Chapter 69: Competitive Advantage
First, the Paris Business Journal had no aristocratic backing.
The newspaper's owner was a merchant from Marseille who had inherited his family's business, and he was the sole shareholder.
Second, the newspaper's operations weren't looking good; it had applied for tax payment deferrals twice in one year, so it was likely willing to sell.
Finally, and most importantly, the Paris Business Journal boasted a very large printing workshop. It seemed they had intended to also offer printing services to other newspapers, but this venture evidently hadn't brought in much profit.
Joseph immediately decided this was the one.
The most direct way for him to enter the publishing industry was to acquire an existing newspaper.
He then shortlisted several backup options, and by the time he finished, the sun was already setting.
The next morning, Joseph headed straight to the Paris Business Journal's offices in northern Paris to discuss the acquisition, and of course, to personally inspect the newspaper's facilities.
The district where the Paris Business Journal was located wasn't particularly bustling, but a very spacious building by the river stood out conspicuously.
Joseph first looked around the newspaper's premises. The massive building was indeed the printing workshop, housing a full seven printing presses.
The artisans in the workshop pulled the meter-long handles of the printing presses, pressing blank sheets of paper onto the plates.
When they pulled the handles back up, a newspaper would emerge, freshly printed.
Dozens of workers bustled around, adding ink, air-drying sheets, and moving stacks, their movements swift and precise, clearly seasoned veterans.
After Joseph had inspected the storerooms and editorial offices, he had a general understanding of the newspaper's overall situation and was quite satisfied. He then hailed an editor, stating he wished to speak with the owner.
The editor quickly led their party to an office on the second floor of the newspaper building, pointing to a slightly plump, middle-aged man in an olive-green waistcoat and glasses. "This is Mr. Denicot."
Seeing visitors, Denicot immediately rose to greet them, bowing with a smile. "Welcome, esteemed sirs. Are you looking to place an advertisement, or perhaps have something printed?"
Joseph disliked beating around the bush. After returning the bow, he stated directly, "Mr. Denicot, I am interested in acquiring your newspaper."
Denicot immediately retreated to his chair, waving his hand and declaring, "Please, go back. It's not for sale."
Seeing Joseph remained still, he raised his voice. "Leave now, or I'll have to escort you out!"
Joseph glanced at Eman, thinking, 'According to movie tropes, shouldn't you step forward and declare, "Impudence! Do you know who stands before you, the Crown Prince?"'
Eman, however, clearly had no intention of interjecting.
Joseph merely pretended not to hear, continuing, "Could you tell me why you won't sell?"
Denicot muttered, head bowed, "I promised my father I would manage this newspaper well."
Joseph sighed, then sat in the chair opposite him, smiling faintly. "I'll offer 150,000 livres for its acquisition. And you can still manage the newspaper's operations."
He had brought his accountant, who had already roughly estimated the value. The newspaper was worth about 120,000 to 140,000 livres, primarily due to the property and the printing workshop.
Denicot was stunned. The newspaper had been operating at a loss for over a year, and he'd thought anything over 100,000 livres would be a good sale. He hadn't expected such a high offer from this young man.
He began to inwardly struggle but still shook his head. "No... my father, before he passed, instructed me..."
Joseph nodded. "160,000 livres."
"But..."
"170,000. My final offer."
"Paid in full?"
"Yes."
"170,000 livres... Sir, are you certain... you wish to acquire my newspaper?"
"Yes." Joseph gestured for his accountant to show the newspaper owner proof of his 170,000 livres in bank assets.
Denicot stared into Joseph's eyes, confirming he wasn't joking. After struggling for a good while longer, his shoulders suddenly slumped, and a look of resignation settled on his face. "Oh, alright then, it's yours."
He thought to himself, 'Dear father, you can't blame me, he simply offered too much...'
Joseph's lawyer immediately produced the pre-prepared contract for both men to sign. Afterward, the accountant and Denicot departed for the bank to settle the payment.
The banks of that era were not particularly efficient, and given the substantial sum, the procedures took over two hours to complete. The full amount wouldn't be entirely settled until three days later.
On the way to the bank, Denicot had already inquired about Joseph's identity from the accountant. He felt incredibly lucky that day, not only selling for a substantial sum but also establishing a connection with the Crown Prince.
By the time he returned, he had become exceedingly deferential, repeatedly assuring Joseph that he would certainly manage the newspaper well for the Crown Prince.
Joseph offered him some encouragement, then asked, "What was the newspaper's profitability like previously?"
Denicot stammered, "You know how it is, people nowadays love sensational news. A paper like ours, focused on liberty and idealistic content, finds it difficult... well, we lost 1,200 livres this year, though we did make a few hundred in the first half of last year."
Fearing the Crown Prince might reconsider, he quickly added, "Actually, when business was better a few years ago, we could earn thousands of livres annually."
Joseph nodded. "Then I'll give you a salary of 1,000 livres per year, plus 5% of the newspaper's total profits as a bonus."
He acquired the newspaper entirely to win the war of public opinion, and the Paris Business Journal would be his crucial operational base. Therefore, it was essential to maximize the motivation of the management and tie their interests to the newspaper's success.
Denicot could barely believe his ears. He'd sold the newspaper, no longer had to worry about its losses, and now he was offered such a high salary on top of that!
The Crown Prince was practically sent by God to save him!
Overjoyed, he eagerly pledged his loyalty, swearing repeatedly that he would spare no effort to satisfy the Crown Prince, ensuring the newspaper quickly returned to profitability and expanded!
He then heard Joseph say that he intended to increase the salaries of the newspaper's management and core technical artisans by 20%. He hastily interjected, "Your Highness, the newspaper is still operating at a loss; it's not advisable to increase expenses by such a large amount."
Joseph smiled. This man was indeed conscientious, immediately looking out for his finances.
"It's alright; the business situation will improve very soon. Do as I say."
Joseph didn't dwell on the salary issue, immediately moving on to the main topic:
"Mr. Denicot, how many skilled plate-making artisans does the printing workshop currently employ?"
Current newspaper printing technology was still quite rudimentary. The text portion used movable lead type, which was relatively inexpensive.
All pictorial elements, however, required copperplate intaglio printing technology, where artisans meticulously engraved copper plates, which were then fitted into the movable type blocks or printed separately. As engraving plates was extremely labor-intensive and time-consuming, this was the most expensive part of the entire printing process.
Denicot replied without hesitation, "Your Highness, the workshop currently has five engravers, three of whom have over a decade of experience and are quite well-known within the coppersmiths' guild."
Joseph nodded. "Please prepare some finely textured chalk lithographic stones, cut to the size of drawing boards, with one side polished smooth. I'll need about 40 of them. Have those three artisans bring them to Versailles Palace; I have something I need them to work on."
Chalk is a type of limestone, readily available as a construction material and inexpensive.
Denicot asked, surprised, "Chalk? Are you planning to repair the floors?"
Joseph smiled faintly, shaking his head. "They're for lithographic printing."
Denicot's eyes widened. "You mean, printing with stone slabs?"
"Precisely."
Joseph knew very well that to utterly dominate the existing publishing industry, high-quality content alone wouldn't suffice. He needed to attack from multiple angles—cost, distribution channels, and more—leaving no opportunity for other publications to retaliate.
My newspaper's content will be exceptional, selling for only 1 sou per copy, or even just 8 deniers. Your newspaper, with its ordinary content, sells for 4 sous. How will you compete with that?
And when it came to cost control, stone slab printing, also known as lithography, was a powerful weapon.
Due to inexpensive raw materials and simple, rapid plate-making, the cost of lithographic printing was only one-fifth, or even one-tenth, of current copperplate printing!
Another powerful tool for cost reduction was cheap papermaking technology—making paper from wood pulp. If it could be mass-produced, it would reduce paper costs by 70%. Historically, this papermaking method even sparked Britain's newspaper revolution.
With these two technologies backing him, Joseph was fully confident he could push newspaper prices down to less than one-fifth of current levels while still making a profit.
Of course, cheap papermaking technology had relatively high technical demands, and he wasn't entirely confident in it. However, lithographic printing wasn't overly complex, and experienced plate-making artisans should be able to master it quickly.
Subsequently, Joseph instructed Denicot on several immediate tasks, such as increasing the newspaper's staff, boosting ink and paper inventory, and designing a completely new newspaper layout titled "News and Pictures."
After roughly organizing the newspaper's affairs, and with dusk approaching, Joseph casually asked Denicot before leaving, "Excuse me, are there any relatively large papermaking workshops near Paris?"
Denicot immediately gestured northeast. "Saint-Antoine Town has one. Your Highness, half the paper used in Paris is produced there."
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