Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 863 The Future's First Furniture Supermarket: Home Depot
Unless they are desperately short of money, many companies, especially IT companies, are more concerned with what kind of business assistance they can get from receiving investment.

Yang Wendong said, "At present, apart from funding, my help to your company is indeed not very significant. I can only help Microsoft in some small ways."

For example, in the gaming industry, many of my games are preparing to enter the computer market. These games can be developed for floppy disks using Microsoft operating systems, or we can discuss and arrange for some games to be placed directly on your company's system.

“This won’t be of much help,” Bill Gates said. “The main market for computers is still commercial. Although our goal is civilian use, we are still quite far from that point.”

Yang Wendong nodded and said, "Yes, but it's only a matter of time. And being a businessperson doesn't mean you can't play video games. At least you can relax after work."

Computers in this era cost around $2000, which is considered a luxury in the United States where the average salary is $1000 today. Only large companies or wealthy people can afford to buy them.

Apple's goal is to make computers affordable for every family, but the electronics industry still needs to adhere to Moore's Law, and it will be at least a decade or more before that goal is achieved.

“We will not refuse this cooperation,” Bill Gates nodded.

Yang Wendong smiled and said, "In the future, I will also develop some commercial software specifically for your company's operating system."

It's not that he can't create an operating system, but rather that even if he did, it wouldn't be very meaningful because he lacks the necessary background to sustain the industry.
Unfortunately, in this era, the Western market is still dominated by the US. When the US positions its operating system as a matter of national defense and security, no other non-US brand can survive, not even US allies like Europe and Japan.

Google, Facebook, and other companies in the future will follow the same pattern. Their technology is indeed not bad, but it is not that they have no competitors. The main problem is political.

Historically, a Japanese professor once attempted to develop his own operating system, simply intending to create a Japanese version, but then he died mysteriously.

As a time traveler, Yang Wendong didn't want to confront the state apparatus. Success would only lead to suppression, and failure would bring no benefit. Rather than going through all that trouble, he preferred to pursue other safe industries.

As for the system, you can just invest in Microsoft and participate in the economic returns. After all, even if you develop your own operating system, you still need to share the pie. You might as well let Bill Gates go down the original path and just reserve a piece of the pie for yourself in advance.

Bill Gates asked curiously, "What kind of commercial software?"

Yang Wendong shook his head and said, "This cannot be disclosed at the moment; it is a trade secret."

He doesn't participate in the operating system, but the profits of some other software are no less than those of the operating system, such as the Office suite;
With the development of electronic hardware, office software has gradually emerged;
These software programs were once a money-making tool for Microsoft. Since they couldn't take away the operating system, developing these was a good alternative.

Of course, the reason why the Office suite was so popular in the past was because of the powerful national background of Microsoft. It would be much more difficult to operate it on your own and reach the same level as the past. But it was still a piece of cake comparable to the operating system.
Bill Gates thought for a moment and said, "Mr. Yang, if that's the case, it won't actually be of much help to us."

“That’s very true, but doesn’t funding help?” Yang Wendong countered. “With enough funding, you can hire more people, update the system faster, and thus capture more market share, not just IBM, but other brands as well, right?”

Paul Allen said, "Then we can also accept investments from other people?"

Yang Wendong laughed and said, "The market doesn't have a good view of pure software companies right now. Everyone thinks that software is just an accessory to hardware."

Bill Gates asked, "So Mr. Yang is very optimistic about software?"

“You could say that,” Yang Wendong nodded. “You all know a bit about my reputation. If I invest in Microsoft, it will definitely attract the attention of venture capital funds in Silicon Valley. This will make it easier for you to raise funds in the future and obtain more capital, which will allow you to develop.”

If you don't accept my investment, then I'll have no choice but to invest in other operating system software companies.

In this era, Microsoft is certainly not the only company making operating systems. Many large companies, such as HP and other computer companies in the United States, have also outsourced their software development. There are still quite a few competitors.

Bill Gates frowned. He understood that this was a threat, but it was normal; capital would always act this way. So he said, "Mr. Yang, Microsoft has only just received an order from IBM, and the revenue is not yet fully balanced. If you were to examine our finances now, it would be very unprofitable for us."

“That makes sense. Don’t worry about that. When investing in the electronics industry, we won’t value it like a normal company. We’ll look at the future.” Yang Wendong said with a smile, “Today we’re only discussing whether you’re willing to accept my investment. As for how much to invest, what percentage of shares to take, and Microsoft’s valuation, those can all be negotiated later.”

Just like the internet industry in the past, the valuation of the electronics industry cannot be determined solely by current profits. Otherwise, a company like Apple, which has only been established for a few years, could never have a market value of nearly $20 billion.

It's important to understand that in this era, $20 billion is a huge sum of money. The entire foreign exchange reserves of mainland China don't even amount to that much. Some large automobile groups that have been developing for nearly a century only have a total market value of around $50 billion.

Bill Gates nodded and said, "Okay, but I have one more request."

"What are your requirements? Please tell me," Yang Wendong asked.

Bill Gates said, "I hope that in addition to financing, you can also provide us with a batch of low-interest loans. We need enough funds to expand our team."

“That’s easy to say, but you’ll need to provide collateral,” Yang Wendong replied.

He knew, of course, that Microsoft could certainly repay any loan amount, but business rules still applied, and they had to appear normal. "Okay, we can use other shares as collateral," Bill Gates said.

Yang Wendong said, "Alright, I will arrange for someone to liaise with you. However, I am about to leave the United States, so I hope to get a general conclusion from you in the next few days, on how many shares I can get."

Bill Gates quickly replied, "No problem, Paul and I will discuss it as soon as possible and decide how many shares to give you."

“OK, I’ll also spend a few days in Washington State. I hope things will turn out well then,” Yang Wendong nodded and said.

Washington State is located in the northwestern United States, and is geographically distinct from the city of Washington, D.C.
This area is considered a weak point in the US economy, with its main industries being agriculture, animal husbandry, and forestry. Its industrial sector is not very developed, except for some Boeing factories. However, no one could have imagined that Microsoft, which would become the world's largest company, would be born here.

Even the future headquarters of Amazon will be in Washington state, but due to its own butterfly effect, it is hard to say whether there will be an Amazon in the future.
With nothing worth investing in, Yang Wendong looked around and found that there were quite a few farms here, but none of them were as large as those in Texas, or even if they were, they weren't for sale. As for small and medium-sized farms, Yang Wendong was too lazy to invest in them.
His future plans for agriculture and animal husbandry require very large land areas. Too much land that is too small will only increase the company's operating costs. This is why companies like Cheung Hing Properties and Hongkong Land in Hong Kong would not purchase small properties for operation.

On July 16, Yang Wendong received a reply from Bill Gates, stating that Microsoft was willing to give up 15% of its shares, the value of which would need to be negotiated between the two parties.

Yang Wendong's original idea was 20%, but he didn't insist on it. He wanted to get 15% first. If he acted too hastily, it would seem abnormal.

Of course, the current 15% will continue to be diluted in the future, so further negotiations will need to include other demands to maintain this percentage.

However, he was not in a hurry. There would be plenty of opportunities in the future. Even after Microsoft went public, its initial market value was only a few hundred million dollars. Compared to its future market value of hundreds of billions, spending some money to buy shares after its IPO would be the same thing.

The next step, naturally, is for the Hong Kong headquarters to send someone to assist Huang Baitao in negotiating with Microsoft.

Subsequently, Yang Wendong took a private jet to Atlanta, the capital of Georgia, USA. Atlanta is actually one of the cities in the United States that is more famous for gambling, but it is not as well-known as Las Vegas.

Of course, Yang Wendong's visit here has nothing to do with this, nor does he intend to invest in the properties here. Rather, it is here that a future top-tier retail group will be born.
The person who came to pick them up at the airport was also a person in charge of Changxing Group in the United States, named Jonathan, a native of the United States.

As Changxing Group develops in the international market, it cannot continue to adopt a policy of employing only Chinese people. In some middle and senior management positions, or in overseas management positions, there will be British, American, and even German and Japanese people, etc.

On the one hand, it is also to meet the needs of the international market, and on the other hand, it is because the number of local talents in Hong Kong is not large, especially in this era of everyone speculating on real estate. Many capable people have gone into real estate speculation. This is unavoidable. Even Yang Wendong cannot change this. If he were a young person in the 80s, he would definitely have gone into real estate speculation first, rather than engaging in any real business, at least not in the early stages.

"Hello, Mr. Yang," Jonathan said politely.

"Hello, Jonathan." Yang Wendong smiled and asked, "It's quite hot now, you must be tired."

Jonathan laughed and said, "You're too kind, but it is indeed very hot. Let's get in the car first."

"Okay." Yang Wendong nodded, and then the group got into the car together;
On the way, the two started with casual conversation, but soon got to the main topic.
Yang Wendong asked, "Jonathan, how's the investment with Home Depot going?"

Jonathan replied, "Many aspects have been agreed upon, including the price. However, their founder wants to meet with you before signing the contract."

“Okay, then let’s arrange a meeting as soon as possible,” Yang Wendong nodded and said.

Home Depot is poised to become one of the top ten global retailers and one of the top three retailers in the United States.
However, unlike Walmart, it doesn't sell everyday goods; instead, it operates in the furniture market, which is also very large and has created the future largest American furniture giant.

It was founded in 1978. Some time ago, when Yang Wendong was in Hong Kong, he was looking up information about American companies and accidentally discovered it. So he arranged for his colleagues in the United States to contact it and wanted to invest in the company.

However, Home Depot initially rejected this sudden investment. After receiving feedback, Yang Wendong insisted that his American colleagues continue to persist. After six months of communication, perhaps because Yang Wendong's reputation in the United States was gradually growing, Home Depot became more willing to cooperate and started talking.
For Yang Wendong, although Home Depot will be a giant in the future, it is still a small industry now, and it is not an electronics technology industry like Apple or Microsoft, so he did not get involved and just arranged for his subordinates to negotiate.

However, after the negotiations were almost complete, Home Depot requested to meet with Yang Wendong.
Upon learning this, Yang Wendong, who was already in the United States, agreed. After all, the founder's ability to reach the top level globally in a certain field was in no way inferior to Sam Walton's, and he was worthy of being associated with him.

On that day, Yang Wendong checked into a five-star hotel in Atlanta. The next day, he arrived at the headquarters of Home Depot, which is currently located inside a chain home furnishing supermarket. Home Depot only has three chain stores at present, and it has only been in business for two years. It is already quite good that it has achieved this result.

"Hello, Mr. Yang." Several American men came forward to greet him.

Jonathan quickly introduced, "Mr. Yang, these two are Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank, the founders of Home Depot, and this is..."

"Hello, Mr. Marcus," Yang Wendong said politely, shaking hands with him.

In this world, there are actually many successful entrepreneurs, but relatively few become famous. Those who do become famous are usually the top billionaires, such as Bill Gates, who ranks first, or those whose products are closely related to consumers' daily lives, such as beverages, automobiles, home appliances, and electronic products.
Many other industries, even if they succeed in starting a business, don't have much fame. These include heavy industry, chemical industry, and non-civilian cutting-edge technology industries. Home Depot is one such example. Even though Home Depot has become one of the world's largest companies, in terms of fame, not to mention Bill Gates, even Sam Walton is much better than him.

In terms of wealth, Home Depot's future is also top-tier.

PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
(End of this chapter)