African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 14: Chapter 11 Heixinggen Consortium

The troubles of the Danish government did not affect Ernst at all, or rather, the suffering of the Danes created Ernst’s joy at this time.

The Second Schleswig War directly boosted the development of the Heixinggen Development Company, and the business level soared.

The expansion of the war would inevitably increase the Allies’ emphasis on logistics, with the powerful offensives initiated by the Allies, their daily consumption of supplies multiplied.

The demand for tobacco, an essential war material, continued to rise, and the Heixinggen Tobacco Company seized the opportunity to intensify production.

The new production line has been fully deployed, orders are pouring in, and civilian orders have been temporarily postponed.

The executives of the Heixinggen Company are all motivated by the favorable situation, with the boss having painted a beautiful picture, and the advantage lies with us. The Heixinggen Company is bound to reach new heights after the war ends.

By then, the well-funded Heixinggen Company will intensify its expansion into other fields, with new factories and units bound to increase, and new jobs await everyone.

As long as one is capable, they are very likely to become the head of a new department. Under the inspiration of such a grand blueprint, everyone is working harder to achieve better results and catch the boss’s eye.

The enthusiasm of the workers at the bottom is also high, and production efficiency has significantly improved, with the saturation of orders combined with the rollout of new machines, overtime pay has significantly increased.

Nothing motivates workers’ production enthusiasm more than an increase in income, and the industries of Heixinggen Company are all in manufacturing that requires little physical exertion, needing proficient control of the machines and more meticulous work processes.

Compared to the heavy manual labor industries of the same period, many lower-level workers want to work in Ernst’s factory.

The population of the German region in the 19th century was extremely surplus and continues to grow. The jobs created by industrialization obviously cannot meet the needs of the local population.

Over the years, not only have the German nobles been a source of fresh blood for royal families of various countries, but the residents of the German region are also the main force of world immigration.

A large number of German residents expand their means of survival every year, especially in the countries of North and South America, where German immigrants are an important component.

The German region has seen the emergence of many industrial cities, supported by a rich labor population and the spread of quality education, which has promoted the development of the German region’s industry. Even if, due to historical reasons, Germany has not yet unified, it still begins to economically surpass France.

The native France, limited by population and resources, has begun to lag behind the German region in the industrialization process.

Fortunately, France has colonies and world markets second only to Britain, which meets the needs of France’s industry and commerce for raw materials and markets. Unlike the relatively fragmented German region, France does not yet feel the pressure.

However, Prussia’s development over the years has still caught the attention of the French, but the French government believes that Prussia’s path to unifying Germany is still far away.

Meanwhile, the chaos in French politics has led to severe internal strife, with the Royalist Faction and Republican Faction entangled in conflict, often fiercely fighting against each other.

Napoleon III, though quite accomplished, is restrained everywhere, needing to carefully guard against the plots of the Bourbons and Orleans and also stem any disruptions from the Republican Faction.

As an old revolutionary base, France also has to guard against other political factions stirring unrest; a small demonstration could be exploited by those with ulterior motives and escalate into a rebellion.

Napoleon III ascended to power leveraging the prestige of Napoleon Bonaparte, and his authority is naturally limited, making it difficult to adopt strong measures to integrate the power of all France to compete in the world.

Despite this, with its rich political legacy and base accumulated over generations, France remains firmly in second place among the great powers.

In comparison, the German region, although dispersed and fragmented, has its independence hindering the development of the German economy. However, in modern times, German nationalism is on the rise.

Many insightful individuals in the German region are driving the unity of the area, with talents emerging in large numbers, all striving towards the same goal.

Even though there are conflicts such as the Greater and Lesser Germany debates, the unification process of the German region has instead advanced one step further.

The market, transportation, and resources quickly integrate, and nobles and capitalists with common interests actively promote the development of the German region to achieve the goal of unifying Germany and compete in the global interests.

Ernst is a beneficiary of this grand trend, and while it’s uncertain if a powerful motherland can provide him with protection and assistance, it is undoubtedly better than being a drifting hoe.

Ernst is inherently part of the top tier of German nobility, and if Germany unifies, Ernst’s noble status will see an increase in value along with the unification of the empire.

However, Ernst must still address present issues, with industry development, how to more smoothly dispatch and manage the resources in his hands is an urgent task.

To firmly grasp the current and future markets and strengthen the management of his enterprises, Ernst plans to establish a new commercial management center to complete the management of his enterprises.

The current Heixinggen Development Company shows signs of a large enterprise. With the increasing perfection of the household goods factory system and hardware facilities, many new product categories have emerged, at least, in terms of basic household goods, Heixinggen Development Company has formed a troika operation model driving the entire system.

Leverage the war, Heixinggen Development Company quickly completed the recovery of funds, and after profit, the construction of factories rapidly spread. At the same time, the commercial outlets and partners established earlier have formed a mature network, radiating in all directions centered on the German region.

Although the Heixinggen Development Company also faces resistance from some traditional craft industries, the competitors have not offered goods with the same price-to-performance ratio during the new product window period.

This led the Heixinggen Development Company to quickly establish a foothold in the field of household goods and expand the scope of the household goods field, forming considerable influence in this industry, representing advanced productivity unequivocally.

This prompted Ernst to decide to establish a subsidiary in the already mature field of household goods.

Tobacco is a highly profitable industry, and the Heixinggen Tobacco Company will be separated by Ernst to become an independent department.

Together with the previously established research center, this forms the current troika of the Heixinggen Development Company.

Above the troika, a supreme strategic decision-making body will be established, which will become the core of Ernst’s industry.

After repeated research, Ernst formulated the general plan as follows:

First, establish the Heixinggen Development Bank, forming the Heixinggen Consortium with Germany as the core through sole proprietorship and holding.

Second, establish an independent Heixinggen Tobacco Company, using Germany as the base, with sub-brand companies in other regions.

Third, establish a new Heixinggen Household Goods Company to take over all current factories of the Heixinggen Development Company outside the tobacco industry.

Fourth, establish the Heixinggen Science and Technology Research and Development Center to uniformly guide the product development and new market expansion of other departments.

In this way, a Heixinggen Consortium with the Heixinggen Development Bank at its core is born.

Apart from managing the current industries, the Heixinggen Development Bank will participate in current German emerging fields through investment and shareholding.

These fields are the important industries and core industries of the Second Industrial Revolution, which are focused on electronics, internal combustion engines, information (radio, telephone, etc.).

At this moment, it is just before the outbreak of the Second Industrial Revolution when the scientific and technological achievements that are still lying in laboratories or in the minds of scientists and engineers, which have not yet blossomed into robust new hopes, are the focus of Ernst’s investment.