This is an authorized translation in English of a post in French by Vincent Le Roy (@vincentleroy): LE DOSSIER VALMY (Thriller) : Chapitre 5
As my primary language is not English, there are probably some mistakes in my translation.
Remember that the person who speaks here is NOT me, Vincent Celier (@vcelier), but Vincent Le Roy (@vincentleroy), a French guy.
Chapter 5: Covetousness
At the dawn of the third day, we are all together again in the jar. Alex's lawyer remains imperturbable and this is the only posture he can adopt. From the first two days, he understood that his mission would be complicated if not impossible. It is even likely that he understood that his questioning is counterproductive, but worse, during the trial he will have a problem with a UFO like me. But, as he has not finished exploring the realm of possibility, he is feverishly turning pages of questions about the historical aspect. And I tell the story. The day before we had stopped at the signed contract, the euphoria of my shareholders and chemists, so logically, he wants to know what I did with the money.
In fact, successful tests and a million Euros in pocket, it's about structuring ourselves. I have thought long and hard about the future of the company. If from the beginning I fought to manufacture products to sell them after, I know that we will come up against the majors like Saint-Gobain with their glass wool and mineral wool or on the other side BAYER and BASF for polyurethane sheets. In other words, the war will be tough despite our tests that have just succeeded. Even though I have a bomb in my hands, from a financial point of view, I'm just a dwarf in the market. The sale of the Canadian license suggests that it would be easier to remain a provider of very high value-added technical solutions and sell licenses derived from our technologies. It's less jarring and much more profitable. We will see later about distribution. Above all, it will get us money, and we will need more money because the million will not be eternal.
For that, you need a laboratory so that my chemists can continue to work. A platform to develop licenses and sales. The laboratory must have two parts: one to manufacture and optimize the resins that are the raw material and another more industrial to make the mixes, the formulations and even a space to develop the machines for future customers. Clearly, we need some space! Amiens would be ideal for this, located halfway away from everyone. And I make contact with the local Chamber of Commerce which does not hide its joy to see a floret arrive in the landscape. That will change them a bit from the dying industries and their social conflicts such as Goodyear.
The city is delighted to welcome our team and we find very modern premises. In 2004, the locals already have digital fiber and especially two platforms as we wanted, with an office space that can accommodate everyone. The region also contributes and finances 200 thousand Euros of technical equipment. In two months, the VALMY company has 700 m2 of brand new labs, 4 employees and even a secretary.
In the Canadian contract, it is expected that Mathieu will be trained by us and then fly away at the end of the first quarter of 2005 to Quebec to manage the structure, distribution and sales. This is what will happen for the first part. Mathieu is in all the sauces, he lives among us so to speak. Something should have bothered me at the time. His wife is pregnant ...
And Alex's lawyer wants to understand why it did not go as planned. Alex starts to sweat because he knows the truth. He knows that I will still kill him live. And of course, I will answer, calmly, laconic at the beginning of my sentences, ironic in punctuation. The lawyer sees that it is still wrong.
- Mathieu? Oh well, it's very simple. He became a dad in February and if everyone was aware of that, the child was premature and therefore could not travel. And so he was no longer expected to leave for Quebec. I admit, counselor, that at that time, we should have already reported it to your client because it was a first non-conformity. Moreover, your client has never considered putting someone else; at least, we never heard about it.
Alex gets up from his seat, he is red:
- I will not put a guy when there are no technologies.
And inevitably my lawyer puts him in his place by asking him to be quiet and with a naughty attitude:
- Dear colleague, is it possible for you to control your client or I will ask that he leaves definitely?
In the case of Mathieu, I do not care. Denis and I know that Mathieu is a complete incompetent. He is not stupid but he is not made to work. To strut would be his thing. Dad is perfectly aware of that and I guess he secretly hoped we were going to to drive him. Except that Valmy is anything but a day care.
In the real world too, Alex is trying to show us that he will succeed in the contract. He has tons of appointments and he takes me twice to Quebec in his luggage to show the product. I have to admit that the trips with Alex, it is first class, luxury hotel with suite and complete tour of the best restaurants of the city. And limousine with driver of course. Which is not unpleasant when it's full inclusive.
And both times, I visit several target companies. Both times, he found them through an Internet search from France or from his lawyer. The advertised networks are not really there. When I hand out the screen shots of the research to his lawyer, he takes the hit. He only has one way out: to demonstrate that there are no technologies and he knows from the outset that going on a technical pitch in front of me, it will be complicated.
If we do not care too much about Canada at this time, it's because our technologies are starting to be a bit of a hit and the business outlook is positive. The group was approached by the Lyonnaise des Eaux for filling the gutters of the Compagnie Parisienne de Chauffage Urbain (CPCU).
And while everyone is working in Amiens to set up the production of raw materials for Quebec and although Quebec is only a mail box, I develop the CPCU case. Ten years they have been looking for a product that is resistant to 250°C to avoid the arrival of water in case of flood in Paris and that their pipes does not explode in the city, completely paralyzing it. So I invited them to Amiens to see the product they were looking for.
In the laboratory, we show them the machine specially developed for this project. The pink product flows from the pipe, quickly it swells and surrounds the pipe. In a few minutes, it is dry and hard. Customers are amazed.
The idea is simple: VALMY sells the products in containers and the CPCU machines and subcontractors, duly trained by us, implement them in the middle of Paris. The customer wants to do a real test.
Trial or not, my commercial side takes over and I announce our conditions subject to a commitment of volume. CPCU is 200 tons a year of a product that costs one Euro per kg and that we sell at 20. It is 4 million guaranteed profits per year and without competition. In addition to the Canadian contract. And CPCU does not even discuss the price.
Of course, our board of directors considers as priority this beautiful prospect and the teams are mobilized for the first tests. This is even more promising than the boards and the insulation market in terms of margin. This point has not escaped Alex who is already applying for a license extension. This product too, he wants it. He is not shy about it. He sends me emails about it. He inquires. And inevitably, I gives the evidence to his lawyer who still does not disassemble.
In the end, Denis and I remain a little circumspect on this new request of Alex. First, the Canadian company is not moving as fast as expected. It's always a mailbox that's hosted by their lawyer. And we still have not seen the famous distribution networks that had to trigger sales.
Their lawyer interrupts me in my presentation:
- Mr. Le Roy, do you think we can sell products without production?
And pan! He has just shot himself in the foot.
- Counselor, I share your opinion, but I cannot be held responsible for the turpitude of your client. We had to give him a machine. It was ready but where to deliver it? Your client has no premises and no employee. The Canadian company is just a mailbox on the 46th floor of a tower, in your offices precisely! And then think about it: the machine would not fit in your elevator.!
Even the clerk explodes with laughter. Alex has just woken up again. He's fuming. His lawyer is murdering him live. He asks for an interruption to talk to him. The trainee is not very proud because she is the one who prepared the questions.
My lawyer agrees and our opponents isolate themselves to take stock. I take the opportunity to go smoke a cigarette in the street. He joins me and moderates my enthusiasm:
- This interrogation is theirs. If it is unfavorable to them, they will not communicate it and we will not be able to use it. It's a shame, you're perfect and you're doing trial by yourself.
It would be a shame because I still have to tell. But I understand the situation. As soon as the butt is crushed, we return to the jar. My opponents are installed again, more tense than before. their lawyer does not give up. He turns pages and pages of questions and then starts:
- Mr. Le Roy, can you explain CPCU failures?
And pan! He just shot himself again. But neither he nor Alex have understood. I can see him coming with his big shoes: to make me say that all technologies have failed. And so his client has nothing to do with it.
- Counselor, CPCU it was a project at VALMY. One more project among many others but very promising. Your customer did not buy these technologies. Nor did he begin to develop what he had bought or kept his promises. CPCU is out of contract.
And yet in the depths of me I know that it is this fucking project that precipitated everything and provoked the war. But at the beginning of 2005, I did not see this coming. In France CPCU is an anomaly. It is the only city so to speak that is equipped with an underground heating distribution network. Even Parisians do not know it. In Canada, in New York or in Moscow as well, it's basic heating. Alex understood it well. If CPCU is juicy for us, the bulk of the market is in the North American continent. And my way of packaging the product is so simple that you just need a location to formulate the products, put them in cans and make big money. Alex does not understand much, but that, he does! And he knows it's out of contract and for good reason: at the time of the contract, we did not have this derivative.
- You will explain all that tomorrow, Mr. Le Roy, thank you and I wish you a good day.
Back at my hotel, I plug the camera. The little ones are having dinner. I remember that I cried. But they did not see it. I also remember having wanted to tell my wife that I love her but Julie did not give me the opportunity. I still wonder how she can survive all that we have suffered.
It is still early in Quebec and I decide get some air. In fact, I will enter the first bar and get drunk. Tomorrow, the day will be terrible. We will have to talk about the war ...
-- Vincent Le Roy
Continue to Chapter 6
Introduction
Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4
