Chapter 12 Since we have products, we naturally have customers and sales channels

Chapter 12 Since we have products, we naturally have customers and sales channels

Chapter 12 012 Now that we have products, we naturally have customers and sales channels (Part )
After the salon was over, Baron Sergei returned to his home at No. 4 Laundry Lane and began to arrange his marriage with Mademoiselle de Rivery. Anyway, his two children had no objection, and Yulia liked this lady from France very much. Mikhail also had no problem with it. After all, the old baron was going to remarry, and for European aristocrats, it was not surprising to marry a bride who had just reached adulthood, or even younger.

If the gentlemen of St. Petersburg knew how old General Bonaparte's mother was when she began to give birth, they would know that the gentlemen of France are even more beastly than they are.

Naturally, Mikhail had no right to take care of the preparations for the wedding. He now had a more important task, which was to have the Dolgorukov brothers bring their gadgets to the palace to recommend them to the ladies. What he had to solve was the production problem. At least he had gotten a lot of investment from the two brothers - their father was in charge of the Tula Arsenal and was a minister trusted by Emperor Paul. Even if he only took out some money from his family's assets, he could still get this done.

What's more, Prince Peter also persuaded some other people to invest, but he didn't expect that Madame Le Brun was very interested in their cosmetics business.

"Misha, what do you think? This respectable lady wants to join our business activities."

To be honest, in the European aristocratic circle, although the hierarchy is there, people in high positions sometimes do not have any airs. Madame Le Brun was just a very famous female painter, and many noble ladies respected her very much, whether she was talking to and even becoming friends with Queen Marie Antoinette and Madame du Barry in Paris, or when she arrived in the Russian court a few years ago and was preparing to paint a portrait of Louisa of Baden, now the Crown Princess Elizabeth Alexeyevna. The Grand Duchess felt very honored and even a little excited about her arrival.

After all, this poor girl came to St. Petersburg from Baden. Although Catherine II and Tsar Paul were good to her, her mother-in-law was not good to her. Alexander got along well with her at first, but at that time it was still the immature relationship between a boy and a girl after their engagement. After a long time, the freshness disappeared. In 1795, the Grand Duchess could still feel happy, but now it was very bad for her to become a Crown Princess.

She was very happy to have Madame Lebrun to chat with her.

This lady lived a relatively happy life in St. Petersburg. After all, her artistic creations still maintained the bright style of her peak period. Moreover, the orders from the local nobles were enough for her. However, she loved her daughter Julie very much, so she always wanted to keep more. The expenses of exile were also very high, especially since she had been an almost royal painter to the French royal family. The expenses in Paris in the past were extremely staggering. Moreover, her daughter Julie had grown up and was now a 17-year-old girl.

Naturally, there were many needs in various aspects. When she was painting a portrait of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna in the palace, she heard what Mikhail Dolgorukov said when he recommended these little gadgets to Ekaterina Pavlovna. The whole process was in French, so naturally Madame Le Brun could understand it.

Then, she decided to invest some money. Although it was not a lot, as a master of portrait painting, some of this lady's opinions were still worth referring to.

Finally, it was Solovyov who went there. It was convenient for him to go there. The lady often lived in Count Saltykov's house, but sometimes she also lived at 7 Million Street. With the speed of this lieutenant who was not tall but had fast feet, he could get there quickly.

But Solovyov did not notice who owned the house at 7 Million Street.
This three-story private residence seems to be divided into two buildings. No. 9 Million Street is somewhat related to No. 7 in terms of architectural style, but the exterior has been freshly painted, and even the decoration has changed, which can be seen from the windows. It is no longer the bright sky blue color often seen in Russia.

It seemed to have been sold to a foreigner who was doing business or working in St. Petersburg. There was actually a coat of arms under the house number 7 Million Street, indicating which family the residence belonged to.

"Count Skavronsky's residence. Enemies often cross paths. That annoying little devil has this last name. Maybe it's her house."

Because of its location, it is the intersection of Palace Embankment and Marble Lane, and it is also the top location in the residential area. Although its scale is not worth mentioning compared with the ridiculously large official residence of Prince Saltykov, there are Prince Gagarin's official residence, Count Saltykov's official residence, the Petersburg Military Command, the barracks of the Preobrazhensky Regiment behind the Winter Palace, and at the end is the Small Winter Palace in the Winter Palace complex.
Solovyov had no time to take care of this. This was the place where Madame Lebrun had agreed to meet. The female painter probably didn't know much about what had happened in Moscow, and it was unlikely that the older lady would use such a thing to play a prank.

"Hello, my name is Mikhail Soloviev, and I am here to see Mrs. Lebrun."

"Mr. Baron, my mistress knows you are coming here. Mrs. Lebrun is now painting for the two young ladies on the second floor. Please wait for a moment."

Prince Potemkin's niece married a diplomat. This issue has been mentioned more than once. Fortunately, although she is of German descent (her maiden name is von Engelhardt), most of the housekeepers and servants she hired are Russians. This is only part of the estate owned by the count. Those hired in some other official residences may be French. This family is very European.

While waiting in the reception room, Soloviev saw the portrait that Mrs. Lebrun had painted for the Countess last year. This lady was an excellent painter, but when the orders for portraits were tight, she would more or less correct the Countess's appearance for the customers. However, this portrait still showed that it was the Countess herself, a very round beauty. Of her two daughters, Soloviev had only seen the younger one, and he heard more praise about her in social occasions. Moreover, this girl was the only heir to the huge estate, and her sister's share was calculated separately.

In addition to this painting, there are some landscapes, portraits by other painters, and a statue of Catherine II, a marble bust modeled after a Roman one. The floor is covered with a Persian carpet that looks like it has just been cleaned by the hostess.

"You have been looking at the paintings on the wall, Mr. Baron, what do you think?" (You have been looking at the paintings on the wall, Mr. Baron, what do you think?)

Mikhail did not notice that the countess had appeared behind him. She was also present at Prince Saltykov's salon on Bolshaya Moskaya Street and had met Solovyov.

"Comtesse, I think there should be a painting in your drawing room that depicts an ancient myth or historical story, like this. I remember that Rubens had a similar painting, which would not occupy too much space, probably in the position of a landscape painting." (Countess, I think there should be a painting in your drawing room that depicts an ancient myth or historical story, like this. I remember that Rubens had a similar painting, which would not occupy too much space, probably in this range, in the position of a landscape painting.)
"My daughter thought you didn't speak French well at a salon in Moscow last year. It seems you've done a lot of homework."

"Yes, Countess, c'est ici (here), and during the winter, I always learn something."

"That's better than Colonel Miloradovich's performance. His French doesn't sound like French, and his German is hard to understand. But he is a warrior, and many young girls like him. Your greatest advantage should be your youth and intelligence, not your courage."

"But, Countess, if you don't have the courage to be a grenadier, you might as well go home and farm."

Soloviev's answer was straightforward, and the Countess found the young man interesting, so she asked the servant to bring tea and some snacks. "Mme Lebrun is a great beauty at the moment, but she is still here until she is gone." (Mme Lebrun usually doesn't take so long, but I don't know what happened today.)
"Patience, madame."

Solovyov also needed to persuade the Countess to be patient. Even in the summer, the temperature in St. Petersburg was lower than elsewhere, and it was close to the sea. In winter, because it was by the sea, it would not be as cold as in neighboring areas. If this was in Naples, where Count Skavronsky was ambassador, the Countess would have been impatient waiting.

This lady should be interested in these little gadgets. After all, her daughter got a set from Miss de Riviera, which includes different colors for different occasions. When the news spread, it was kept secret from outsiders and it was unlikely to be kept secret from family members. Moreover, it was a "public promotion".

The Countess did not say much and just kept sipping tea. It was afternoon and in some places it might be tea time. Although Russian nobles liked the "British Club" very much, the ladies and young ladies preferred the French style.

"If you're talking about the 'English Club', it's not open to ladies and the waiters are all men."

"Yes, it's a men's club. They say it serves authentic British food. But when my father was an aide-de-camp, he went there with General Grushetsky. He said British food was awful and far inferior to Russian food."

"Yes, a British chef who can cook French food. His cooking skills are pretty good. Even Madame Lebrun praised the food. What are you here to discuss with Madame Lebrun today? Is it an art order?"

"Mrs. Lebrun, with her level, the orders should be scheduled until 1799, right? God, you know, we soldiers, especially adjutants, who knows where we will run off with our superiors one day! Fortunately, Prince Dmitri Volkonsky will be in Petersburg for a long time, but I am still young and will return to the combat unit. I came from the Moscow Grenadiers to Petersburg, and maybe I will go back to be an officer."

"Warfare is a man's business. We don't understand it. Besides, my late husband was a diplomat. He was more interested in music and art. Music and art are so good and much more interesting than war."

The countess spoke quite playfully, and it could be seen that she did not like soldiers very much. However, if the emperor were to arrange a marriage for her daughter, it might be with a young officer, or even a general, which would not go according to her wishes. Considering Prince Potemkin, it was unknown whether the prince would express any opinion in his coffin.

"Indeed, art is beautiful. I once thought about becoming an engineer. But if I became an engineer general, I would either run an arsenal or build a fortress, which has nothing to do with architectural art."

"And what do you think of Prince Saltykov's house?"

"You mean the one at 3 Million Street?"

"Yes, it's right there." He couldn't draw any conclusion from the Countess's joking tone. He just regarded it as a kind of teasing from an elder to a younger one. In the eyes of the Countess, he was just a child, a sixteen-year-old lieutenant, and his face looked even younger, almost the same age as her daughter.

Next to the big house at 3 Million Street is the Betskoy Mansion, which was the representative of the Russian Enlightenment and the residence of the Empress's former personal secretary. Now it is inhabited by her daughter Anastasia Sokolova and her son-in-law, Admiral José de Ribas. From the outside, it is hard to tell which one is higher, but there is a hanging garden inside. According to the records of John Bernoulli III, an honorary member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, there is a hanging garden inside. In fact, it is more unique than Saltykov's mansion. In terms of concept, the furnishings of 1 Million Street are better than those of 3 Million Street.

Solovyov probably answered the Countess based on this. The Countess laughed, and she laughed even harder after hearing the evaluation that the taste of the designer at 3 Million Street was "rich and a little vulgar."

"This is the first time I've heard of this, but His Royal Highness the Prince does have a bad taste in some areas. He can't even decide on eating oysters at the table."

It is not surprising that the prince is controlled by his strange and mean wife at home. There have always been many strange things happening in St. Petersburg.

About an hour later, Mrs. Le Brun finally finished her creation. Today's work was a bit long, probably because the two countesses chatted with Miss Julie Le Brun for too long, and it became a topic of conversation.

Countess Ekaterina Skavronskaya was not surprised that Solovyov was sitting in her reception room. After all, many young officers and diplomats came to her house with various purposes. However, this one obviously did not come here because he was "impressed by her beauty". His upright posture showed that he was here to discuss serious matters.

Moreover, when he saw the girls coming out, his eyes were obviously not directed at himself and his sister, but at Madame Le Brun, and then he greeted the two countesses.

This was a strange order, but Julie pulled her over and explained the situation: "My mother is interested in Mr. Mikhal Solovyov's cosmetics, and she came here to discuss this. Sorry, Catherine, we have to discuss some business issues in your living room." (My mother is very interested in Mr. Mikhail Solovyov's cosmetics, and she came here to discuss this. Sorry, Catherine, we have to discuss some business issues in your living room.)
"Me too, I'm probably Mr. Solovyov's first customer!" (Me too, I'm probably Mr. Solovyov's first customer!)

Moreover, the little girl stood there with her hands on her hips, acting like a little adult, which made Solovyov, who was not much older than her, find it a little funny.

However, this is also fine. Since the Countess is interested in becoming a customer and has also expressed her desire to join, she cannot refuse the girl's kindness. Even if she fails to hook up with a man, she cannot refuse to have a "business cooperation" with her.

(End of this chapter)