Although the Harry Winston jewelry store was not a landmark in Las Vegas, it was definitely famous enough. He flagged down a cab outside the hotel and told the driver the name, indicating that he knew the store.
The black driver seemed to be very active. After Li Du got in the car, he said, "If you want, you can smoke in the car, sing in the car, or drink in the car."
Li Du was puzzled. "Huh?"
The black driver looked in the rearview mirror at Godzilla and Big Quinn, who were sitting in the back seat, and continued, "If I say something wrong, don't be angry, and don't let your men beat me up!"
Li Du laughed and said, "You misunderstood. It won't be like that. My men are very good-tempered. They are two good people."
The black driver grinned. "If I were as big as them, I think my temper might not be very good."
Li Du said, "Relax, we are all good people, and so are you."
The black driver smiled easily. "Yeah, yeah, of course, of course, we are all good people, all docile lambs of God. By the way, why are you going to Harry Winston? "
The taxi drove on the street. The street was full of cars and pedestrians, so the car could not go fast. There were also many traffic lights, so it had to stop after a few steps. Hence, the taxi drivers in Las Vegas were very good at chatting.
Hans had told him that the security in Las Vegas was not very good. For safety reasons, Li Du said vaguely, "I want to buy something."
The black driver said, "Are you going to buy jewelry? If so, you are really going to the right place. Have you heard? Harry Winston is going to close down. If that's the case, I think the jewelry there must be very cheap. "
Li Du asked in surprise, "Harry Winston is going to close down? How is that possible? "
Although the jewelry company he was going to was not the world's top luxury store, it was very famous and had a high status in the jewelry industry. There should not be a risk of closing down.
The black driver shrugged. "You don't know? Ha, of course, people still don't know. These d * mn capitalists are too cunning. They are now busy moving their assets … "
Li Du said, "How do you know?"
The black driver continued to shrug and said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, how do I know? I just know because I am the omniscient and omnipotent super driver, Angie."
This answer was no different from no answer.
Li Du took out his phone and began to search for information about Harry Winston. He had never understood the luxury goods industry. Now that he was about to enter the industry, he had to learn more.
Yes, he planned to enter the luxury goods industry. His experience of searching for fire opals had taught him that it would be overkill for the little bug to only participate in storage auctions. There were more suitable jobs for it.
For example, going deep underground, deep into the ocean, deep into the mountains to search for gems and treasures.
There was a lot of news about Harry Winston on the internet. Searching for the keyword "bankrupt" yielded a lot of news, but most of it was unreliable and was just gossip.
After searching for a while, Li Du noticed that there was such a message.
Just two years ago, BHP Billiton, the world's largest mining company, cooperated with Harry Winston and sold its diamond business for $500 million.
This time, it was a diamond mine called Ekati. It was located in the northwest region of Canada, close to the Arctic Circle. The geographical environment and climate were very harsh.
The Ekati diamond mine was the first diamond mine in Canada. Harry Winston hoped to acquire this raw ore area and combine Canadian diamond processing and marketing skills to produce more top-grade diamonds and expand the brand's market share.
It was a good plan. Harry Winston's business included both diamond mining and brand retail. If there was a diamond mine in this mining area, they would be able to make a lot of profit.
In the end, from some of the news reports, the situation at the Ekati diamond mine was not optimistic. Harry Winston had been duped by BHP Billiton!
Before acquiring the Ekati diamond mine, Harry Winston had proposed the idea of "Ice Crystal Soul" and set up a new sub-brand to specialize in the operation and promotion of diamonds excavated from the Arctic.
However, this idea had not been introduced to the market. Harry Winston's explanation was that, considering the global economic downturn, people's purchasing power was low, and they were waiting for a better opportunity to launch a series of products.
However, there were reports that the actual reason was that the Ekati diamond mine was nearly exhausted. Without high-quality diamonds to produce, Harry Winston could not launch this series of products.
Harry Winston was not the U.S. government. Without a strong national bank to rely on, they were under a lot of financial pressure.
Currently, the luxury industry was in a slump. Many luxury companies looked brilliant, but in fact, they were mainly supported by bank loans.
Half of Harry Winston's $500 million came from loans. Hence, after the failure of the investment, they had a lot of internal problems.
Loans were all dependent on operations. It would be fine if the funds could operate smoothly. However, if the operations were blocked, it would be disastrous. It could lead to a financial paralysis.
Looking at the news, Li Du hesitated. If Harry Winston's situation was really that bad, he probably would not have bought his fire opals.
He had brought a lot of fire opals, worth at least $5 million.
To a normal Harry Winston, this amount of money was nothing. They had once spent $20 million to purchase a 101-carat legendary diamond. However, that was a normal Harry Winston. Was it still normal now?
While he was hesitating, the car had already reached the Las Vegas Strip, the main road named after the city.
The Metroplex Shopping Center, Hard Rock Casino Hotel, Belle Palace, and other famous buildings appeared in front of Li Du. There were more tourists here, pedestrians, and cars.
Harry Winston's shop was located here. Its exterior was an inverted heart-shaped building that shone with a cold, silver light. It had lines that looked like they had been carved by a knife and axe, like a huge, perfectly cut diamond.
When Li Du got out of the car, a handsome Caucasian man with blond hair and blue eyes opened the door for him with a smile. He bowed and said, "Welcome to Harry Winston, the most beautiful diamond, the most beautiful jewelry, the most beautiful life."
Godzilla and Big Quinn got out of the car expressionlessly. The handsome man's smile froze for a moment, and then he looked at Li Du with a more respectful gaze.
An Asian with two strong bodyguards must have a powerful background. There was nothing wrong with being humble, the handsome man thought to himself.
Li Du did not know what he was thinking. He smiled and nodded. "Thank you. Your shop is not closed yet, right?"
The handsome man hurriedly said, "We do not close at midnight. You can arrange your time."
Li Du nodded again and walked into the jewelry shop.
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