InkBound
patreon
CH93 | DI
🕑 Added 2025-05-06 13:43:43 +0000 UTCOn the day of the press conference.
We held a meeting with a proxy solicitation advisor prior to the event.
These are the people who communicate with shareholders and run campaigns to secure votes in favor of specific agendas…
In simple terms, they were like election strategists.
“There are now 60 days left until the shareholders’ meeting. And frankly, the current situation is extremely disadvantageous for us.”
The strategist displayed a chart comparing the support rates of both camps.
“Shark Capital has secured 39.8% fixed votes with the backing of several major shareholders. On the other hand, even if we combine all the shares of the management, board, and allied forces, we only reach 19.9%.”
39.8% versus 19.9%.
The sharks had built a support base nearly twice as strong as ours.
“Currently, the neutral votes stand at around 40%, with approximately 23% held by institutions and 17% by individuals.”
The strategist transitioned the screen and continued explaining.
“Institutions are withholding their decisions. While they harbor mistrust towards the management due to poor performance, they are also reluctant to support Shark Capital’s proposal to replace the entire board. This leaves room for persuasion.”
Institutions could potentially lean toward our side, depending on our efforts.
However,
“The key lies with individual investors. Typically, individuals have minimal influence in these proxy battles…”
This time, it was different.
Shark Capital had awakened the dormant retail investors.
“Individual votes are unpredictable. Not only are they fickle, but tracking them is nearly impossible.”
Institutional investors, if managing over $100 million in assets, are required to disclose their holdings quarterly through 13F filings.
This means their investments can be tracked.
Thus, the strategist could directly contact institutions that had invested in Epicura to gauge their intentions or attempt to persuade them.
However, individual investors were a different story.
Countless small shareholders scattered across unknown locations could not be identified.
The only way to persuade them was through public opinion campaigns using mass media.
“Based on reactions observed on forums, platforms, and social media frequented by individual investors… the sentiment overwhelmingly leans toward Shark Capital.”
Well, that was to be expected.
The one thing shareholders despise most is someone who tanks their stock prices.
Whitmer was already despised as the person who had dragged the stock price to its lowest point.
And now, he had even caused the cancellation of the $6 per share special dividend promised by the sharks.
As a result, retail investors’ anger had reached its peak.
“Even if we secure significant support from institutions, we still need over half of the individual votes. We must do whatever it takes to quell their anger and bring them to our side.”
We needed to win over more than half of the retail investors.
It wouldn’t be easy, but fortunately, we had a strategy.
A betting plan I devised.
The idea was to claim that Epicura would become the “Netflix of the dining industry,” tapping into everyone’s gambling instincts.
This was an appealing concept for individual investors.
However, no matter how excellent the ingredients, the taste depends entirely on the chef’s skill.
“You cannot repeat what you did during the mock conference.”
Unfortunately, Whitmer lacked talent in this area.
In the mock conference, he barely managed to gain 30% support.
Whitmer himself was fully aware of this and was visibly tense.
I smiled to reassure him.
“It’s okay. The real event will be different from the mock conference.”
Rallying people wasn’t Whitmer’s strength.
That’s why I had prepared a special strategy.
“Just remember my advice.”
As I was offering him final tips, there was a knock, and the secretary entered.
“It’s time to leave.”
***
At the Press Conference Hall
When Whitmer appeared, camera flashes went off in a frenzy.
Contrary to concerns, he confidently approached the microphone.
[There have been suspicions raised about ulterior motives behind the sale of Harbor Lobster. I want to make it clear that these are completely unfounded. The sale was a strategic decision to secure funds for the acquisition of Double Crab House.]
Whitmer began by directly refuting Shark Capital’s “corruption allegations.”
He emphasized that the Harbor Lobster sale was merely a preparatory step for acquiring a new brand, dismissing the sharks’ claims as baseless conspiracy theories.
He then moved on to explain the reasons for acquiring the new brand.
[Currently, a new trend is rapidly emerging in the dining industry, represented by fast-casual dining like Chipotle Burrito.]
“Is he a natural on stage?”
Whitmer confidently detailed Chipotle’s success story, describing how its stock price skyrocketed from $88 to $500 in just five years.
During the same period, the number of stores increased by 1.7 times, and operating profits grew by 20% annually… and so on.
Compared to the rehearsal, he was performing much better.
[We believe this is not a temporary fad but a seismic shift across the market. Consumer preferences are fundamentally changing. Hence, Epicura intends to transition its core business from family restaurants to fast-casual dining. As part of this strategy, we acquired Double Crab House…]
This was the most critical part.
“The Chipotle Cousin Strategy.”
This was the crux of the script I had prepared.
The idea was to claim that by acquiring a fast-casual brand, we now shared the same “DNA” as Chipotle and would follow a similar growth trajectory.
But Whitmer repeatedly failed to drive this point home.
He passionately highlighted Chipotle’s greatness, but when it came to claiming that we would achieve the same, his tone became cautious.
This was not an effective approach.
It was like slamming on the brakes just when you needed to hit the accelerator.
“I wish I could take the stage myself…”
But that wasn’t an option.
Since today was Epicura’s first official statement, this part had to come directly from the CEO, Whitmer.
Anyway, as expected, Whitmer’s momentum faltered slightly at this critical juncture.
Well, I had anticipated this.
It was an issue we had addressed multiple times during rehearsals.
I had already prepared a contingency plan, knowing this might happen.
“It’s about time…”
And then it happened.
A stir arose at the back of the conference hall.
A man raised his hand high.
Immediately, all eyes were on him.
[We will take questions after the presentation is complete.]
Despite the moderator’s polite guidance, the man did not lower his hand.
In most cases, such situations would be ignored, but not this time.
And for good reason.
The man raising his hand was none other than Dex Slater—Shark himself.
The very person facing off against Whitmer in this shareholder showdown.
He had personally appeared at the press conference.
A murmur erupted across the room, but I wasn’t surprised.
After all…
‘I invited him here myself.’
I had deliberately leaked the news about the brand acquisition beforehand and invited shareholders to the press conference to give them a reason to attend.
It was all to lure the shark, with his nose for blood, to walk into this very place of his own accord.
Luckily, he had followed the bait right to the end.
Here to confront Whitmer, who had shattered the promises made.
[We’ll take questions after the presentation.]
The moderator reiterated the request, but the Shark stubbornly kept his hand raised.
Whitmer then gestured to the staff.
[Give him the microphone.]
He was willing to entertain Shark’s question.
In an instant, the atmosphere in the room heated up.
What’s the most entertaining thing in the world?
Watching a fire, and next, watching a fight.
‘With this, it won’t matter much if Whitmer’s rhetoric isn’t sharp.’
Now, let them tear into each other.
[Fast casual dining is indeed an interesting trend. However, isn’t it an overreach to claim that consumer preferences have permanently changed based on only a year or two of success?]
Shark began by challenging Whitmer’s exaggerated claims.
However…
[You’re absolutely right.]
Whitmer immediately agreed without hesitation.
Because I had instructed him to do so.
Shark, perhaps not expecting such immediate agreement, faltered momentarily.
Surprise breeds emotion.
And a person swayed by emotion inevitably loses balance.
The unbalanced Shark fell silent momentarily, and Whitmer seized the awkward pause, letting it linger just long enough before speaking.
[You’re right. At this point, we can’t be certain if this is a temporary trend or a signal of long-term change. The future is something no one can guarantee. Fast casual dining might be a fleeting trend, or it could be a monumental wave that transforms consumer habits entirely. However, we believe this shift will bring innovation to the dining industry on par with the smartphone and have structured our strategy accordingly.]
As expected.
Inviting Shark had been a masterstroke.
When attacked, people instinctively try to defend themselves, projecting strength.
Whitmer, under Shark’s onslaught, was no different, and his voice carried far more conviction as a result.
[So, you’re saying you’ve sold off key assets based on such flimsy evidence?]
Regaining his composure, Shark pressed forward again, but Whitmer didn’t back down.
[Evidence… If you put it that way, are companies jumping into OTT streaming these days doing so because they have definitive evidence? What about virtual reality, the metaverse, or AI? There’s little concrete data yet, but they’re making proactive moves to secure those markets, anticipating a paradigm shift. We’re no different.]
Shark couldn’t immediately refute this point either.
Naturally.
We had foreseen all of Shark’s moves and even prepared a script in advance, while he knew nothing of ours.
He had to process and respond on the fly.
Thus, there was bound to be a difference in reaction speed.
Every time Shark hesitated, the audience would feel as though Whitmer was overpowering him.
This was a victory of presentation in many ways.
Still, Shark was Shark.
Even at a disadvantage, he presented a sharp counterargument.
[The companies you mentioned are exploring future business ventures while maintaining stability in their core businesses. They don’t recklessly abandon key assets to take on risky challenges. Facebook hasn’t abandoned social media to bet everything on the metaverse, have they?]
[That’s because the market conditions are different. The social media market is still growing, but family restaurants are sinking. That’s why we’ve decided to boldly phase out an outdated business and venture into a new area. It’s akin to abandoning film cameras for digital ones or moving from feature phones to smartphones.]
The debate between the two continued with tense intensity.
As everyone in the press conference held their breath, watching the clash, Shark delivered his climactic remark.
[That’s a rather irresponsible way to manage a business. Isn’t this nothing more than gambling?]
I clenched my fist.
Shark had just resolved the most challenging hurdle for us.
What Whitmer had felt most burdened by was the prospect of bringing up the words “betting” or “gambling” himself.
But Shark had done it for us.
Now, all we had to do was seize the opportunity.
[Gambling… That’s correct.]
When Whitmer accepted the term without hesitation, Shark once again lost his balance.
Whitmer exuded composure as he shifted his gaze from Shark to the audience.
[In fact, every management decision is, in some sense, a gamble. Isn’t the essence of business about making bold bets in the face of uncertainty?]
Whitmer briefly lowered his head, giving a wry smile, before speaking with conviction.
[Of course, you can play it safe. You can follow the paths others have paved, aiming for 5th or 6th place, and reduce your risk. I admit that Epicura’s actions, including my own, have been along those lines thus far.
But!]
Whitmer’s eyes sparkled.
His voice grew stronger, and his face flushed with intensity.
[You can never be number one that way.]
The audience’s attention was entirely on Whitmer.
[To be the best, you must take risks. Only those brave enough to tread uncertain paths can become leaders who shape the market. Epicura no longer wants to be a follower. We aim to stand tall as the industry leader. And for that goal, we’ve chosen to embrace the challenge.]
Shark couldn’t deliver a proper rebuttal.
No one could have imagined that the head of a company of this magnitude would openly declare, ‘We are taking a gamble.’
As such, Shark hadn’t prepared an adequate response.
Thus, he couldn’t help but be overwhelmed by Whitmer’s momentum.
‘Have we at least hit the baseline with this?’
Of course, there were parts that left something to be desired.
If I had taken the stage myself, I could have stirred up the crowd much more effectively.
But I deliberately held back.
‘It’s not the right time yet.’
The moment I first appear before the media will be, so to speak, my debut.
And right now, the stage is too small.
The audience is limited to Epicura shareholders and Wall Street insiders.
What I’m aiming for is a national-scale stage.
I want the moment when all eyes across the United States, beyond just Wall Street, are focused.
That’s when I will appear as the brilliant newcomer who spectacularly defeats Shark.
To achieve that, I need to wait a little longer.
Well, it won’t take too long.
With today’s press conference, the tides have already begun to shift.
