America 1919

"Now, do you all understand my requirements?"

Seeing Donnie's expression, everybody immediately nodded in understanding.

Tom Hudson even directly stated, "I'll contact Robinson from the Atlantic City Post right away and announce our condition!"

Only then did Donnie nod in satisfaction.

Jim Chugor said, "Boss, the staff stationed in other cities have also sent telegrams, and their situations are somewhat better than Atlantic City's, as those are all megacities. So, I wanted to ask if the condition we're applying to Atlantic City should also be extended to the other cities?"

Donnie nodded as if it was the most natural thing in the world, "Of course. The United States is a country of equality and freedom. Do you want women from those cities to accuse us of regional discrimination?"

The manager of the advertising department, Olidru, spoke with some difficulty, "Boss, if that's the case, our advertising sponsorships may face some troubles. The brands we are in touch with already have skeptical attitudes towards the Miss America pageant. If we open up this condition, I worry they might abandon us for the sake of their companies' reputations!"

"Olidru, remember this!" Donnie said gravely as he looked at Olidru, "Our main sponsor has already been secured. As for those smaller ones, don't worry about what they think. As long as our event is successful enough to attract the attention of the entire United States,

then they will surely give up their pathetic pride for the traffic we can provide!"

Brand honor?

Such a concept simply didn't apply to Donnie. In his view, every brand in this world, as well as in the future world, had one and only one goal with their so-called brand honor.

And that was to make their products sell better!

European businessmen discovered diamond mines in Africa, so they crafted diamonds into symbols of love and harvested the wallets of generations of women.

If this world required men to need diamonds instead of women, they could even have made diamonds symbols of friendship right from the start.

The same goes for celebrity endorsements. As soon as a star is embroiled in a scandal, the brand would be eager to announce the termination of their contract with that person.

Do you think they truly care about their brand honor?

No, it's because they understand that a scandal could cause the celebrity to lose fans, and being blacklisted would subtract the flow of traffic the celebrity would have brought.

If the star isn't blacklisted and their fans still possess enough purchasing power, the brand surely won't give up on the star. In fact, some might even continue to seek ways to cooperate with them.

Take the case of a certain popular idol from the later generation—how loudly his fans protested, even prompting the state media to step in.

But what of it?

The idol just needed to lay low for a while before making an immediate comeback, and the so-called national brands would still scramble to sign contracts with him.

So, all that talk of brand honor and culture is nothing but deception by corporations.

And right now, Donnie had a huge advantage; the thoughts of American women were in an enlightening phase of opening up, and when it came to beauty pageants, Starry Entertainment was the only player in the entire nation.

Under these circumstances, the Miss America pageant was inevitably going to become a hot topic of national conversation.

Who would care by then what the participating girls did for a living?

Moreover, Donnie wasn't without means to handle these people!

Seeing Donnie's firm stance, the rest of the people in the meeting room naturally didn't say anything more. .net

Then the manager of the accounting department, Terry Rollins indicated to Donnie that all funds had been transferred into the Miss America beauty pageant's account.

Donnie expressed his satisfaction.

After the meeting ended, Donnie returned to his office where John was already waiting for him.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"The situation in the West District is progressing smoothly. Eli told me to ask you when the auction could take place since he knew I was coming to see you today," John said.

Under the absolute suppression of force, the West District had experienced some chaos at the beginning, but it had now moved from a phase of disorder to one of ordered development.

However, to avoid unnecessary conflicts, the West District had already begun to auction off properties street by street.

"Did Eli say what Nucky thinks about this matter?" Donnie asked John.

John replied, "Eli said that after Nucky returned from Washington, he discussed it with Eli. The only concern Nucky has is what to do with the numerous pubs, lodging apartments, and casinos that will be vacated in the West District; how should the empty houses be dealt with?"

The number of houses on the streets of the West District is fixed. Previously, these buildings served as pubs, lodging apartments, and casinos, but now they were not viable for business due to Donnie's plans, though there was compensation from auction fees and increased regulatory fees.

But this could still leave parts of the West District feeling somewhat empty.

Donnie said, "It's simple, those establishments that survive this upheaval will surely expand, and that will take care of some of the empty spaces. As for the rest, we can start pharmacies, restaurants, pool halls, amusement arcades, boutiques—all sorts of places for tourists to eat, drink, and be entertained."