Cordelia’s withering stare quelled the outburst. ‘This is John Jay Tanner, his wife Beatty, and their eldest son Jay. They are your cousins.’
Edward stared, then recovered his manners quickly and shook hands. ‘Well, well,’ he muttered. ‘This is a surprise, I must say.’ He looked across at Cordelia. ‘I’m glad you’ve invited the other side of the family, but I don’t quite see why they’ve come to this meeting. Jacaranda Vines has nothing to do with them – and as such, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask them to leave until our business is concluded.’
‘Jacaranda has a great deal to do with them,’ Cordelia said clearly into the silence. ‘They are shareholders.’
‘Since when!’ stormed Mary, her voice rising above the babel of surprise.
‘Since I arranged it,’ said Cordelia calmly.
‘You …?’ Mary seemed to be lost for words as she stared at her mother. Then she turned on Sophie. ‘Why didn’t you stop her, you silly bitch?’ she screamed. ‘You must have known what she was up to.’
Sophie recoiled but before she could answer Mary had turned her invective elsewhere.
‘Family rift healed profitably enough, you bastard?’ she snarled in John Jay’s direction. ‘Hope you’re happy because your thirty pieces of silver have merely made the rift worse.’
She turned on Jane. ‘And as for you, you conniving cow – I bet you helped Mum cook this up, didn’t you?’
Jane’s gaze never wavered under Mary’s glare. ‘I had nothing to do with it,’ she said calmly. ‘I suggest you sit down and stop making a fool of yourself.’
‘Don’t tell me what to do, bitch,’ she spat. ‘You’re nothing – d’you hear? Nothing. You’ve leached off mum for years, wheedling your way into her life like the worm you are. No wonder Dad finally saw sense and dumped you – once a cheap tart, always a cheap tart!’
Cordelia held her breath. She could see the silent battle Jane was fighting and knew she would soon be unable to hold back. She broke in quickly before things went too far. ‘That’s enough,’ she snapped, her hand coming down hard on the table.
Mary slumped in her chair, her breathing shallow, her eyes gimlet sharp as she glared at Jane and the Tanners.
Cordelia waited for them all to quieten down. ‘I did what I did because I want this family – such as it is – to be reunited. For all of us to have a voice in the future of Jacaranda Vines. Divided we fall, but united we’ll be stronger than ever.’
‘Sounds to me as if you’re buying votes,’ rasped Charles. ‘That’s a deliberate breach of the constitution, Cordelia. I can’t allow it.’
‘The proportion of shares hasn’t changed, just moved about a bit. The shares are theirs, regardless of how they vote,’ she declared stoutly.
Edward shuffled the papers in front of him. ‘Then let’s get on, shall we? There’s been enough unpleasantness.’ He looked around the silent room before carrying on. ‘The last vote was split down the middle, so I need to have one spokesperson from each side to put their case before we vote again. I remind you that should the vote be a draw, I shall have the final decision.’
Cordelia exchanged glances with Sophie and nodded encouragement. She noticed her look at Jay before pushing back her chair and wondered how long it would be before the two silly young fools kissed and made up.
*
Sophie shuffled papers and cleared her throat. She had everyone’s attention. The time had come to put her plan of action on the table, even though she knew how things would probably turn out. She and Cordelia had had a long talk on the flight home.
‘Gran has taught me a great deal over the past few weeks,’ she began. ‘I learned the story behind the foundation of Jacaranda Vines and the ultimate split between the two sides of the family. It’s good to welcome John Jay and his family here today. Good to know they now have a voice in Jacaranda’s future.’
‘Get on with it,’ growled Mary. ‘We all know how we’re going to vote, I don’t see why we should listen to this nonsense.’ She folded her arms and looked around the table, but was met with chilly disapproval.
Sophie carried on as if she hadn’t been interrupted. ‘At the last meeting I was in favour of Jacaranda going public. I still am.’ She looked down at her grandmother and just managed to avoid winking.
Cordelia looked suitably disappointed and remained silent.
‘If we are to survive in today’s market as we are, going public is the only option. We must sell the satellite companies and use the proceeds to clear our debts and bring stability to the company in readiness for the stock market flotation. The family will lose their ownership of the company, but as shareholders, we can all expect a handsome windfall in return. With Jacaranda strong again, the opening share price should be high, and we can look forward to a prosperous future.’
She looked around the table. ‘The winery isn’t the weak link in the corporation. Not even Jock could destroy that. It’s the retail outlets and the rest of the smaller companies Jock set up just before he died. He deliberately threw good money after bad, and although a great deal of it could be claimed as a tax loss, the rot has got to stop. Getting rid of those companies is the first step towards financial stability and it must be done immediately.’
She saw the nods of approval and carried on. ‘The French have offered us a fortune for Jacaranda, and it’s a tempting offer for those who wish to see the back of the corporation. But consider this. They will merely sell off the loss-making sections of the corporation and make their own stock market launch. They can see the potential in Jacaranda and will exploit it to the full.’
She looked around the table again. ‘Is that what we want? Do we really need to throw away the chance of recouping our losses and seeing Jacaranda flourish again? I don’t think so. The French offer is a clear signal the corporation is worth a great deal, and we’d be fools to let it slip through our fingers out of revenge. Revenge was Jock’s way – it shouldn’t be ours. He did his best to destroy us all in his lifetime. Why give in and finish what he started? Why not fight for our inheritance? Our ancestors did. They fought the elements, the government, drought, fire and flood to keep their vineyards going. They lived and died on the land we so carelessly wish to hand over to strangers, survived personal heartache and two wars to carry on the tradition and leave an inheritance to the following generations. Don’t let’s waste this opportunity to respect what they’ve done for us. We might not have full ownership of the corporation any more if we go public, but we’ll still be at the core of the decision-making.’
Sophie sat down. Her legs would no longer hold her and her mouth was dry. She caught Jay’s look of admiration and, to her shame, blushed. What was it about him that made her behave like a kid in high-school she thought crossly. For heaven’s sake, pull yourself together, girl.
*
Mary scraped back her chair and swayed to her feet. ‘Sophie is to be congratulated on her emotional speech,’ she said drily. ‘But we shouldn’t be persuaded by a lot of emotive talk about the past – sentimentality has no place in the boardroom. We no longer exist in the world of the pioneer, but in one that fights dirty. The stock market may seem a good compromise between bankruptcy and the sale to the French but let’s get real about this and look at what it would mean to each of us.’
She glanced around the table, seeing the hostility in their eyes, knowing she would have to recoup the damage she’d done. Her loss of temper had done her little good. Although she didn’t really care much how they felt, she would have to work hard to regain even a small measure of their respect.
‘Dad knew what he was doing when he began to destroy the corporation. He could see the world was changing and the competition growing fiercer. His bully-boy tactics wore us down, and I think he realised that once he was no longer at the helm, the ship would sink – he knew we’d want our revenge. All he did was puncture the good ship Jacaranda below the waterline and help it on its way.’
She saw they were listening and t
ook a deep breath. The need for a drink was getting worse and she hoped she could last out. ‘I have no love for the corporation but I can see Sophie’s point about not letting it slip through our fingers before we get our due rewards from it. But if we go on the stock market that’s exactly what will happen. United or not.’
She glanced at John Jay and his family who so far had wisely remained silent. ‘We’ll remain tied to it as shareholders but the real decisions will be made on the trading floors. It will be a repetition of all the years we had to put up with Dad. Nothing will have changed. The promised windfall’s not guaranteed. Markets are unstable. We might show a united front but the hawks will recognise it for the sham it really is and fly in for the kill.’
Mary looked around the room and waited for the murmurs to die down. She was coming to the end of her speech and hoped she’d done enough. ‘Let’s sell to the French, take the money and run as far as we can from Dad’s influence.’ She sat down and took a long swig of water, wishing it was gin.
‘My, my,’ murmured Phillip. ‘Who would have thought there was a brain behind those inches of make-up? Almost had me applauding.’
‘Oh, shut up,’ she snapped before lighting another cigarette.
Edward banged the gavel on the table to silence the arguments that flew round the room. ‘We’ve heard both sides. It’s time to vote,’ he rumbled.
*
Daisy felt very calm as she stood up. ‘There aren’t just two sides to the argument,’ she said firmly. ‘I have a third proposition.’
‘What’s that?’ said Mary nastily. ‘Sit back and let the corporation fall around our ears while we do our knitting? Sit down, Daisy, before you make a complete idiot of yourself.’
She eyed her sister coldly. ‘You’ve had your say. Now it’s my turn.’ She looked away and addressed the rest of the meeting, her pulse racing, sweat gathering at the nape of her neck.
‘It’s time I made my position clear. I might not have had anything to do with the management of the corporation when Daddy was alive, and I know you think of me as a bit of a joke, but I have a degree in business studies, accountancy and statistics, and the thesis for my doctorate was the marketing and managing of a family corporation approaching the new millennium.’
A gasp of amazement went round the room, and Daisy felt a thrill of achievement as she looked down into her mother’s proud face. ‘It was your encouragement that made me enrol on that first course and I’ve been waiting for this moment for years.’
‘Come on then, Daisy. Let’s hear your proposal.’ Kate grinned at the astonished faces around her. ‘It’s the quiet ones you should watch,’ she said proudly. ‘You’ll be surprised to hear what she has to say.’
‘So get on with it then,’ said Mary sharply.
‘I propose we neither sell any part of Jacaranda nor go public,’ said Daisy. She waited for the objections to fade into silence before she carried on. ‘My advice is to turn the entire corporation into a trust.’
‘Can’t be done,’ rumbled Charles. ‘There’s nothing in the constitution to permit it.’
Daisy took a sheaf of papers from the folder in front of her. ‘There are ways of amending the constitution, as you well know. It’s been done before during expansion, and as long as the Board approves, it can be done again. What it already states clearly is that certain measures may be taken to protect and conserve the corporation in part or as a whole. That is what I propose we do.’
‘What would this trust entail?’ asked Philip.
‘The trust would be set up in a series of hierarchical levels. Think of a pyramid, with the chairman and ruling board directors at the top. Then there would be a central council made up of the district managers, accountants, sales directors and shop stewards. At the bottom of the pyramid is the wide base of the local councils. This will be made up of the workforce.’
‘You’re asking for trouble, letting the workers have their say,’ declared Charles. ‘We’ll end up with rebellion, strikes and union interference. The Australian cobber can be a bloody-minded bastard, and many a company’s gone to the wall over union troubles.’
Daisy knew she had to convince him, even though she knew he was right to be concerned about the unions. ‘It may seem as if I’m spreading the responsibility for the company too thin, but hear me out, Charles. Please.’
He grimaced. ‘All right, but I don’t agree with anything you’ve said so far.’
She swallowed. It would be hard enough to convince them she was right without Charles sticking his oar in. His knowledge was respected, his opinion regarded as law amongst the others – she had a tough task on her hands.
‘There are several large corporations who have never had to go on the stock market, and have been run as successful trusts for many years. The John Lewis and Waitrose group in the UK is a prime example, having set up their trust back in 1926. Their organisation is not as old as ours but the similarities are uncanny, with retail outlets and supermarkets under their corporate umbrella. I’ve prepared a run-down of my proposal that I hope will make things clear, and perhaps answer some of your questions and concerns.’
She handed out the neatly prepared portfolios and nervously watched as the pages were flicked through.
‘The staff on all levels of the pyramid will be known as partners. They will have annual bonuses and perks directly relating to each year’s performance of their section of the corporation and their position within that section. In that way, the trust would be a sort of red herring. It will fulfil the aim that all partners will obtain the advantages and privileges of ownership, but without actually owning anything but a percentage of voting rights. The chairman, who must be voted in by a majority, will wield sixty percent of the shares in the trust, effectively giving him the power to throttle rebellion should it arise. He will be handsomely paid, as will all the directors in the ruling council.’
There was silence in the room as they tried to take in what was being proposed.
‘We will be a hierarchical organisation, which some will say is much like it was when Daddy was alive. But this time everyone will have their say and be allowed to vote through their different representatives at their councils’ levels. You cannot be a flat organisation if you are in retailing because you have people out on the floor or in the market place selling for you, and they know what’s going on at the sharp end of the business, and need to be listened to.’
‘And what if we set up this trust and the workforce decide they want a piece of the action by going for a flotation on the stock market? The windfall they’d stand to gain then isn’t to be sneezed at.’
Charles’ question stilled the rustle of pages and every pair of eyes turned towards her.
‘That’s why I propose the pyramid of councils. I agree the windfall idea is something that would be hard to resist. But if we maintain a constant open line of communication between the three pyramid levels and encourage serious debate about issues that concern everyone, then I think it can be avoided. The perks and bonuses would disappear if we went public, so would the management. Workers would find themselves once more on the shop floor with no say in how the company is run – their grievances wouldn’t be taken into account – there would be no one higher up to forward their complaints to the board. The principle of this trust is to run the company like a co-operative, where every man and woman involved is paid fairly for their experience and justly rewarded for their commitment and input.’
‘How are we going to afford all this?’ asked Cordelia.
‘By splitting the share issue sixty-forty and selling the lesser amount off to the workforce.’
‘And if they aren’t willing to buy?’
‘Then they will have no say in the future of Jacaranda – no vote,’ said Daisy firmly.
‘I think we need time to digest all this and discuss where we go from here,’ said Edward. ‘I suggest we break for a few hours and return later on this afternoon.’
*
Sophie wasn�
��t hungry so she skipped lunch and remained in the boardroom working through the afternoon on Daisy’s proposal. There were flaws, but it had the potential to be an excellent solution if Gran hadn’t already put certain factors in place. She nibbled the end of her pen, still stunned by the self-composure of her aunt and the hidden resourcefulness behind that meek exterior. Yet she recognised the skill that had gone into preparing the package and realised Daisy would be an important part of the company’s future – whichever way the vote went.
‘So which way do you think things will go?’ Cordelia plumped down beside her, breathless from the effort of making the journey back from her penthouse apartment.
Sophie leafed through Daisy’s proposal. ‘This has tremendous possibilities, but there are certain things I would change if we had to go through with it.’
Cordelia’s eyes were bright, her face animated as she settled back in her chair. ‘Tell me what changes you would make.’
Sophie eyed her suspiciously. ‘What are you plotting, Gran? I thought…’
Cordelia winked. ‘Just tell me your thoughts on this proposal of Daisy’s and I’ll tell you mine. I have the feeling our solution was very nearly rumbled.’
*
It was four o’clock in the afternoon by the time Edward had commanded silence and they were once again grouped around the table. There was an almost tangible sense of expectancy and excitement amongst them, a tension that manifested itself in startled jumps as Cordelia banged on the table with the handle of her stick.
‘As the eldest one here, I’m entitled to have my say.’
Mary groaned. ‘Not now, Mother.’
Cordelia ignored her. ‘What Daisy has proposed is an excellent idea and I congratulate her on a superb show of skill. But what I propose is even better.’ She looked around at their puzzled faces and smiled. ‘Sophie and I got our heads together and discovered we are of the same mind. For, you see, Daisy’s proposal came as no surprise to me.’
She saw the disappointment in her daughter’s face and smiled. ‘You’re a clever woman, Daisy. Don’t hide your talents any more. Be proud of them.’
Jacaranda Vines Page 38
