Chapter 260 Let’s Make a Bet

"Why are things in Brazil always so bad?" Franz wondered. He was really confused about the Brazilian's ability to get things done.

Take trade as an example. Austria imports large amounts of natural rubber from Brazil every year. However, their production capacity has barely improved, and the outbreak of civil war has caused their output to drop significantly.

It seems that Austria's rubber industry has a long road ahead, and relying solely on unstable import channels is not a long-term solution.

At this time, Franz was supporting the development of hundreds of scientific research projects, but not many of them could be profitable in a short period of time.

For example, the instant coffee, which he had high hopes for before, was not welcomed by Vienna's upper class, which was known for its luxury. Instead, it was awarded the "honor" of "the worst drink of the 19th century."

The only people who showed any interest in this invention were the military.

Military executives call it "black gold" because the bitterness of this drink has such a strong impact on people's taste, so there is no need to worry about being stolen by a soldier or being greedy.

Although its taste may be unacceptable for a while, some knowledgeable people were surprised to find that coffee has the same refreshing effect as alcohol after tasting it, and it is not easy to get drunk, which is not easy for soldiers to perform tasks. cause negative impact.

It is also worth noting that several other advantages of instant coffee are also a big factor affecting purchasing. First of all, it is much cheaper than fresh coffee beans, and it also lasts longer, usually one to two times longer than coffee beans.

At the same time, on the battlefield, if you want to use a coffee machine to grind coffee finely and then use precious fuel to brew it slowly, this kind of treatment is a luxury even for an officer, let alone an ordinary soldier.

But if you want to drink instant coffee, it is much easier. You only need a cup of hot water and wait for 1 minute to enjoy a cup of fragrant coffee.

This instant coffee can also solve the problem of excess coffee beans, but at this time Franz's coffee trees in Africa have just been planted, and this trouble will not occur until five years later.

With the official opening of the first department store "United Forces" near the Vienna train station, the new pedal sewing machine designed by Franz finally opened the market.

The sales volume of pedal sewing machines increased exponentially, and large orders came in like snowflakes. Only 1,000 pedal sewing machines were originally sold a year, but sales increased tenfold in one month.

It is true that the pedal sewing machine is indeed a major advancement in the history of sewing machines, but such growth is also due to the addition of the royal star effect, which gave this department store unprecedented attention.

Of course, it would not be possible without Adjani, the capable planner.

She came up with the creative idea of ​​having a pedal-operated sewing machine compete with a hand-operated sewing machine, and if the challenger using the latter succeeded, he would receive a prize of 10,000 florins.

This proposal indeed caused a great sensation among the people, not only those textile experts who wanted to get bonuses, but also many ambitious businessmen who wanted to use this to become famous.

Soon the news spread throughout Austria via railways and newspapers, and even many interested people in Germany and Italy expressed concern.

However, the result of the entire competition is shocking. It can be said that the pedal sewing machine completely beat the hand-operated sewing machine one-sidedly. No matter how skilled and skillful the user of the latter is, he will be ruthlessly crushed in the end.

Although many unexpected situations occurred during the competition, such as a certain machine malfunctioning, even if it was faster than repairs, the pedal sewing machine was far ahead, and the completion of the work was even worse.

In fact, the real value of this competition is not to prove that pedal-operated sewing machines are better than hand-operated sewing machines, but to open people's horizons and let them know this brand-new tool for the first time.

Most of the people who placed orders with Franz were factory owners, who were keenly aware that this new machine could greatly improve the work efficiency of textile factories.

The owners of clothing factories and tailor shops are also full of praise for the huge potential of this product, and believe that it will be an indispensable tool to ultimately improve the efficiency of the entire Austrian clothing industry.

But the problem came again. This time it was not that the sewing machine couldn't be made. With the help of the hydraulic press, Austria's precision parts manufacturing industry could be said to be the absolute number one in the world at this time.

The efficiency of the clothing industry has increased more than ten times, but the weaving industry still produces according to the previous market demand. The sudden increase in orders forced the weaving industry to expand production capacity.

However, they soon encountered an embarrassing problem: Austria did not have enough cotton.

Therefore, the dividends of this industrial revolution did not benefit ordinary people. Instead, they caused a wave of unemployment to a certain extent.

However, all this was within Franz's plan. Instead of reducing the scale of the industry, he took the opportunity to expand the scale and acquire a large number of competitors' factories and downstream industries.

The behavior of the Grand Duke was very abnormal, which made many people smell something different, but no one dared to place a bet.

Because they don't have the huge size of the royal family, they can't bear such exaggerated risks.

Moreover, the clothing industry in this era was just beginning. Both rich and poor people preferred to go to tailor shops to sew clothes. Only employees and some relatively wealthy technicians liked ready-made clothes.

But that is just a matter of price and style. The future world will definitely belong to the clothing factory. Franz firmly believes this.

Ajani was very puzzled by Franz's actions. Although the latter became the overlord of the entire clothing industry in a very short time, due to overcapacity and the employment of a large number of skilled workers who did not work, the profit dropped sharply.

Ajani was not one of those uninformed businessmen. She knew that Franz had established many plantations in Africa, but their scale was not enough to support the raw materials needed by the entire clothing industry in Austria.

For this reason, she even went to Mr. Sina (Honorary President of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the actual person in charge.), and the other party also believed that if it continued like this, Archduke Franz's clothing factory would lose money.

"Archduke Franz, have you considered suspending your acquisition plan?"

"Why?" Franz said.

"Take a look at the performance report. The profits of garment factories across the country are already very thin. If this continues, they may fall into a comprehensive loss. If the cotton crisis happens again, it will be a disaster for you."

Ajani expressed her concerns again, but Franz still looked unconcerned.

"This is not something to worry about. Besides, the sales of sewing machines are very hot now, and the profit can just be used to expand the scale of the garment industry. And I have told you before about the advantages of monopoly. As long as we occupy the entire market, everything will be fine."

"How is that possible! How can the nobles buy those cheap ready-made clothes? Moreover, farmers living in the countryside will not take the initiative to buy those expensive clothes. You know the living habits of those people. It is not uncommon for them to wear a set of clothes for more than ten years."

"A set of clothes can be worn for more than ten years. Do you know why? It's because of the price. They can't afford it. As long as we lower the price, it will be fine."

Ajani shook her head. She felt that Franz was a little too whimsical.

"If we lower the price, what's the point of our monopoly? Where does the profit come from? Archduke Franz, from ancient times to the present, no matter in which country, at any time, there are always people who can't afford clothes.

You are too naive! Just like you wanted everyone in this country to wear shoes before, you tried your best to make the soldiers of this country wear shoes in the end.

In fact, you have done well enough, this is a feat that Queen Theresa could not accomplish back then."

"Why don't we make a bet!" Franz said with interest.