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He walks back to the stationary bikes and crosses his arms over his large chest. It’s clear from his serious expression, he’s taking everything in.
“Should I abandon ship?” I ask, my tone mocking.
I brace myself for his verdict.
“That would be a huge mistake, Jules,” Levi says. “You’re sitting on a multi-million-dollar business.” Wh—what? “If you play your cards right, this is the kind of business you could sell for an eye-popping number to a whale company with very deep pockets.”
I can’t believe my ears.
“This isn’t a losing battle?” I croak.
“The only way you can lose this battle is if you give up. You’re at the cusp. Your dad created a pretty ingenuous concept right here.”
Chapter 16
Levi
Myriad emotions play out on Jules’s beautiful face. Surprise. Shock. Dismay. Relief.
“Are you kidding me right now?”
“I’m not,” I assure her. “I’m dead serious. You had me at Esports.”
She frowns. “When did I say that?”
“You didn’t say that exactly, but your dad’s app is based on the same concept as Esports.”
“You’re going to have to translate that for me.”
“There’s a bevy of online party games so you and faraway friends can play from the comfort of your respective homes.”
“Really?” Jules asks.
“Really,” I confirm. “You can even play Monopoly remotely.”
“Oh, wow.”
“If you want to take it up several notches, there’s Esports, aka, virtual video game competitions,” I continue. “You wouldn’t believe how many people watch virtual game competitions. It’s a billion-dollar business. Since the age of the gladiator, us humans thrive on competition. In the digital age, we no longer have to be at the same physical location. If we parallel this to your smart bikes, you’re about to revolutionize the industry. Regardless if it’s at home or at a gym, indoor bikes are notoriously monotonous. Your dad really nailed it. An app that allows you to plug-in and ride against someone else online––despite of their location or time zone difference––is fucking ingenious.”
“If only I could get the app to work properly and sync with the bikes. That’s the bone of contention right now.”
“Like I said yesterday, it’s a question of finding the right coder,” I remind her. “The potential behind this bike is huge. Think of stay at home moms––or dads––who have a limited time to workout. By competing against someone else, you just amped up your workout by a thousand fold. The same applies to the other fitness equipment.”
“Oh, wow.” She’s dumbfounded. “The price tag of these bikes is fairly steep, I thought boutique gyms were my main customers. That was Dad’s vision.”
“You have a much wider market than that,” I tell her. She frowns her confusion. “Other than stay-at-home parents and boutique gyms, you also have condo gyms and home gyms. I’ll go as far as to say, the number of actors on location for long stretches of time would jump all over this.” I pause. “I couldn’t sleep last night. After tossing and turning for a while, I decided to hit my home gym. With a bike like this one, I would’ve been able to find someone to compete with even in the middle of the night instead of pedaling alone.”
“That’s it! You got it!” she rejoices.
“Come to think of it, a lot of five-star and boutique hotels would also want this type of bike in their gyms instead of the basic ones.”
“Talk about dreaming big,” she shakes her head in disbelief. “I knew I was way over my head, but hearing your ideas, it solidifies what I thought all along––I don’t have what it takes to turn this business around.”
I place my hands on her shoulders. “I disagree, Jules.”
“How can you say that, Levi? You walk in here and in no time, you lay out expansion plans I was blind to.”
“You were trying to keep your head above water,” I tell her, my tone calm and soothing. “You stepped into the role of CEO of a company while you were grieving and adjusting to your new reality. Not to mention, you had to contend with your despicable stepmother. Since you only worked here part-time, and your father didn’t have time to prepare you for his succession, you were at a severe disadvantage. A lot of people would’ve folded. You didn’t. You persevered.”
