5
Financial Crisis
Starting in the late eighties, Crawford’s best customers were not Australians, but the most stylish Japanese and Korean tourists, who loved the curated selections of the store’s famed retail buyers.
In the imported handbags and small leather goods department, she was one of six salespeople, three of whom were Asians—two Japanese and Helen, the Korean.
In the past decade, the Asian sales associates had brought in the highest sales commissions.
Their overseas customers were decisive and unstinting in their luxury purchases.
At the height of the bubble in Japan, when a businessman had to buy gifts for his wife or girlfriend, or both, he’d hand over an itemized list and salespeople would wrap up the purchases, with the appropriate labels denoting the respective recipients.
The financial crisis began midsummer in Thailand, then toppled like dominos cascading across Indonesia and South Korea, followed by Malaysia, Laos, and the Philippines.
The countries had borrowed in US dollars, and when their local currencies depreciated, their governments and corporations couldn’t pay their debts.
The failure to protect against currency fluctuations and the ensuing panic, among other factors, caused the terrible devastation.
John explained it to Helen like this:
“Just imagine: You’re a Korean worker who gets paid in Korean won.
You ask a friend who’s going to New York to buy a watch for $1,000 on your behalf.
She agrees to buy it, and you agree to pay her back in US dollars within a year with five percent interest. In your mind, you think you will owe $1,050.
“In November 1996, that $1,050 watch cost 840,000 Korean won.
“In November 1997, that same $1,050 watch cost 1,048,950 Korean won.
“Now you have to cough up the difference of over 200,000 won or $188. For the Korean, your watch just became twenty-five percent more expensive.
“Imagine running a razor-thin-margin business that’s growing rapidly and needs to borrow like crazy to survive, and out of nowhere the cost of your debt goes up almost five times.
Of course, you’d no idea that the Korean won would depreciate at that rate and that the dollar would become that much stronger.
Your salary hasn’t risen at a comparable rate, nor your investments. You can’t pay her back. Simple.”
Helen had not borrowed any money, and she hadn’t purchased any imported watches or designer handbags. As ever, she lived far below her means. Every Australian dollar she earned went toward her children’s costly overseas educations.
Bo was in Orange County, California, driving a van and tutoring.
In less than a year, he’d meet his California residency requirements, which would reduce his tuition costs and enable him to enroll at Fullerton College.
DH was in his second year at Yale, majoring in economics.
Although he’d received a private scholarship, it didn’t cover his books, allowance, or travel.
Mido wasn’t eligible for HECS, a government loan program for Australian citizens.
It had always been a struggle to keep up with the children’s education costs, but after November, the Korean tourists vanished and with them her commissions, making her budget unbearable.
Of course, Helen knew of wealthy women who had significant cash reserves for exquisite bags, French silk scarves, Japanese skin creams, and Italian designer clothes, but fear shut tight their purses.
The high heels worn by her best clients no longer clicked across the gleaming marble floors of Crawford’s.
In the food court, she’d spot them, but now they averted their gazes to focus on their cake and flat whites.
Helen stood sentry behind the counter anyway, waiting for the clients to return.
In the first week of December, the store’s general manager called Helen’s manager, Scott. Three heads, the GM demanded.
When Helen got the call to appear in Scott’s office, she sensed what she was about to hear.
“I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry, but Crawford’s has to let you go.
I apologize, Helen. You know that I think you’re a terrific salesperson.
The business has changed so much. The finance people upstairs refuse to carry a loss.
I hate them.” Scott was a fair-minded person, and she felt upset for him.
“Things might improve over Christmas,” Helen said. “I’m trying to develop a new client base with the locals.”
“Yes, but you know how our team works. Our local clients have long-established relationships with Jenny, Clarissa, and Richard. You, Akemi, and Sara have taken a big hit. Sadly, you’ve taken the worst of it. I know it’s not your fault.”
“I can try to work just on commissions. Give up my salary if that helps.”
“That’s very kind, but Crawford’s wouldn’t let you do that.
I’m sorry, Helen. There will be a severance of two months’ salary.
I thought maybe if you looked for a position now, during the holidays, it might be a bit easier than looking in January.
I called a friend at DJ’s, but he said they were okay with seasonal people for now. Everyone’s nervous about the economy.”
“I can even wrap presents—”
“It doesn’t pay anything.” Scott exhaled, not knowing what else to say. He had to make two more of these speeches after Helen left his office.
“You can count on me for an exemplary reference. I’m hoping that this crisis in Asia will pass soon, and I can phone you in a few months and beg you to return. I promise you’ll be the first person I call.” Scott’s brow furrowed with concern.
She knew this was hard for him. Scott had always been kind to her when so many other Australians had been unfeeling. He had hired her all those years ago, not minding her accent, and arguing that it would be a good idea to have a native Korean speaker on his team.
“Thank you, Scott. You’ve always been a good boss.”
“I’m not the boss. If I was really the boss, I wouldn’t be doing this right now. I’m a midlevel chump.”
Helen laughed.
“You’re okay, though, right? Your husband still has a good job.
Of my six salespeople, I thought you’d be the safest.” When drawing up the list, Scott had considered that Akemi was divorced and had two children.
She was fourth place in commissions, but she was also the sole provider, so he had decided to save her job.
He’d ended up cutting Helen, Sara, and Clarissa, because they were married.
He handed her the envelope from Human Resources, and she accepted it.
A week later, John’s boss flew in from Seoul.
Taehun Shin had hardly aged. His hair had a few more streaks of silver, but he dyed it well enough that it looked natural. Shin could pass for forty. He brought his mistress, Danbi, who’d become a team leader at HRI. She’d never been to Sydney before.
Shin’s wife, Mary, still lived in their house in New Jersey while their middle son attended Fordham University.
Their older son was in his second year of law school at NYU, and the youngest was taking time off before college.
The boys commuted to school to save money.
Mary worked at a popular florist’s in Englewood and didn’t mix with the women at her church.
Her sons didn’t know about Danbi. Shin visited his family once a year.
Shin paid for most of the upkeep of both households, but since Mary and the boys almost never returned to Seoul now, he leased a studio in a high-rise in Apgujeong. During the week, Danbi slept at Shin’s apartment. She still kept a tiny apartment near the office.
On the flight to Sydney, Danbi had not slept much, so when they reached the hotel, she showered and fell asleep right away. Shin had trouble sleeping. In the morning, he had to fire John’s division. HRG was shutting down most of its business in Australia.
They were staying at a decent hotel, but it was not as nice as the one Danbi would have preferred. However, she was in a good mood because Shin had allowed her to accompany him to Australia.
In the middle of the night, Danbi woke up. She removed her nightgown and unbuttoned his pajama bottoms. Aroused, Shin woke up.
“Give me a minute. I need to go to the toilet.”
“Shower, please,” she said.
He grunted yes. One of the reasons he’d brought her was that Danbi acted like a whore in hotels, and he had missed this. When stressed, Shin needed to have sex more often, and she wanted it even more than he did.
Shin showered, toweled off, and returned to bed.
Danbi got on her knees and started licking him.
He held out, then said, “Get on top. Hurry.”
Taking her time, she turned on the lights, and he could see the fullness of her beautiful young body.
Danbi stuck out her pink tongue and continued to lick. In a flash, she mounted him and buried his face between her breasts.
Shin could not resist, and he closed his eyes.
“You have to get rid of her,” she said.
Shin felt close.
“Just finish,” he said.
“No,” she said, laughing, and dismounted.
“What?” Shin pulled her down, got on top of her, and continued.
She stopped smiling and tried pushing him off.
“You son of a bitch, I control this.” She smiled again.
Danbi tried to pull away, but he was stronger.
Shin slapped her bottom hard.
“Fine. Just try to finish,” she said.
He’d never hit her before, and suddenly he felt more foolish than sorry. They played these rough games, and sometimes Danbi could be cruel in her teasing. He was more afraid of her than he let on. Usually he let her get her way, but it felt different this time.
She climaxed, then, when he was done, she separated from him.
“You’re getting fired,” she said.
Shin stared at her, confused.
“You’re here to fire most of the Sydney office, but when you return, you’ll be fired. Then I’m all you’ll have left. I love you, so I’ll care for you always, but you’ll have nothing without me. Get rid of your wife.”
Shin sat up in the bed, not comprehending what she’d just said.
“Vice-Chairman Han told me.”
“Why would he tell you?”
“He did.”
“Are you fucking him?”
“No,” she lied. It had been a closed-door office blow job with her top off and nothing else. They hadn’t even had a meal together, although the vice-chairman had offered dinner afterward. She had declined, but she intended to reach out to him again for investment advice.
“I love you, Shin Taehun. You’re my whole life. You’ll be my husband.”
Shin stared at this beautiful girl who looked like an angel but had the heart and mind of a beast. It was hard to believe that she might sleep with that rich shithead with the comb-over. He told himself she wouldn’t.
“The vice-chairman is firing me and keeping you there because he wants you for himself. Your plan was stupid. Of course he’ll get rid of me now. What have you done?” Shin placed his hand on his forehead as if to still his mind.
Every minute with this woman had been insane and wrong, yet she compelled him toward her. His wife, Mary, was good and wise, but he had no interest in sleeping with the mother of his three sons. He was going to get fired, and no one was hiring in Korea.
“I’m not staying at HRI without you. We’re going to California. My cousin lives there and he is going to help us. I have money. Get rid of that woman and sell that house in New Jersey. You can split the proceeds. Then you’re going to marry me. I want to have a child. Two months ago—”
Shin turned, his throat feeling dry.
“I stopped taking the pill. I’m not pregnant now. Make me,” she said.
He got out of bed to find water.
In the morning, Shin went to the Sydney offices. The secretary offered coffee, but he declined.
In the fourth-floor conference room, he spoke to each employee on the list individually. In his career, Shin had fired numerous people. It wasn’t hard anymore.
At last, when John Koh entered the room, Shin got up from his seat and went to shake his friend’s hand.
Shin was wearing a suit and tie, and John remembered that he had left his jacket hanging on the back of his chair. What he wore didn’t matter. He was getting fired.
“Have you been well? It’s been a while,” John said.
“I’m getting laid off, too,” Shin said.
“I understand,” John said.
“What will you do?” Shin asked.
“I don’t know. Helen wants us to go to California. Bo’s there now.” He paused. “It’s hard to imagine starting again somewhere else,” he admitted.
“Life doesn’t give you the choices you like,” Shin said. “The IMF deal is going to shut down the markets for a while. If I had a lot of money, I’d buy up everything because assets are going to get cheap.”
John smiled in spite of himself. Shin was always looking for a good trade.
After she was let go, Helen had mentioned California again.
She wanted them to be with Bo, and John had been thinking about it.
What would he do there? There were no jobs for him with Korean companies overseas, and no jobs for him in Korea, where everyone in his family was gone. What was holding him to Korea?
“Maybe we can work together in the United States again,” Shin said.
John smiled. “I think my wife has other ideas. Maybe opening a small business.”
“I’m still with Miss Jung. She wants me to divorce Mary and marry her.”
John opened his eyes wide, incredulous, then shook his head. He had expected things between them to have ended by now.
“She’s not so terrible. I mean, what she did to you was not fair, I realize. She was afraid. When Danbi is afraid, she attacks.”
“Brother,” John said, “pay attention to your house. I don’t normally give you advice, but your wife is a fine woman. Maybe she can forgive you. A woman can sometimes put aside her pride better than a man. I’ve met Jung Danbi. It cannot be wise to share a whole life with a person like that.”
Shin did not reply.