"..As we all know, bigger projects require significant requirements, all present here are the best amongst the best, and I hope to find the one suitable for us, we shall proceed now."

It always amuses me how well the people of the business world know to manipulate the words, or more like wishfully think that they are masters of playing with words. Following the words of Carlocle's Brand's CEO: who's a healthy man in his late forties, the first short-listed company started its presentation.

Carlocle was founded by the current CEO's grandfather, after enduring years of hard work, they achieved the position they were in. One could guess through the way the CEO interacts that how much he puts value on inner-cooperative relationships, he doesn't want to offend any one of the three corporations' representatives present in this conference room especially the one he kept glancing at and mainly directed his words to.

As I focused on hearing the ongoing demonstration, from time to time, I could feel the eyes of the people present in the room blink toward the man seated on the opposite side of the long table. Ben was on my right, rigid in his seat, while Olivia was on my left, and for the first time, I'm sensing some edgy fidgetiness in her stance, as unlike Ben and like others, her eyes too kept flickering toward Aris Salvadge's side.

His presence here made me wonder for a second —when I saw him walked inside the conference room, following were two men and a girl. As long as I can recall, Aris Salvadge was never the man to show himself in any of the conferences or meetings, it was always his men who represented him and his work. For almost two years, I stalked him, putting my everything, I knew a lot of useless things like this about this man, but never something worth benefitting. If I bother myself with an assumption then; maybe, as this was his first project after stepping into the corporate world, considering it essential, that's why he was here.

Not once I looked at him after he came, following the professional greeting, as I was seated so only nodded toward him with the enunciation of his name, which he returned with also a light nod, no words said or exchanges as none was needed.

"...here I would like to conclude the Vicx Corp. ideas for the project."

As the words reached my ears, I too, along with others, raised my hands for applause, which quietly resonated throughout the room. For the next presentation, a man seated beside Aris Salvadge stood and walked toward the podium. From the moment he started, to the moment his words ended, there was complete quietness in the room.

I could even hear a few sighs from the representatives of Vicx Corp. as they continued to hear the approaches of Slavadge Corporation, and considered themselves out of the race. And I could also feel some gazes moving toward me, curious to see the look of strain and defeat on me —this caused a little smile to bloom on my lips and habitually my fingers -of the right hand which was rested on the table- started tapping quietly.

As the second presenter concluded his words, the applause that followed was louder and amongst all the Carlocle's CEO has the loudest augmentation, although he didn't say anything, through his actions it wasn't onerous even for the fool to guess that his intentions were clear: no one can be better than Salvadge Corporations' insight.

Carlocl'e corporation has countless Michelin star restaurants/hotels through numerous countries, but these restaurants are limited to people of a particular status, that's why for the new project they wanted something that an average/common human could afford while experiencing the Michelin conditions. The substantial difficulty comes in here, how could one depreciate the price to ten dollars while presenting something of a hundred dollar, this increases the ratio of cost on project and lessen profits to zero or prominent loss.

That's why Carlocle's were so keen for a suitable corporation, that could tackle such difficulty without any loss to their name's integrity and quality —and that's also where Salvadge Corporation gained the advantage in their presentation and impressed him.

Although I was aware of the outlook and the working mechanism of the cafes, the strategic approach of Salvadge Corp. was not something I knew, until now. Deducting the conclusion, my thoughts went over it briefly: If the cafe wants to sell the product for at the price of twenty dollars, with an average cost of fifty dollars on it, in other words, excluding the 20% cut of price in a total of 50% it gives us the extra unit cost of 30% without even cutting any profit from the price which further loses the chance of profit to zero or even significant loss. Yet, this 30% also provides the benefit of quality over others in the market. So, to cover this 30% unit cost (keeping in mind also the price, to cut through price and earn profit for the company while also keeping the profit of quality it provides) the Salvadge Corporation introduced the marginal cost of 15% to 20%, backed by their refined statements and the data.

The fall of marginal cost below the average cost caused a decrease in the average cost, and it continues to decrease until it reaches a certain point or goal, from this point onward lies only the profit. They achieved to cause Marginal cost being lower than the price and especially the massive difference between it and the average cost resulting in a profitable business plane.

Now was our turn, tilting my head, I looked at Olivia, whose eyes were somewhere else. As I followed her gaze, came in sight of the young man who took his seat alongside Aris Salvadge. I could see the provoking look and taunting smile as he stared at Olivia, the provocation and arrogance in his stance were visible. Feeling my gaze on him, he met my eyes, the vexing smile on his face, and his whole body turned stiff, moving my eyes away from him, I lightly patted Olivia's shoulder. In an instant, her blank face met mine, fists clenched, as she held my gaze, I just smiled softly, "Go ahead, Olivia."

Seeing my smile, her face and body relaxed, and soon her quirky smile came back, she nodded, and with a 'Yes, Boss,' stood up to step toward the podium.

To cover the 30% extra unit cost, and to earn profit even from the price, over ideas and presentation completely stand contrary to the Salvadge Corporations. To make this cafe a brand, where on the one hand the Salvadge' corporation focused on the prices and quality: to give the same thing at the same price as others but way better. We, on the other hand, keeping the prices and quality, changed the product, making the whole cafe starting from scratch. If nobody has tasted them before how would they be able to compare the prices and taste, but hither also the vast risk comes: what if nobody liked it, not up to taste, not to quality, then what? Here we went a little unorthodox, from the past two months or so, with the company's own money, we opened stalls where the recipes of new-grown coffee mixes and cakes that were from the young-experimental chefs my team searched were freely sold. For two weeks we sold them free, and for the next month under the price which could give us enough profit to cover the collective cost of all weeks.

I noted the uncertainty that crossed through the faces of people in the room as whispers reached my ears because Olivia reached toward our basic idea of starting from something new, that has never been come in the market before. But their doubts were soon answered, as she pulled out the data of the past two months and all the deductions followed by our investment plans.

Through the charts, she proceeded to explain the successful outcome of our approach, she showed us how after selling the things free when the next weeks, we sold the same things at a reasonable price in comparison to the stall of the coffee they can get anywhere else. Our stalls earned us double profit as everyone preferred them and people showed more interest in them, with the same price they were having something new & different yet tastier and better. A strange silence filled the surroundings as Olivia continued with her data, I know we went way out of our way to prove the point, but that's how I work if Carlocle still doesn't choose us, then, I would consider them not our compatible.

As Olivia finished her words, there was a huge-sweet smile, I noticed how her eyes moved toward the presenter from the Salvadge Corporation and concluded, "If one wishes to make something a brand, do it correctly."

As she retook her seat, I gave her an acknowledging nod.

This time the silence stretched for too long, and I found myself turning to look at Carlocle's CEO, whose eyes were still on the screen where our data was displayed, including his COO and legal advisor, as well his son, who sat beside him as his assistant, were utterly silent. I had my doubts that they might not choose us, as there was greater risk in our project and profit in Salvadge's, but one thing that held my hope was, their main goal -other than profit- was to reach the people their other high-end profitable projects couldn't, and for this, something that could put Carlocle Brand's uniqueness forward would be their first choice.

And this silence's telling me, I thought right as I'm well-aware of this kind of quietness.

This only happens when the CEO wants to work with one company, but the magnitude of other involved companies stops them from choosing the one they want to work with. And right now, that man himself was seated here, how could they throw rejection on his face. Thinking this, my eyes, for the second time of the day, met Aris Salvadge.

The moment my eyes equaled his, what startled me wasn't his eyes that were already on me -as I could feel his intense gaze turning toward me every now and then- but the fact that his lips were curved in an almost undetectable smile. The ambiguous curve of his lips combined with his calmness seemed harmless yet calculative and unapproachable.

Holding his dark gaze, I leaned against my chair, and raising my chin softly I returned his smile.

...

//Ruji: As I've stated before, my knowledge lacks a lot of things. So, if something's wrongly mentioned, either go along with it or correct it. thank you.//