Jack Marshall was not very surprised, and said with a soft smile: "Mr. Xu, in fact, everyone understands the current situation of Huber Line, I can tell you that before today, there have been no less than ten companies to negotiate, their purpose is the same as yours, all just for KFC, Mr. Xu, you can be here today, you should know what the situation is!"

"Okay, I see. Xu Zhi smiled, he understood the other party's thoughts very well, with the current situation of Huberline Company's main business liquor, once it loses KFC that can continue to transfuse, it will only be a matter of time before it goes bankrupt.

As for the funds from the sale of KFC, the amount is indeed quite large, but according to the urine nature of the capital, eighty percent will be divided by the board of directors in advance to avoid further losses.

According to some information provided by Goldman Sachs, many large companies in the United States are very interested in KFC, among which the most wealthy is McDonald's, but Huberline's board of directors insisted on refusing to sell only KFC, and eventually all buyers became "spare tires" in the transaction, and were not rejected by words, but entered a long waiting period.

Clearly, Huberline wants someone to take over the entire company, and the shareholders on the board can cash out in a lump sum without any worries, and contact the companies again if the negotiations break down, or if they drag on until the end of the day.

Jack Marshall looked at Xu Zhi's expression and asked, "Mr. Xu, Goldman Sachs Bank should have revealed our conditions, and we will only accept the overall sale." ”

"I know that. Xu Zhi nodded and said, "But I also have one condition." ”

"Mr. Xu, please speak. Jack Marshall's face changed slightly, and he asked excitedly, this is the first buyer who intends to take over in full since his company is ready to sell as a whole.

"You and I are very aware of the current predicament of Huberline, I took over the company, including the company's previous liabilities are not a problem, the amount of the transaction still needs to be determined by subsequent negotiations, but in terms of payment, I will not pay a lump sum, but pay 30% after the transaction is reached, and the subsequent will be paid after two years. Xu Zhi said what he wanted.

Although Huberline's current performance is average, as a wine giant that has been in business for more than half a century, its brand awareness is extremely high in the industry, and it has perfect sales channels in Europe, America and even Asia, not to mention KFC and other side businesses that are developing rapidly.

According to Goldman Sachs' estimates, the amount of this transaction will not be less than one billion US dollars, and although Xu Zhi can take out such a sum of money, he is not willing to pay it at once, even if he uses a loan, after all, the loan amount is also one of the values of a person.

Before the acquisition of Disney, it belonged to the seller's strong strength, strict government supervision, and the acquisition of Hongkong Land was a comprehensive privatization in the stock market, which was not Xu Zhi's turn to choose, in order to complete the transaction smoothly, there was no uncontrollable risk in the middle, Xu Zhi could only use a large loan for a one-time acquisition.

But this time the acquisition of Huber Lane is different, although I want KFC very much, but with a drag oil bottle, Xu Zhi naturally has strong capital.

As for this so-called "drag oil bottle", in fact, it will not be a problem in another year or two, first, that is, the lie created by the red wine industry will one day be recognized, because people who drink a lot of red wine and do not make themselves in other diets should still get diabetes, not to mention, genetic recombinant technology is developing rapidly, cheap insulin will soon appear, when the threat of diabetes disappears, the market for various high-calorie foods and beverages will expand rapidly, and the liquor industry will return to normal or even further expand.

The Pepsi trade with the polar bear soon had to be terminated, because in recent years, in addition to the United States, Brazil, the global breadbasket, other countries due to climate reasons caused by the collapse of food production, while the price of oil fell, the polar bear's foreign exchange income will also plummet, in the absence of food and foreign exchange, vodka will also become scarce, Pepsi trading methods have to change.

If history is not affected, then in order to get enough coke, the polar bear exchanged a large amount of arms with PepsiCo, including 17 submarines, 1 cruiser, 1 frigate and 1 destroyer, Pepsi at that time after obtaining these ships, the American media jokingly called the world's sixth largest fleet, although these ships are abandoned by polar bears and sealed in warehouses, but they are much stronger than the active naval equipment of many countries.

No matter what Pepsi does with these warships, as long as Polar Bear's vodka does not come around the U.S. market, it is the best news for the U.S. liquor industry.

Therefore, now that he has acquired Huberline's liquor business, he may not be able to make a lot of money in the future, but he will never lose money, not to mention, he also has a big move, that is, to move the factory to the mainland, and at the same time, at the end of the 80s, the domestic market began to open up, which is also a new opportunity.

"If it's only two years, it shouldn't be a problem, but I need to consult the board again. Jack Marshall thought for a while, nodded and agreed, the huge mergers and acquisitions in the U.S. capital market, it is normal for some funds to postpone the transaction, after all, many people's plan is to acquire the company, split the profits, and then repay the acquisition funds, although there are profits in the middle, but the space is not large, many people take a routine similar to the empty glove white wolf, so they are unwilling to take the route of loans, because with huge loans, the risk expands, and the profit decreases.

Of course, it is also possible that the buyer just puts the money in the hands of the seller in order to save two years of interest, and the problem between this is to see how the seller and the seller play.

Jack Marshall then asked: "Mr. Xu, since you intend to acquire the entire Huber Line, we also hope that this is a normal business merger and acquisition, not a financial speculation, so we hope that you can make a commitment on employment and follow-up operations, and will not split the Huber Line Company at will." ”

"You have too much to manage, if it weren't for the loss of the liquor business, I guess your group of directors would also like to split up to obtain higher benefits. Xu Zhi vetoed strongly. The previous acquisition of Disney was because in order to cope with the level of the U.S. government department, he had to make some commitments to ensure employment and stable operation, and Xu Zhi himself would not make big moves against Disney at will, because many of Disney's insiders are top talents in the industry.

But what is Huberline? Although it is not small, it is only a brewing and food company, and as long as it is not a top grain merchant like ABCD who can control the global grain trade, the US government is eager for foreign capital to buy such ordinary enterprises to increase domestic GDP and promote more employment.

After the acquisition of Huberline, KFC's business will definitely focus on development, but the packaged food business, which is not large in scale and relatively low-end, is naturally sold if it can be sold and cashed out a certain amount of money to reduce the company's debt pressure.

The liquor business, according to the current market situation, should not be easy to sell, naturally to stabilize the development of the main, the layoffs will be laid off, or transferred to the KFC department as needed, after a few years, the liquor industry will pick up, and then make the next decision according to the situation.

In short, I will never do anything I promise, and I may be able to be merciful not to lay off employees in the future, but I will never make any promises at this time.

"......" Jack Marshall was speechless, and for a while, the atmosphere in the office became more awkward.

Xu Zhi looked at the other party's expression, and suddenly understood, and said, "Mr. Marshall, are you worried about your future?"

"Yes, Mr. Xu. Jack Marshall can only admit embarrassedly that he, as the top executive of Huberline, is actually just a manager, and some of the shares he owns are only annual year-end bonuses, and the share is not much, for him, the amount of the transaction is not important, what matters is what the new owner will do with the whole company once the transaction is completed.

If the other party really only values KFC, then his CEO will inevitably be thrown aside, and even if he is not laid off, he will be squeezed out of the top echelon of power.

For people like him, money doesn't really matter, their previous year's income is enough for the average person to achieve financial freedom, as long as they don't live too luxuriously, the previous accumulation can easily live for a lifetime.

But people always have a goal in life, there are more rich people in the world, but few people retire completely when the money is enough to spend, most people still continue to struggle, not only for more money, it is important to realize the value of their lives, or in other words, they have been addicted to the huge power brought by money and capital.

There are many such people under Xu Zhi, so he naturally understands the other party's thoughts, and after a pause, he said: "I can tell you bluntly that I acquired Huber Line Company for KFC, so after the acquisition is successful, KFC will definitely be split from Huber Line Company and become an independent company."

But I won't be in a hurry to make other businesses in Huberline, you can continue to manage all the remaining businesses, I will give you two years, if you can make the company survive successfully, I will continue to keep the whole company, of course, if you have the ability, the company's business development is very good, then I can also inject more funds, and at the same time use some of my own channels and resources to let Huberline's liquor sell to the world!"

Jack Marshall nodded, he understood what Xu Zhi meant, but he still said: "Mr. Xu, Huberline Company's liquor business has been losing money for several years, during this time, I have carried out several layoffs and closed two factories, and achieved certain results, and the loss has also been reduced, but the current situation is that the entire market continues to deteriorate, and if the company lays off again, I am afraid it will affect the future development of the entire company, after all, if the liquor market recovers, we also need enough manpower to engage in business." ”

"There is some truth in what you said, the deterioration of the entire market is indeed not so easy to overcome this difficulty. Xu Zhi nodded and said: "However, I don't agree with you, since the U.S. market is shrinking, but foreign markets can also be developed, so let's do it, I have a Xiangjiang company under my umbrella, which has a large number of retail channels in Asia, which can help you develop the Asian market."

But there are still ways to save costs on the American side, and since there can be no more layoffs, then reduce the wages of everyone to reduce costs. ”

"I can give it a try. Jack Marshall nodded.

"By the way, did Huber Lane form a union?" Xu Zhi remembered an important question.

"Yes, they're really troublesome, but I can handle it, and if they make trouble, I'm going to shut down the whole factory, and it's a big deal to move the factory to Asia or Mexico. Jack Marshall was afraid that Xu Zhi and a Chinese would not understand the power, so he hurriedly said: "Boss, although moving the factory will increase the cost, but you must not bow to the trade union, with this time, there will be a second and third time in the future, and the trade unions of other factories will also follow suit, and in the end, it will form a big trouble, and the automobile industry is a lesson from the past." ”

"Don't worry, although I'm not an American, I know very well what is at stake here, and I can't afford to provoke American unions. Xu Zhi smiled and waved his hand, later generations of mainlanders have basically heard of the strength of the American trade unions, especially the automobile industry, several financial crises, UAW (American Automobile Union) negotiated with the three major auto giants several times, and killed GM and Chrysler in 2009.

Although it represents the interests of the workers, the UAW has long become a parasite of the auto industry, organizing strikes against auto companies and imposing high membership fees on auto workers, resulting in the biggest enemy of American automobiles is not Japan or European auto peers, but its own unions.

In other industries in the United States, there are unions that are not as strong as the UAW, but the capitalists are reluctant to pay attention to these people, and many entrepreneurs would rather close or move factories in the United States than let the unions succeed.

For example, Wal-Mart in later generations had 4,000 retail stores in the entire United States, but none of them had internal employees who had a union, because as long as one branch established a union, then regardless of the store's operating conditions and geographical location, the headquarters ordered it to close down directly, without any room for negotiation.

The closed stores naturally suffered heavy losses, but this also prevented other Wal-Mart supermarkets from forming unions, setting up one by one, and everyone lost their jobs.

After all, Wal-Mart supermarkets are service industries, and the service industry cannot withstand continuous strikes compared to traditional factories, and if this happens, the losses are much greater than a few stores.

Therefore, Wal-Mart supermarkets in the world have only established trade unions in supermarkets in the mainland, and none of them are feasible in other countries.

"It's good that Mr. Xu understands the reason. Jack Marshall said with a smile.

Xu Zhi continued: "But one thing you said is right, we can move the winery to the mainland, where the cost is very low, there are also a lot of tax concessions, and the Chinese have always had the habit of drinking, there is a huge market, even if you get a very small part of the market, it is enough to live a very nourishing life!"

"Okay, I'll focus on the situation in the mainland. Jack Marshall agreed.

Xu Zhi nodded, and said: "After talking for a long time, this is all in the future, should we discuss the issue of acquisition now." ”

"Mr. Xu, I can only participate in this part, I just come to confirm whether you have the intention to buy the entire company, if not, I need to try to convince you, if you agree, then the board of directors will form a team to negotiate the next step. Jack Marshall said with some embarrassment: "After all, my position, it is not suitable to participate." ”

"Okay, I know, for the rest, I'll get Goldman Sachs involved. Xu Zhi also understood, after all, he really made the acquisition, Jack Marshall still wanted to continue to maintain his position in the company, if he was in charge of business negotiations, Huber Lane's group of board members naturally did not believe it.

This is not uncommon in the United States, where companies with strong boards of directors do not trust M&A deals with top management organizations because they have their own interests involved.

The follow-up negotiations were naturally handed over to Goldman Sachs, an investment bank, to be responsible, although the fees were not low, but the service was considerate, and all kinds of economic risks and legal issues in the acquisition would be assessed by them, and then handed over to Xu Zhi for confirmation.

Xu Zhi wants KFC, and as for Huberline, as long as the debt problem is clarified, and then the acquisition amount is assessed according to the actual situation, and the entire transaction is preliminarily confirmed.

The rest is on the side of the U.S. government, a food company, even if it is large, there will be no national security concerns.