Chapter 292 I Hope You Voluntarily Step Down as Chairman
After successfully acquiring 49.9% of Supplee Company's shares, Lin Haoran carefully calculated the total cost:
The financing amount was £10 million, the payments made to two shareholders totaled £11 million, and the stock market acquisitions plus related fees amounted to approximately £6.8 million.
In total, Lin Haoran had spent £27.8 million—equivalent to HKD 320 million—to secure 49.9% of Supplee Company's shares within one week.
Spending just over HKD 300 million to gain control of a British listed company that had been valued at over HKD 1.1 billion six months ago was, for him, a very cost-effective investment.
However, simply acquiring 49.9% was not enough; he now needed to seize control of Supplee Company and figure out how to counter the competition.
Naturally, he had already devised a plan.
Thus, on the morning of August 27th, at 9:00 a.m., Lin Haoran arrived at Supplee Company's headquarters on the South Bank of London.
Not only that, Tang Kun also accompanied him.
It was only after securing 49.9% of the shares that Lin Haoran informed Uncle Tang.
Tang Kun was shocked by the news but knew that the matter could no longer be changed.
Moreover, it was Lin Haoran's own decision; at most, Tang Kun had the right to advise but not to interfere.
Learning that Lin Haoran planned to seize control today, Tang Kun insisted on accompanying him, even bringing President Liu along, worried that Lin Haoran might suffer a disadvantage.
Naturally, Lin Haoran welcomed their support.
Both Tang Kun and President Liu were seasoned figures with decades of experience in London, and their presence made things much easier.
Compared to Tang Kun, President Liu was even more shocked at how quickly Lin Haoran had quietly acquired 49.9% of Supplee's shares.
After all, President Liu's original intention had simply been to bring Lin Haoran in to strengthen the company against DHL's malicious competition.
He never expected Lin Haoran's ambitions to be so grand—to stealthily seize nearly half the company.
"Haoran, with what you've done, I don't even know how to face Mr. Bill Stevens anymore.
We had a good relationship, and now by introducing you, I've basically brought a wolf into his home," President Liu said with a bitter smile.
When he had first invested in Supplee, it had been partly due to personal ties with Bill Stevens.
Now, thanks to Lin Haoran, those bonds were bound to be strained.
"Uncle Liu, if I hadn't invested, how could Supplee possibly compete against DHL?
Honestly, if you and the other shareholders had each invested an extra two or three million pounds, you wouldn't have needed an outsider like me.
But since no one was willing to inject more capital, doesn't that show your own lack of confidence in the company's future?
I easily purchased stakes from two shareholders—that speaks volumes.
Since you weren't optimistic about the future, why not let me try managing it?" Lin Haoran replied calmly with a smile.
He might have been a novice in the logistics business, but he had abundant financial power to back him up.
The challenges Supplee faced weren't insurmountable—they mainly needed enough resources to outlast their competitor.
Besides, Lin Haoran knew that the DHL of today wasn't yet the global giant it would become in the future.
At this stage, DHL was still developing—and Lin Haoran wasn't afraid of them.
More importantly, Supplee's inherent advantages remained strong.
DHL's only tactic was price-cutting.
Now that Supplee had enough capital to fight a price war, that advantage would evaporate.
Moreover, Lin Haoran had already decided: once he seized control of Supplee, he would launch a counterattack against DHL.
Why should they be allowed to bully Supplee on their own turf without retaliation?
The three of them soon arrived at the 12th floor of Supplee's headquarters—the Chairman's office floor.
"Ah, Mr. Liu, Mr. Lin, you're here!
Good news: since our price cut, our market share has been steadily increasing.
In just one week, our daily order volume has returned to pre-crisis levels.
Meanwhile, DHL's market share is declining," Bill Stevens, Supplee's founder and Chairman, greeted them enthusiastically.
At this moment, he had no idea that his position as Chairman was about to be taken from him.
Supplee, being a well-established British brand, naturally enjoyed strong patriotic support.
Local loyalty played a big role, just as in any country.
Thus, reclaiming market share quickly was understandable.
However, the greater the business volume now, the bigger the operating loss—since they were selling at unsustainably low prices.
How long DHL would persist remained to be seen.
Lin Haoran, however, believed that DHL would not easily give up on Britain—a crucial European market.
"Mr. Stevens, I have something to discuss with you," Lin Haoran said directly.
President Liu remained silent, even as he listened to Bill Stevens' cheerful news—because he knew what was coming.
Sensing that the atmosphere was wrong, Bill Stevens' smile gradually faded.
The office door was closed; inside were only the four of them.
"What is it, Mr. Lin?
Please, go ahead," Bill Stevens asked as they all sat down.
"In the past week, I have successfully acquired 49.9% of the company's shares.
Today, I am here to ask you to voluntarily step down as Chairman.
As the controlling shareholder, I plan to convene a board meeting to formally discuss and decide on my assumption of the Chairman's position.
Out of courtesy, I'm informing you in advance," Lin Haoran stated clearly and directly.
Bill Stevens' face turned pale as if struck by lightning.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
"Impossible!
Mr. Lin, how could you possibly hold 49.9% of the company's shares?" he protested.
While Bill Stevens still held 20.8% of the shares and thanks to the AB share structure controlled around 40% of voting rights, he was now powerless in front of Lin Haoran's 49.9% actual shareholding.
"Mr. Stevens, I have no reason to lie.
Both Mr. Elvin and Mr. David have sold me their shares.
In addition, I've acquired more shares through the stock market.
With my financial resources, securing 49.9% was not difficult.
I own several listed companies in Hong Kong, each with a market value surpassing Supplee's.
For example, Hongkong Electric alone is worth nearly £500 million," Lin Haoran said calmly.
Bill Stevens' last hopes crumbled completely.
In desperation, he turned to President Liu:
"Mr. Liu, we've been friends for years.
You'll support me, won't you?"
President Liu's 8% stake could bolster Stevens' side.
But even combined, it wouldn't be enough to resist Lin Haoran's absolute control.
President Liu sighed deeply.
He had already discussed this with Lin Haoran beforehand.
Even if he supported Stevens, it would change nothing.
Thus, President Liu said directly,
"Mr. Stevens, you should accept it.
Mr. Lin won't be staying in the UK forever.
At most, you're only losing the Chairman's title for a while."
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