Global Film Emperor

Chapter 473 Volunteers

“Piaget Watches, Global Brand Ambassador and Asian Spokesperson, three years, endorsement fee of 15 million dollars.”

Upon hearing this, Lu Ze became interested. This was the first time a top-tier watch brand had approached him seeking cooperation. You see, top luxury brands are notoriously arrogant. Unless they truly believe you match their image and temperament, even if you have a high level of popularity worldwide, the chances of them considering you are still very slim.

At the same time, because top luxury brands are never short of money, they offer huge contracts that attract countless celebrities and models who fight tooth and nail for them. After all, who wouldn't want an endorsement that is both prestigious and lucrative?
As a highly coveted contract, most potential endorsers would personally approach Lu Ze to negotiate. However, the fact that Earl personally approached Lu Ze, who currently lacks resources in the fashion industry, reveals a crucial piece of information: they likely highly regard Lu Ze.

Of course, there is a difference between a spokesperson and a brand ambassador. A brand ambassador is of a slightly lower rank than a spokesperson, and their relationship with the manufacturer is not as close. Their role is more about actually boosting sales and creating commercial value. However, the idea of ​​someone who is also an Asian spokesperson is worth considering.

You could say that it's unrealistic to expect the largest fan base in Asia to buy Lu Ze's products simply by using the title of brand ambassador. The brand didn't have that confidence, so they assigned the so-called Asian endorsement to Lu Ze to show fans that the brand valued him and thus encourage them to make purchases.

It can also be understood that the huge success of "Exile" has not made the brand fully trust Lu Ze. The current contract is only based on Lu Ze's resume and confirms that he is not an excellent candidate to cause trouble for the brand. Whether there will be further cooperation remains to be seen in the future.

Both possibilities exist, and the true situation will only be known when the contract is negotiated. There is no point in making blind guesses now. We need to see if Lu Ze is interested in it and whether he wants to learn more about it.

Clearly, Lu Ze was interested. He was a fan of Piaget watches in private. Although not a die-hard fan, he had collected a few. Many people might say that Piaget is nitpicking, focusing on ultra-thin movements and neglecting to improve the appearance of the watches, but Lu Ze really liked that.

The ultra-thin movement is comfortable for him; it's not heavy and is quite lightweight, which is why he often wears Piaget watches in his daily life. As for quality control... although Piaget's quality control is somewhat lacking, the brand's after-sales service is quite good.

They make money based on their reputation. This isn't a necessity like a car, so it's hard for manufacturers and dealerships to be assertive with customers. Similarly, customers have more choices when it comes to luxury goods than when buying cars. If they're not satisfied with what they buy from you, they'll just switch to another brand next time.

Lu Ze was generally pleased to receive the endorsement offer from Earl, because the value of celebrities is inflated and even more fragile than the internet economy. Endorsing luxury brands is actually a form of implicit value increase, which can have a significant impact on their income from their profession. This is why celebrities are so persistent in endorsing luxury brands. If you don't believe me, try having a big star endorse fertilizer and feed.

"Count, you should go and talk to him about this."

"Okay, Brother Lu, do you have any requirements for the brand?"

“I remember that Earl doesn’t seem to have a global brand ambassador right now. Go check the situation of the ambassadors in various regions. As for the requirements… see if you can sign a one-year contract with the same price, but make it clear that the brand has the right of first refusal to renew the contract after it expires, provided that neither party is at fault. If a major fault occurs before the contract expires, the cooperation can be terminated in advance. If it is the fault of Party A, Party B will calculate the daily endorsement fee, refund the endorsement fee for the remaining period, and terminate the contract, but Party A will have to compensate Party B for economic losses. If it is the fault of Party B… try to negotiate a lower penalty for breach of contract.”

Lu Ze didn't care about the penalty for breach of contract. The probability of him getting into trouble was so small that no brand in the world would have any concerns about whether he would behave himself.

"Okay, I'll leave tomorrow."

After communicating with Lu Ze about all the remaining endorsement offers, she agreed to accept only one endorsement offer and hung up the phone without any questions, even though there were several other good endorsement contracts available later.

Even laymen understand the reason: the more endorsements one has, the lower one's market value will become, and it will also arouse the resentment of the public. He is not the kind of person who makes quick money and doesn't care about tomorrow, so he works hard to make money. He has a long life ahead of him. For artists with a long career, the likes and dislikes of the public are far more valuable than money in the short term.

He turned off his phone, rested his chin on his hand lazily, and looked out the window. The weather was nice today, and the temperature was warm enough. Melted snow water was flowing gurgling from the building's drainpipes.

Even the sunlight gradually gained vitality, quietly spreading across his legs. When he first came back, it had only reached his feet, but now it was warming his knees.

I glanced at the computer, felt a headache coming on, and decided I didn't want to write anymore today. So I closed the computer, got up, stood by the shop window, looked out, and racked my brains. Suddenly I remembered that I hadn't bought any lanterns for the Lantern Festival. I had finally found something to do, so why was I standing there like an idiot instead of leaving?
I put on my coat, grabbed my car keys, and headed straight for the mall. But when I got there, I was dumbfounded.

"Why are there so many people?"

Lu Ze didn't dare get out of the car in crowded places, afraid that he would be recognized. If he were surrounded, not only would he suffer, but he would also cause trouble for the security personnel. He could only peer out of the car window, trying to make out any clues from a distance.

After watching for a few minutes, I still didn't know what they were trying to do. Staying in the car all the time wasn't going to work, and going home was even more out of the question. I was so bored staying cooped up at home all day that I finally decided to put on sunglasses and a hat and get out of the car to take a look at the crowd from the outside.

But as soon as I got off the bus, I ran into someone I knew.

Even though it's warmer today, the temperature is still below minus ten degrees Celsius. In this freezing weather, she was sitting by the roadside. If she weren't so light, a normal person would have cracked the blue plastic stool long ago. She was wearing thick clothes, pink fingerless gloves with a rope around her neck, and there was an information desk sign next to her. If you didn't see the words on it, she would look more like an animal on display in a zoo.

A woman walked over and said something to him, but Lu Ze couldn't hear her because she was far away. After a few words, the woman left, leaving Lu Ze sitting there. She had a good habit of not shaking her legs, but she was still shivering and had her legs tightly pressed together.

Her face was red from the cold. She brought her gloved hands to her mouth, breathed on them, and then pressed the gloves against her cheeks, probably feeling the heat. Lu Ze watched as snot dripped from her nose, almost flowing into her mouth, before she forcefully sucked it back in. The glistening snot residue left on her philtrum was wiped away with the back of her hand, making her look like a snotty-nosed child, which was somewhat disgusting. "What are you doing?"

"Brother Lu?"

She immediately recognized his voice, looked up, and gazed at the clock tower behind him. Her smile was somewhat embarrassed, but through those old-fashioned aviator glasses, Lu Ze seemed to sense a hint of joy in her unfocused eyes.

"You're out to see the light festival with your family?"

"No, I just came out to buy some things. Is it the light festival organized by the municipal government?"

"Ok!"

Hearing that he was alone, the shyness on her face seemed to dissipate a lot. She placed her hands on her lap, like a child listening to a lecture in class. But she didn't expect that the snot-covered patina on the back of her hands would also be fully exposed to Lu Ze. It really wouldn't have turned out like this in just a few days.

Lu Ze turned his head and looked around. He had heard about the light festival, but he didn't really know where it was. Judging from the huge crowds and the many license plates of other cities on the passing cars, the light festival must be very successful.

"So what do you do, a volunteer?"

"Hmm... Some tourists from out of town don't know the way, so I'll give them directions."

Upon closer inspection, it became clear that she was shivering from the cold, her toes fidgeting restlessly inside her shoes. Her feet were clearly frozen solid. Lu Ze had no doubt about her ability to give directions; she could recite directions from memory. However, the problem was that while she could help others, others couldn't help her. She didn't even dare to stand up and move around, remaining completely seated on the stool. How could she not be cold?

"Young lady, where is the public restroom? There are so many people here, the restrooms in the mall are all booked."

"At the first intersection, turn left and walk 50 meters. Don't cross the pedestrian crossing. Turn right and walk 20 meters. You'll arrive there."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, please take care."

The woman who had asked for directions left, a relieved smile appearing on her face. Then she added a new protective layer to the back of her hand. Lu Ze watched and slowly exhaled.

"Come on, let's warm up in the car."

"what?"

She was stunned, her mouth slightly agape as if she were in a daze. She didn't answer Lu Ze's invitation for a long time, and her toes were still twitching, as if she wanted to dig out a two-bedroom apartment from the soles of her shoes.

"Let's go, what's with the 'huh'?"

"No, no, thank you so much, Brother Lu, but... I still have to take care of tourists here, I really can't leave."

“Who says it’s not okay? If anyone says it’s not okay, let them come find me. Do you think you have to risk your life to be a volunteer? Getting this cold can easily lead to health problems. Listen to me, warm up before you come out.”

Without a word, Lu Ze grabbed her forearm and gently lifted her up. She stood up and almost fell over. It was obvious that she had lost feeling in her extremities. Perhaps she was afraid that her tug-of-war would be seen by others and make Lu Ze lose face. When she was pulled up, she did not resist obviously. She just said something tremblingly.

"Can I call the team leader to cover my shift?"

"..."

(End of this chapter)