Chapter 629
Bring Her Back to His Side
She had pounded her chest and guaranteed to her father that this project would definitely make money, but now that the store's business was this bad, let alone turning a profit, they probably wouldn't even recover their initial investment.
The Bennett family company really wasn't short on this little bit of money, but when Claire Bennett had still been at the company, every project that passed through her hands and all her performance had been obvious to everyone in the company.
Not only had she made Bennett Group a lot of money, she had also been especially easy to get along with.
Without comparison there was no harm, and after this incident, Ava Bennett's reputation in the company was pretty much reduced to just one thing: the boss's daughter.
Seeing Manager Song so absentminded, Olivia Lawson couldn't stop sighing to herself.
"Manager, if this gets in front of the chairman, I'm afraid you're going to get chewed out."
As soon as Olivia Lawson finished speaking, the phone on Ava Bennett's desk rang. She picked it up and listened.
"Come to my office right now." It was Victor Bennett.
Ava Bennett glared at Olivia Lawson and complained, "You jinx, you really called it."
"I'm going upstairs to get scolded."
So what if she got scolded? She was already Ethan Sterling's girlfriend now. Once she became the young mistress of the Sterling family in the future, if her father wanted Bennett Group to rise to the next level, he'd have to look at her expression first.
So Ava Bennett wasn't panicking at all.
When Victor Bennett saw that revenue report, he was so angry his heart felt like it was going to explode.
The moment Ava Bennett walked in, he hurled a stack of files at her head without any warning.
"Look at it yourself. Is there even any point in keeping this store open?"
"A perfectly good brand, and you've turned it into this. The company poured in so much before and after, and all of it went down the drain."
Now that she had hooked up with Ethan Sterling, Ava Bennett spoke to her father with much more confidence than before.
"Dad, this little loss doesn't really amount to anything for Bennett Group, does it?"
"If the Sterling family casually tosses us one project, it'll be enough to earn back ten times this much. Are you sure you want to curse me out over something this minor?"
Victor Bennett dropped into his seat in irritation.
A few days ago at the cocktail party, he and his wife Hannah Bennett had searched for their daughter like mad, thinking something had happened to Ava Bennett and she'd gone missing, only to finally find her hotel check-in record.
At the time, Victor Bennett had felt like he'd lost all the face he would ever lose in this lifetime, but Hannah Bennett had actually been especially happy, hugging Ava Bennett and saying she had promise.
After calming down, he also understood that even if the Sterling family had changed heads, Sterling Group was still no company the Bennett family could compare to. If Ava really got together with the young Mr. Sterling, it would only benefit the Bennett family, not harm them.
His tone instantly softened.
"But you still can't be this lazy. After the people in the company see this, how are they supposed to cooperate with your work?"
"If you can't come up with an effective plan to save this store, then cut your losses sooner rather than later."
Ava Bennett's eyes shifted, and she had no intention of closing the store.
If she shut it down now, wouldn't that be the same as telling Claire Bennett she'd admitted defeat?
Claire had Julian Sterling helping her, but Ava had Ethan Sterling by her side too.
Was it possible she still couldn't beat those two stray dogs?
"Dad, I'm not closing the store."
"Give me a little more time. I can definitely turn this store around, and business will be even better than Claire Bennett's Maison Verne!"
She turned and left, full of confidence. Victor Bennett could only shake his head helplessly and sigh.
Hopefully the young Mr. Sterling would step in and help.
...
Claire Bennett and Julian Sterling's business was booming. With Ms. Lane's investment, Maison Verne quickly opened a second and third branch, and with Ms. Lane's help, Claire had also built up quite a network in the high-end jewelry market.
Right now, she was discussing collaborations with several high-end runway shows so Maison Verne's jewelry could be worn by models for display.
Several projects Ethan Sterling had in hand were poached by Julian Sterling, and after the cocktail party his situation only got worse and worse. He was so busy every day he was completely overwhelmed.
Ava Bennett also kept coming to see him from time to time, insisting on private dates and making him accompany her to fashion shows.
A high-end show.
"This isn't just any ordinary show. If the jewelry in my store can collaborate with this runway, it'll definitely revive the store's revenue."
"Doesn't Sterling Group also have quite a few high-end fashion brands under it? If they can collaborate more with high-end runways like this, performance will definitely rebound quite a bit."
Ava Bennett's words did make Ethan Sterling suddenly see the light, even though he knew her motive was for herself.
"The jewelry from your little shop probably can't get into a runway this high-end."
Although the jewelry sold in Ava Bennett's store did carry a brand name, let alone a high-end runway, even an ordinary runway might not necessarily use it.
At best, hers counted as an off-brand.
"You went to all this trouble to get me to come watch this show with you because you want to use Sterling Group's influence to stuff your jewelry into the runway, don't you?"
Having been exposed, a flash of embarrassment crossed Ava Bennett's face.
She still forced out an excuse. "You misunderstood, Ethan. I... mine, that was just incidental. Actually, I just wanted you to spend more time with me."
If it weren't for the fact that Ava Bennett's suggestion could help him too, Ethan Sterling would never have agreed so easily to bring her along to this show.