Chapter 601 - 597: Endorsement

「Locke Entertainment.」

Dressed discreetly in a hoodie and sunglasses, Lily Sterling stepped out of the company elevator. The employees she passed all went out of their way to greet her.

"Lily’s here!"

"Long time no see, Lily."

"Hello, Ms. Lily."

Lily smiled and nodded to each of them in turn. She was no longer the inexperienced and shy newcomer she’d been when she first started. She was gradually developing her own presence.

"Lily!"

Suddenly, someone darted out, jumped up to pat her on the shoulder, and let out a huge shout, making Lily jump in fright.

She flinched and spun around. When she saw who was behind her, she let out a sigh of relief and laughed. "Beau, you scared me to death!"

As one of the company’s top agents, Beau was no longer young, but he had a lively and humorous personality, sometimes acting just like a kid.

He seemed very happy to see Lily. "Wrapped up filming on your new show? I haven’t seen you in ages. You’re clearly different from before."

Hearing this, Lily subconsciously glanced down at her outfit, asking in confusion, "Different? I don’t think I’ve changed much."

’I’m just a little thinner.’ she thought.

Beau clapped her on the shoulder. "Not your looks. It’s your demeanor and your presence. Before, whenever you came to the company, you were always so timid, like a little rabbit. It’s different now. You have the air of a seasoned artist."

Lily blinked. Now that Beau mentioned it, she realized she hadn’t noticed the change herself. Thinking about it now, her state of mind really had changed a lot.

"But that’s a good thing! It means you’ve grown!" Beau said, pointing to the poster wall in the company hallway. "Look!"

Lily followed his finger. The hallway wall was covered with posters of the company’s artists. The center position, of course, was rightfully occupied by Heather Keaton, flanked by some of the agency’s highly respected veteran actors.

And Lily’s poster was up there too. Moreover, for a newcomer, it wasn’t on the fringe but in a relatively central spot.

"The company has high hopes for you. Once you win at the Golden Magpie Awards at the end of the year, your position will change again. Keep it up," Beau’s encouragement rang in her ears.

Lily was thrilled, and her desire for the award grew even stronger.

"Here to see Connie?"

Lily snapped back to the present and nodded. "Connie said she had something to discuss and asked me to come to the office."

"Let’s go. I happen to have something to talk to her about too," Beau said, walking ahead.

Two people were already sitting in Connie’s office. When Beau led Lily in after knocking, both of them stood up. "Beau."

Beau smiled and raised a hand, then looked at Connie. "Lily’s here."

"Lily, come here." Connie smiled and beckoned her over. "I personally selected these two for you from within the company. From now on, they’ll be part of your team, mainly responsible for negotiating commercial deals and endorsements."

The two consisted of a man named Paul and a woman named Amy.

Both were elites from the company’s business team. Amy, in particular, had handled Heather Keaton’s business deals for a while when she was still a newcomer. Amy had secured several of Heather’s key endorsements, elevating her prestige by more than a single level and laying a solid foundation for her future status.

They both smiled and greeted Lily warmly. Since Lily was one of Connie’s only two artists, no one in the company dared to slight her.

Besides, it was practically an open secret in the company that Lily had powerful backing. With a sister who was a major industry player, she was guaranteed to have no shortage of resources in the future.

"Have a seat. We were in the middle of business," Connie said, then turned to Beau with a questioning look. "You needed to see me about something?"

Beau grinned and waved a hand. "I’ll tell you later. You guys talk first. I’ll just listen in."

That was just his personality, so Connie didn’t press him. She had Lily sit down with her, then instructed Paul, "Please continue."

Paul nodded, tapped his iPad on the table a couple of times, and said, "We’ve entered the second round of negotiations for the new endorsement. As for competitors, there’s Zoe Travis, but she’s negotiating a renewal. The fact that it’s stalled in the second round probably means she’s trying to upgrade her title or increase her price."

"The brand certainly has multiple candidates, but Lily’s momentum is quite strong, and they’re optimistic about that. Her dual nominations for the Golden Magpie Award are especially important. She has a high chance of winning, which is a key factor for the brand."

Betting on a newcomer was a gamble, but if they picked the right artist who then skyrocketed to fame, it would be a huge win for the brand!

Connie nodded slightly and asked, "Zoe Travis was previously a ’Friend of the Brand’ for MIUMIU?"

"Yes. And it seems she signed a two-year contract back then. If she can’t upgrade her brand title with this renewal and signs on for another two years as a ’Friend of the Brand,’ her age won’t fit MIUMIU’s target demographic two years from now."

"Besides, if she remains just a ’Friend of the Brand,’ it’ll be difficult for her to move up to Prada later on. Her team is probably pushing for ’Brand Image Ambassador.’"

To an outsider, celebrity endorsements might all look the same, but the industry is actually full of intricate hierarchies.

First, there’s the hierarchy of spokesperson titles. The highest level is, of course, ’Global Spokesperson.’

Below that are ’Asia-Pacific Region Spokesperson,’ ’Greater China Spokesperson,’ ’Brand Image Ambassador,’ and ’Friend of the Brand.’

Some brands even have titles like ’Cathay District Spokesman’ and ’Product Recommendation Officer.’

The ’Product Recommendation Officer’ title is almost negligible. Generally, new artists start their journey with high-end endorsements as a ’Friend of the Brand’ and then gradually move up.

A top-tier title like ’Global Spokesperson’ can only be secured right off the bat by artists with international influence.

Connie looked at Lily and said, "Lily, the first endorsement we’re negotiating for you is with MIUMIU. You’re aware of that, right?"

Lily nodded. "I know the brand, and I really like their products. It’s a sister brand under Prada, positioned somewhere between accessible luxury and high luxury, right?"

"You’re quite knowledgeable," Connie said with a laugh.

Beau, listening on the side, secretly raised an eyebrow. ’Connie is really spoiling Lily,’ he thought. ’To go for a high-end brand like MIUMIU, under Prada, for her very first endorsement...’

No newcomer had started with such a high-profile opportunity in recent years. Back in the day, even Heather Keaton had to start with a few second and third-tier brands before gradually climbing up.

Amy then said to Lily, "Lily, the reason these negotiations have stalled in the second round is that Connie wants to help you skip the ’Friend of the Brand’ stage. She’s fighting to secure the ’Brand Image Ambassador’ title for you directly to lay the groundwork for you to become a Prada spokesperson in the future."