseon Music Competition Winner’ Former Seven Do-hee… After 3 Years]

[Do-hee’s performance video has been uploaded on YouTube]

[The male idol comment causing a stir in Japan]

[I was dating a celebrity, but it turned out they were living two lives]

[‘School Violence Woojin’ Classmates’ Testimonies Compilation]

.

.

[Topist’s Daily Life in the Practice Room, haha]

[What about the ‘Sexual Objectification’ controversy over school uniforms?]

SDVIMVFoanVzY1YwSVhjamMzUkt1U2JzRHFseHM5OExYRWlDREwrWXA5TnBkLzQ0bmREcVhmd2hBdFhuandXZQ

[Gucci Official Ambassador Compilation]

[If the agency and organizers collude at the competition…]

Every day, the K-pop community continues to gossip fueled by the latest happenings.

[Topist’s Daily Life in the Practice Room, haha]

─(Chiyo’s fleeing back, Do-hee’s afterimage.jpg)

>(Seo-yoon’s Bubble Chat.jpg)

[Seo-yoon: Our practice room is always like this]

[Seo-yoon: Why am I chasing?]

[Seo-yoon: If I say, I’ll also get chased by Do-hee, so I can’t…]

[Seo-yoon: I’m always watching the youngest, ugh]

Do-hee is chasing after a girl who seems to be a new member debuting with her, haha. Curious about her face.

– They seem close, haha. The kids are cute.

– Seems like they’re always teasing Do-hee, haha.

– The one running away looks genuinely flustered, hahaha.

– So when is Topist making a re-debut?

└ Don’t know, maybe when the kids start appearing in the media? Still seems far away.

– Is Na-eun going to debut too?

There was a woman office worker scrolling through all these posts.

“Soo-yeon, have you wrapped everything up?”

“I’ll finish up soon.”

“Please hurry. The Team Leader is going into a meeting in 30 minutes.”

“Okay, okay.”

Hearing the section chief’s words, the woman office worker quickly scrolled through the K-pop community again.

[Honestly, isn’t it selfish? Stealing chances from other desperate kids]-(11)

Because this was her job.

She was currently investigating the preferences and images of several celebrities.

There was a promotional model meeting coming up.

The three subjects she was tasked with were:

First, the 29-year-old actress Jin Hye-in, known as the next-generation national first love, who was recently cast in a famous film by a renowned director.

Next, 19-year-old Joo Seung-bin, a member of the boy group ‘I-LAND,’ currently ranked 6th in male idol sales for the fourth generation.

Lastly, 17-year-old Do-hee, a former member of Seven, whose piano performance at a recent competition caused another surge in community traffic.

When comparing the three, Do-hee actually ranked first.

The other two fell significantly short when compared to her brand.

But that didn’t mean she actually liked Do-hee.

Identifying herself with the company, she even considered Do-hee to be of lesser caliber.

‘Why did the section chief ask me to investigate these three?’

Of course, from a company perspective, it wasn’t an unreasonable request.

After all, her company is one of the top-tier labels among the so-called ‘luxury brands.’
It’s top-tier.

A high-end line representing the jewelry sector.

Because Cartier was split between the jewelry world and Tiffany & Co.

Right now, there are only two Cartier ambassadors in Korea.

Coral Blue’s Lira.

NND’s Jae-hyun from Double N.

In other words, popular members of a world-renowned girl group and boy group representing Korea.

“At least they should be at that level. How does it make sense for a mere 17-year-old to join the ranks?”

“Su-yeon!”

“Yes, yes.”

But her personal opinion wouldn’t matter.

After all, she was just a low-ranking staff member.

*

Luxury brands have a high sense of pride.

Lee Yong-ho, the team leader in charge of Cartier’s marketing in Korea, both agreed and disagreed with this statement.

“Team Leader, here it is.”

“Put it over there.”

It was the low-ranking staff member, Park Su-yeon, who was being prideful right now.

Rather, luxury brands have no pride but pretend to have some.

In a capitalist company, sales are the only virtue.

There’s no pride in sales marketing.

Even the high-nosed luxury brands scramble to accommodate the demands for design and color from Chinese clients. What pride?

Yet, they act as if they’re maintaining their dignity and managing a high-end image while doing sales marketing.

“Who should we recommend to the head office… Let’s each share based on the materials we’ve prepared.”

The ambassador marketing was a prime example of this.

Ambassador means a representative.

An ambassador is not just a simple model.

They are the muse representing the brand image.

A muse that connects luxury goods and the image to the public.

[Dior Beauty, global ambassador…]

[Prada ambassador… Radiating luxury]

This marketing was incredibly successful.

The models luxury brands initially signed perfectly reflected the brand’s image.

Most of them were influencers with tremendous influence.

[Doubling the contract fees to sign Lira as a global ambassador for Cartier…]

[Cartier raised prices twice in front of Ambassador Coral Blue Lira… Generating ‘record-breaking’ sales among the MZ generation.]

Cartier also significantly benefited from this marketing strategy.

“When I signed Lira, I also received some hefty incentives.”

However, once marketing becomes a trend, its effectiveness tends to diminish.

[Fila announces a new global brand ambassador…]

[Soccer player becomes the ambassador for Calvin Klein underwear…]

The term ambassador has now been used not only for global sports and underwear brands.

But for readily available spa brands in your vicinity.

Even for chicken, pizza, snacks, and even medications like magnesium.

The term itself has become overwhelmingly common.

“But just because it’s widely trending, does that mean the meaning of the term has faded away?”

He firmly believed it had not.

“How about Erin from 3M?”

“3M?”

“Yes, they are currently the most popular group among 4th generation girl groups since Seven is inactive.”
“Isn’t Min-seo a popular member?”

“Oh, Min-seo is already under contract with Boucheron.”

“Then that’s fine. Recommend someone else.”

He thought the fault lay more with luxury brands that excessively used ambassadors rather than with trends.

Just look at how common ambassadors are among Korean celebrities.

Even just among luxury brands, there must be at least over 100 of them.

So, is it hard to become an ambassador?

Not at all.

Nowadays, it’s a world where rookies can become ambassadors.

They start signing contracts even before their debut.

“This time, JS sent over a portfolio.”

“Who? Eun Se-ra?”

“Ah, yes. Eun Se-ra is included, but there are also other members…”

“Hmm… really?”

Big agencies send portfolios to the local branches of luxury brands before debuting.

They know well that the influence of the local marketing team is greater than that of the headquarters.

Of course, the marketing team of luxury brands only signs one type of contract based on the agency.

Either achieve certain conditions or announce a few months after debuting.

“At first glance, it seems like the luxury brand is at a loss.”

But it’s not a loss.

At this point, the contracts often have no upfront payment or only a nominally small amount.

“It’s different from recruiting top-tier like Coral Blue or NND.”

Rookies from big agencies ride on the craze built on luxury image.

Idols from major agencies are highly likely to succeed, so luxury brands gradually see increased sales—it’s a win-win situation.

“Who are the members?”

“That’s still a secret.”

“A secret? Then what are we supposed to trust to sign? You know a group contract is difficult, right? You should only slightly open the door to the brand. Relay that to them. Let’s just talk about Eun Se-ra separately.”

“How about Lee Jung-hyun, who just hit it big with the Netflix drama?”

“She doesn’t fit the image. What we’re targeting right now is the Chinese Korean market. Let’s be realistic about appearances. Do you have anyone else who can actually be proposed?”

Of course, high-end brands like Cartier absolutely do not sign contracts with rookies.

“Eun Se-ra has debuted once, so there might be some room.”

There must be exclusivity.

They need to show a bit more pride.

That’s why currently, there are only two signed ambassadors in Korea.

NND’s Jae-hyun.

Coral Blue’s Lira.

The top-notch among actors and singers.

Thus, the influencer we’re going to sign this time shouldn’t be lower than that level, if not the same.

“The headquarters urge us to quickly pick an ambassador, but… the more urgent it is, the more careful we need to be. For now, the strong candidate is Eun Se-ra.”

“How about Do-hee Lee…?”

Junior staff member Park Su-yeon cautiously raised her hand in the chilly atmosphere.

“Do-hee Lee?”

“Yes, um, former member of Seven. After Seven disbanded, her individual brand reputation is ranked second, with Lira back in the first place, but she was number one before that…”
“That was that…”

“Who doesn’t know that?”

Do-hee Lee.

Of course, she was a celebrity that most luxury brand marketing teams were paying attention to.

‘There must be marketing teams already in talks with the headquarters…’

But there was one reason he hesitated.

It wasn’t a major agency.

He couldn’t guarantee the success of the follow-up group.

If it turned out like Sudol Season 1.

The follow-up group would flop again.

Of course, Eun Se-ra was the exception.

JS was one of the big four agencies.

No matter how great Do-hee Lee was or how high her brand reputation, if the follow-up group’s performance was poor,

The image of Cartier, the brand, could take a hit.

Topist had succeeded once with “Pastel Love,” but that wasn’t enough to assure the future group’s success.

So, it felt premature.

“Still, with all the rumors based on her resume, and her recent proof at the piano competition, her buzz after Seven’s disbandment…”

He opened the materials Su-yeon had handed over earlier.

From evaluations by other pianists to community posts.

“If you look there, the traffic increase…”

Among the community posts, there were quite a few negative opinions about Do-hee Lee.

In fact, that made him quite pleased.

‘The sophisticated naturally stirs up envy and competition.’

As Lee Yong-ho read through the materials one by one, he glanced at the part leader.

“Is there a portfolio from Topist?”

“No, they said they don’t send portfolios.”

“Really? Haven’t they collaborated with luxury brands before?”

“Probably, but Pastel Love’s Vita is the ambassador for Jimmy Choo.”

“Then there might be a few proposals from there.”

Setting the materials down, Lee Yong-ho opened a YouTube tab on his laptop.

And played a video of Do-hee’s performance.

Classical.

It’s only natural that it possessed a more classic and sophisticated image than pop music.

That’s the image Cartier had pursued as well.

Thus, Cartier had always supported the classical industry and collaborated with famous pianists.

It was undoubtedly a combination that never failed.

‘Moreover, the luxury brand icon, Coco Chanel, had a very close relationship with pianists.’

Lee Yong-ho looked at Do-hee’s wrist and neck as she played.

It was like shooting a photoshoot.

On her wrist playing the piano, thin bracelets or watches, and on her dress, a beautiful necklace.

‘Then on the day Do-hee holds her concert…’

They’d provide special sponsorship.

An extremely expensive necklace.

Not just tens of millions, but tens of billions.

That would instantly become a hot topic.

Classical, Do-hee, Cartier.

With these three keywords, articles would spread everywhere.

Just imagining that picture…

Regardless of whether the follow-up group’s success or failure…

“Submit a proposal to Topist. Adjust the conditions appropriately.”

It fit perfectly with the brand image.


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