Helping with Adventurer Party Management - Chapter 400

There’s a story I once heard.

At a certain factory, no matter how much the workers were told the importance of reducing inventory, they just couldn’t seem to grasp it. 

So, what did the consultant do?

They piled up a mountain of unsold inventory right at the factory entrance—where the workers came in every day.

After that, the excess inventory supposedly decreased dramatically.

It’s an old story I read in a management book, so my memory’s a bit hazy, but it shows just how powerful visual impact can be.

Most workshops don’t allow others to tour their work areas. Each one has its own specialties, and artisans can tell a lot about another’s skill just by looking at their jigs and tools.

But in reality, most workshops don’t possess such advanced techniques. If they did, they wouldn’t be operating in the third-class district.

Most of it’s probably just tradition and custom.

Now, I wonder how the master craftsmen would react after seeing our company’s workshop.

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“I’d like you all to take on the repair work for the Guardian Shoes.”

The bosses looked confused when I made the proposal.

Shoes are expensive for commoners. Repairing and adjusting them to fit is one of the main sources of income for a workshop.

So why give that away? What’s the catch?

“There’s a business reason for it.”

Guardian Shoes are made for adventurers—people who fight and travel. They wear out fast. Deep mud, sharp rocks, monster fangs, weapons—there’s no end to things that damage them.

We’ve provided maintenance oil, but that alone isn’t enough. And now the company is constantly receiving shoes in need of repair. The more we produced, the more repair requests came in.

So how do we handle that?

The company had to make a decision.

“Instead of keeping the repair work in-house, we want to outsource it to everyone.”

The masters had mixed reactions.

“You want us to repair shoes we didn’t even make? Are we supposed to work under you now?”

“I’m offering paid contracts. I see this as a fair business deal. I don’t appreciate that kind of framing. Besides, aren’t there already many of you who’ve done repairs on Guardian Shoes?”

Some of the masters looked away at that.

“What I’m proposing is a long-term partnership. We’re going to make a lot of shoes—enough for every adventurer to have a pair. And the more we make, the more repairs will be needed. If you work with us, we’ll train you to repair Guardian Shoes. We’ll provide materials. We’ll give you management templates and teach you how to use them.”

Maybe it all sounded too good to be true, because one master raised a hand.

“It sounds like a great deal, but it also feels like a scam. We’d like time to discuss it.”

“I understand. Take all the time you need. I’ll wait for a positive answer.”

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

From Gorgoro’s point of view, he’d definitely surprised the masters—but whether they’d actually move was another matter.

“They might agree eventually, but it could take a while. Old folks are slow to make decisions.”

“That’s a problem. I want to move fast.”

Delays in shoe supply meant delays in outfitting young adventurers.

“Hmmm. But if we pressure them, they might just say no.”

“If that happens, it happens. We’ll just try another route.”

“Another route? It’s not easy to find skilled craftsmen for repairs, you know?”

“No. If it comes to that, we’ll just scale up. Build a bigger factory. Refine the tools and processes so even amateurs can handle it. We’ll make so many shoes, people won’t need repairs—they’ll just buy new ones, like bread.”

“That’s a pipe dream.” Gorgoro laughed at my plan.