America 1919

Nucky not only saw profits in the Racing Club but also realized that if the Racing Club succeeded based on the current population of Atlantic City, eventually all of Atlantic City's people would be serving Donnie and themselves. Donnie laughed heartily, unabashedly saying, "By then, with Surf Hotel, United States Logistics, and Racing Club progressing side by side, Atlantic City will be the happiest place for residents in the entire United States!" Nucky also laughed, but there was an unavoidable self-deprecating tone in his laughter. Having operated in Atlantic City for over a decade, his dream result was exactly that, to manage two or three large companies and then control the entire situation of Atlantic City. Yet the results he had struggled for over the years paled in comparison to what Donnie achieved in less than three years in Atlantic City. How could he not be self-deprecating about that? "Just Atlantic City and the tourists who come here are not enough to maximize the profits of the Racing Club!" When Donnie returned to his seaside manor and shared the news with Helen and Alice, Alice showed interest in the affair. She had loved horse riding since she was young, while Helen considered the commercial value of the plan! "You should find a way to extend the commercial value of this project across the United States, just like Miss America and UFC events!" After listening to Helen's analysis, Donnie asked, "Do you mean to work on the periphery?" Helen nodded and said, "Exactly, since you already have the Family Alliance all over the United States and have been maintaining cooperation, why not now? Don't forget we also have ABC, which can broadcast the results of each race live to audiences across the country!" After thinking for a while, Donnie shook his head and said, "No, it won't work. It's not the same as Miss America or UFC. First, the horse races are too short, which gives people a chance to take advantage of the system. Plus, each race has at least 7 to 10 horses, and with the high stakes involved, there will be people who will become greedy and try to manipulate the results, which could cause even more trouble!" After pondering for a moment, Helen nodded and said, "That is indeed a problem. For profit, these people would certainly abandon the alliance with you!" "What's so difficult about that!" As Donnie and Helen were fretting over this matter, Alice suddenly smiled and said, "If we can't include them, we'll do it ourselves. Just establish our own sales points in various cities, isn't that a solution?" After speaking, Alice didn't forget to give Helen a smug and provocative glance. Facing Alice's provocation, Helen was unfazed and calmly said, "There are 45 states and thousands of cities in the United States. If we were to establish betting ticket sales points in all these cities, not to mention varying state laws, just consider the investment. Do you have any idea how much that would be? Then do you know how much it would cost to maintain these sales points each year and how many people you would need to hire?" "Me?" Alice was left speechless by Helen's question and finally retorted loudly, "Well, do you know?" Helen naturally said, "Of course, I don't, but I know that if that's the case, then the Racing Club will definitely not make any money. Not only will it not make money, it's certain to lose money!" Alice's pride was quickly deflated by Helen, and she huffily sat down on the couch. Neither of them noticed that Donnie's smile began to bloom on his face after a brief moment of puzzlement. Then Donnie walked over to Alice, and before she could react, he lifted her face and kissed her passionately, saying, "My dear, you've given me a terrific suggestion!" Alice, still a bit dazed by Donnie's kiss, heard him praising her suggestion and immediately her anger vanished, replaced by pride. Helen looked at Donnie with confusion, knowing that Donnie must be aware of her concerns, yet he still thought Alice's suggestion was good, which meant... "What did you think of?" Donnie sat down on the couch and said proudly, "Setting up just one betting ticket sales point would indeed increase costs too much, but what if this sales point were only one part of the store?" With a brightening smile, Donnie continued, "I've been trying to figure out how to distribute 'The Washington Post' nationwide, but as you know, every city's newspaper distribution has been dominated by a few major newspapers, and we just can't break into the market. Now, couldn't this sales point also sell newspapers?" Helen also sat down on the couch, crossed her legs, and pondered, saying, "But those two types of products still wouldn't guarantee recovering costs... No, they definitely wouldn't recover the costs!" Donnie continued to explain his thoughts to Helen and the still-confused Alice. And Donnie's idea was to emulate the model of future convenience store chains, "We could create a store with the same brand, the same decor style, selling everyday items. If we do this, we can solve the problem of high costs making it unable to turn a profit!"