Chapter 273 The Most "Stingy" Boss
At this moment, the Rolls-Royce happened to arrive downstairs at Wanqing Tower.
"Park in the lot outside the building first. I'm going in to make a call," Lin Haoran instructed Li Weidong.
"Yes, Boss!" Li Weidong responded, steadily parking the car in the company's reserved parking spot outside Wanqing Tower.
Instead of heading directly to his office, Lin Haoran walked into the lobby and went straight to the front desk.
The receptionist's eyes revealed both nervousness and deep respect, along with undeniable admiration, the moment he stepped into the lobby.
Smiling, Lin Haoran nodded at her and said, "I'll use the phone," before heading directly to the front desk telephone to return the call.
The line quickly connected, and from the other end came the voice of Shao Yifu, the giant of Hong Kong's entertainment industry.
"Mr. Shao, is there something you need from me?" Lin Haoran asked bluntly.
Among the business tycoons summoned by Governor Murray MacLehose earlier, Shao Yifu had not been included.
Though Shao Yifu had considerable fame and business influence in Hong Kong, in terms of asset size during this era, he was not yet among the top ten richest Chinese tycoons in Hong Kong, let alone compared to the foreign billionaires residing there.
Moreover, the British government's main goal in inviting Hong Kong's business elites to visit was to encourage investments—specifically in manufacturing, trade, finance, and technology—not the film industry, where Shao Yifu's interests lay.
"Mr. Lin, are you available now? If you are, could you come over to the TVB headquarters on Broadcast Drive? After all, you're our Vice Chairman now. There are some work matters I'd like to discuss face-to-face, and I hope to get some valuable advice from you," Shao Yifu said.
"Alright, Mr. Shao. I just finished some business. Give me thirty to forty minutes, and I'll head right over!" Lin Haoran answered without hesitation.
After the call, Lin Haoran returned to the car.
"Weidong, let's go to TVB headquarters in Kowloon Tong," Lin Haoran instructed after sitting down.
"Yes, Boss!"
It wasn't rush hour, so the journey went smoothly without traffic jams.
In just about half an hour, they arrived at the TVB building.
The security guard at the booth recognized Lin Haoran at once and quickly waved him through to park inside the building's parking lot.
Although it was only Lin Haoran's second visit, every employee in the building already knew him.
On his way in, all the staff warmly greeted their new boss.
Soon, Lin Haoran arrived at the Chairman's office.
He knocked lightly before opening the door, finding Shao Yifu inside.
"Mr. Lin, please come in and have a seat," Shao Yifu warmly greeted him.
Lin Haoran approached, pulled out a chair, sat down, and smiled, "Mr. Shao, please just call me Haoran from now on. We're business partners now—no need to be so formal."
"Alright, Haoran it is. I'm several decades older than you, so just call me Sixth Uncle like everyone else does," Shao Yifu replied cheerfully.
Although Lin Haoran's wealth had already surpassed Shao Yifu's, the latter was still over seventy years old, and addressing him as an equal seemed inappropriate.
"Sixth Uncle, what did you call me over for this time?" Lin Haoran asked directly.
Sixth Uncle—the nickname rolled naturally off his tongue.
"Haoran, our TVB's performance in recent months has been quite mediocre. Since I took over TVB's management at the beginning of last month, I've come to deeply understand how difficult it was for Brother Xiaohe to manage it before.
It's true that television ratings can be improved by producing quality programs. With my years of experience in the film industry, I am confident that TVB can produce more shows loved by audiences in the future.
However, I've noticed that even when our ratings stay high for a period, our advertising revenue remains limited.
Over 95% of the company's revenue comes from advertisements, with almost nothing from other sources.
For example, last year, even though our ratings were comparable to Rediffusion Television's, after deducting all expenses, the net profit was barely six million Hong Kong dollars—a shockingly low figure for such a large enterprise as TVB.
Thus, we must find ways to increase profits to reward our shareholders.
Moreover, I plan to push TVB to go public within the next few years. If our profits remain low, it would be a major obstacle.
One main strategy I'm considering is both expanding revenue and cutting costs.
Currently, TVB's biggest expense lies in employee salaries. During Brother Xiaohe's tenure, I rarely looked into the accounts, but after taking over, I found plenty of unnecessary expenses—overpriced filming costs and numerous employees drawing high salaries despite limited contributions.
If we rectify these issues, the company could save at least five to eight million Hong Kong dollars annually.
Even so, TVB's yearly net profit would only be around ten million Hong Kong dollars.
My Shaw Brothers film company can't be compared to real estate giants, but we often produce hit movies at low costs, yielding hefty profits—earning tens of millions each year.
I believe the television industry's future potential is even greater than the film industry's. Yet after studying it carefully, I still struggle to find new revenue streams for TVB.
Haoran, you have accumulated wealth in just two short years that I couldn't dream of achieving in a lifetime. You must have unique insights and strategies.
Do you have any good suggestions or advice?" Shao Yifu candidly laid out the purpose for inviting Lin Haoran over.
For a company of TVB's size to make under six million Hong Kong dollars in annual profit was indeed lamentable.
No wonder the Li family shareholders had lost interest in TVB.
Given that each Li brother held about 6% of the shares, even if the full six million were distributed as dividends, each would get less than 400,000 Hong Kong dollars—not to mention the need to retain some funds for operations, making full distribution impossible.
Lin Haoran, holding 24% of the shares, would receive less than 1.5 million Hong Kong dollars in dividends if calculated from six million.
Such a return was practically negligible to Lin Haoran, almost beneath his notice.
Even doubling the profits through Shao Yifu's cost-cutting measures would only increase his annual dividends to around three million Hong Kong dollars—still insignificant for Lin Haoran.
Of course, the sixty million Hong Kong dollars he spent acquiring 24% of TVB's shares wasn't a bad deal.
At three million per year, it would take twenty years to recoup the investment—not a loss, just a low yield.
Besides, Lin Haoran's primary motivation for acquiring TVB shares was not profit but the media influence that came with owning one of Hong Kong's two major television stations.
He had already experienced the advantages of controlling a major media outlet through the Oriental Daily.
If he added TVB to his portfolio, he would fear no media attacks in Hong Kong.
Naturally, if TVB could also generate some profit, it would be a welcome bonus.
After all, no matter how wealthy Lin Haoran became, he would never think he had too much money—the more, the better.
Lin Haoran wasn't surprised by Shao Yifu's cost-cutting strategy.
In his previous life, he had known that Shao Yifu was an infamously "stingy" boss.
When his company first started, the crew once requested 20 Hong Kong dollars to buy 100 steamed buns for an outdoor shoot breakfast.
Shao Yifu refused, arguing that the canteen's buns only cost 10 cents each, leading to internal conflict.
Ultimately, a lack of breakfast caused the outdoor crew to strike, resulting in losses exceeding 10,000 Hong Kong dollars.
One would think he learned his lesson—but Shao Yifu remained the same, planting seeds for future controversies.
Ten years ago, Zou Wenhuai, who had made irreplaceable contributions to Shaw Brothers, asked for profit-sharing through stocks.
Shao Yifu flatly refused.
Infuriated, Zou Wenhuai resigned and founded Golden Harvest, which later became Shaw Brothers' fiercest competitor.
That same year, Shao Yifu missed the opportunity to sign Bruce Lee because he refused to meet Lee's demand for a 10,000 USD salary—Golden Harvest did instead.
Later, Shaw Brothers also lost other top talents like Xu Guanwen, Chan Lung, and Xu Ke over similar penny-pinching.
As a result, Shaw Brothers' golden age gradually declined.
This background explained why, after Li Xiaohe's death, Shao Yifu was eager to seize control of TVB.
As expected, the same drama was now unfolding at TVB.
In Lin Haoran's previous world, TVB employees became famous for working the most while being paid the least.
Meanwhile, ATV, following Golden Harvest's model, lured away stars like Lydia Shum, Alan Tam, Wong Yat Wah, and Adam Cheng with three times the salary, heavily wounding TVB.
As the entertainment industry evolved, TVB's glory days faded, and by 2011, when Shao Yifu sold his TVB shares, the company's business had already declined dramatically.
Shao Yifu always insisted he was "just a businessman," operating strictly according to commercial rules.
He adhered to extreme cost control, never indulging in extravagant spending for stars.
The outside world had mixed feelings about this philosophy—some found it harsh, others admirable.
Despite being called "stingy" by the media and staff, Shao Yifu had, since 1975, systematically donated massive sums to educational, medical, and welfare causes worldwide through the Shaw Foundation.
Especially in mainland China, countless Shaw-funded schools, hospitals, and facilities stood as proof of his philanthropic contributions.
According to public records, Shao Yifu had donated over 10 billion Hong Kong dollars to charity—an enormous portion of his total assets.
Unlike tycoons like Li Jiacheng, whose wealth reached astronomical figures, Shao Yifu's film and television businesses inherently limited his earnings.
Thus, even if he was "stingy" in business, Lin Haoran deeply respected Mr. Shao for his charitable spirit.
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