章節 579: Chapter 579: Long-Term Planning (Part One)
At the same time as Xia Yu acquired Sheliyuan Gold Shop and established Eternal Jewelry, the movie *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* was also hotly screening.
Initially, Universal Cinemas had twenty theaters, but after quickly acquiring Lisheng Theater, the number of theaters increased to twenty-four, all showing *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves*.
Despite Universal Cinemas having many screens and seats, even with the full promotion of *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves*, it could not dominate all the screening resources, so other movies were also shown during this period.
Unlike the previous life, this time Galaxy Film Company standardized its film production, so the scripts were prepared in advance. Leveraging the advantages of Universal Brokerage Company, the quality of *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* saw a significant improvement.
In the previous life, *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* could claim the top spot for Hong Kong films in 1979, with a total box office of 5.44 million Hong Kong dollars.
This time, under the favorable conditions of timing, location, and human resources, *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* became a huge hit. Movies urgently released by Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest aimed to compete with it but ended up being overshadowed.
In its first week of release, *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* grossed 2.62 million Hong Kong dollars, with Universal Cinemas taking a 55% share, amounting to 1.44 million Hong Kong dollars. Universal Cinemas' own peripheral stores made a profit of 120,000 Hong Kong dollars, totaling 1.56 million.
Besides *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves*, four other films were also screened, all of which had been rigorously reviewed and deemed to have some screening value. After one week, these four films, under the halo of *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves*, still collectively earned 947,000 Hong Kong dollars, with Universal Cinemas' share being 520,000 Hong Kong dollars.
Thus, in the first week, Universal Cinemas achieved a total revenue of 2.08 million Hong Kong dollars, marking a successful start.
In the second week, *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* continued to perform strongly, with the total box office reaching 5.34 million Hong Kong dollars. Including the four films still screening, Universal Cinemas' total revenue slightly increased again, reaching 2.21 million Hong Kong dollars.
A month later, the total box office of *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* reached 8.76 million Hong Kong dollars. Although it only ranked third in 1977, it had already surpassed last year's highest box office record for 1978.
Universal Cinemas' share of the revenue was 4.82 million Hong Kong dollars. Galaxy Film Company, based on its investment share and distribution share, received 24% of the total box office, amounting to 2.10 million Hong Kong dollars in the Hong Kong market.
As for the distribution work outside Hong Kong, Galaxy Film Company took charge. Now, *Laughing Fist and Strange Moves* was being screened enthusiastically in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, though these were temporarily unrelated to Universal Cinemas.
Over the course of the month, Universal Cinemas achieved a gross profit of 6.93 million Hong Kong dollars. After deducting labor expenses and copy costs, the net profit reached 4.85 million Hong Kong dollars.
When this figure was released, Jiang Zhiqiang was ecstatic and immediately reported the good news to Chairman Xia Yu.
This surprising number delighted Jiang Zhiqiang, but Xia Yu only smiled faintly. Though this seemingly small figure represented a significant market share, it also symbolized a broad future, so he valued it highly and encouraged Jiang Zhiqiang to continue working hard and reach new heights.
After this achievement was exposed, the industry was shaken. Shaw Yufu and Zhao Wenhua were both dismayed.
But these were stories for another day.
Rewinding time to April 4th, on this day, Mike Lihao ended his 12-day northern trip and finally returned to Hong Kong.
Various media welcomed Mike Lihao, and upon seeing him, scrambled for interviews. Mike Lihao knew that all sectors in Hong Kong were waiting for his news, and his answers would impact Hong Kong's stability.
Fortunately, he brought back the message that mainland China was "reassuring Hong Kong investors," which had a positive response in Hong Kong. Major newspapers quickly reported the results of Mike Lihao's visit to the mainland on the front pages, boosting confidence among domestic and international investors. The previously volatile stock market turned fully green.
However, some were confident about the mainland, while others remained anxious, such as the British businessmen in Hong Kong.
They heard a potential underlying message from Mike Lihao's press conference upon returning from the mainland: that Mike Lihao's northern visit had failed, and the mainland had drawn a clear boundary, showing no concessions on the Hong Kong return issue.
For a long time, the mainland had been blackened by Western media. With Hong Kong being just a sea apart, they had a deeper understanding of the mainland, and their views were deeply ingrained. Therefore, no matter what the mainland said, it was still hard for them to feel at ease, fearing the loss of their hard-earned assets.
Moreover, for those British businessmen, Hong Kong was a colony. Their roots were in Britain, and Hong Kong's market could not compare to Britain and Europe.
They had previously been reluctant to leave because they had established a foundation in Hong Kong and did not want to risk going back to Britain to start anew.
However, now they had to reconsider. Furthermore, with the domestic election situation in Britain becoming increasingly clear, the Labour Party was retreating under the Conservative Party's pressure, which meant that Britain would implement economic reforms and opportunities would be everywhere.
With this in mind, some cautious British wealthy businessmen began to seize the opportunity to sell off their assets to get a high price initially and then return to Britain.
Although this caused some turmoil, many Chinese tycoons took the opportunity to acquire assets at a lower price.
At this time, to implement Xia Yu's strategy of talent absorption and training, Jiuding Consortium, after communicating with Hong Kong Chinese University, decided to hold a recruitment fair at the university to attract fresh talent for its various companies.
Jiuding Bank, Jiuding Securities Company, Jiuding Newspaper Company, Jiuding Animation Co., Ltd., Jiuding Real Estate Development Co., Ltd., and almost all Jiuding Consortium companies in Hong Kong participated.
Entering April, graduation season was approaching. Fourth-year students had little coursework left and began looking for job opportunities.
At this time, the prestigious Jiuding Group companies, known for their excellent welfare and benefits, were willing to hold a recruitment fair at Hong Kong Chinese University ahead of time. The university's senior management was thrilled. President Ma Lin, who had just taken office last year, actively negotiated. Thus, on April 6th, a grand recruitment fair was held.
Graduates of Hong Kong Chinese University this year were all notified by the school. Even if their majors did not match, the school teachers suggested that students attend.
With the Jiuding Group's influence in Hong Kong and the presence of the legendary stock god Xia Yu, the entire Hong Kong Chinese University student body was excited.
Major media reporters also arrived, and the school, considering this a great opportunity to boost its reputation and help with admissions in the coming months, made an exception and allowed media reporters to enter.
Early that day, Xia Yu arrived quietly at Hong Kong Chinese University and met with President Ma Lin and other senior university staff.
"President Ma, hello!"
"Hello, professors!"
"Mr. Xia, hello. Welcome! You bring great honor to our university!"
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