four p's [jimbo]

[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Early May 2028

To Harry, asking others for help was as foreign a concept as any. Despite the many learnings of his youth, Harry still had the tendency to jump headfirst into trouble and sort out things later. And things usually did work out in the end - at least, he hadn't died yet. Unless you counted that one time, but Harry certainly didn't. To keep himself busy, and mostly out of trouble, Harry had opened up a venue in central London for the more city, youthful crowd. However, it wasn't performing quite as well as he would have liked.

Hence, Harry's unannounced visit to Blishwick. If nothing else, Jimbo was a marketing genius, who knew how to position his businesses and create gaps in the market. Harry had relied mostly on his name in terms of brand reputation, and that simply didn't cut it in the big smoke. The Hounds Lounge was breaking even at best, and even though Harry wasn't wanting for cash, he wanted to be able to pay his staff handsomely. After all, they worked a hell of a lot more than he expected.

The bell jingled overhead as Harry pressed into the shop. He wasn't even sure if Jimbo would be there. Regardless, he stepped up to the counter and gave a hesitant smile to the gobsmacked girl behind the desk. "Er, is Mr Blishwick in? Jimbo?" said Harry. The girl came back to herself, replying briskly. "Have you got an appointment?" Even Harry Potter didn't get to just waltz in and make demands.

jimbo brian blishwick vi

[jimbo brian blishwick vi]

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There had been worries amongst the greater Blishwick clan concerning Jimbo's recent expansions into other aspects of business. A matchmaker becoming a restauranteur seemed heretical to a few of the older Jimbos. They reacted as if he was completely shirking his responsibilities at the family business, as if that hadn't been on the decline well before he took over. The fact of the matter was that people didn't need a matchmaker anymore. Jimbo had adapted, of course, but there were better ways to generate money in the slowly dying world of arranged marriages and the likes. With the pizza parlor, he was basically matchmaking pizzas to people's stomachs, and the Spellbucks was basically just to play around and see what would happen. Having students all over Hogsmeade these days, he was printing money between the two locations.

Today, he was in Horizont at the matchmaking business. That was how he started most days usually, before making the rounds and ending at Hogsmeade for the evening in case there were any issues there. He had competent managers at both establishments now, but liked to pop in for an appearance nonetheless. Supposedly customers liked that.

From his office, he heard the front door open and someone ask for him. His secretary, a French girl that had apparently graduated from Hogwarts the year prior and needed a way to fund her Abraxan jockey career, was telling the person that they needed an appointment. Flinging the door to his office open with the sort of jubilee that only someone with six cups of Spellbucks in their bloodstream could do, Jimbo made his entrance. "Nonsense Madeleine! This is Mr. Potter. He doesn't need an appointment to meet with me." He could already see the gears in the girl's head starting to turn, and then finally give up that she'd never win against her employer. "Could you run down to the bakery on the corner and get coffee for all of us? That would be splendid." A couple of coins were handed over to her and he shooed her out in a hurry.

"Her brother was the Beauxbatons Triwizard champion, you know. Poor girl...anyways! What can I help you with today, Harry?" Jimbo motioned for his peer to follow him over to the sitting area that he utilized for all of his meetings. She imagined this wasn't about marriage arrangements, unless something recent had popped up with one of the children. Even then, that was sort of old school for anyone remotely related to the Weasley family. Minus the one child that had just married the Goyle lad. Talk about a curious couple...

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[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

The girl behind the reception counter seemed very bored with the whole idea of working. Harry could relate. He hated the administrative tasks of any career - when he was head auror, Hermione had sent him daily missives reminding him to file his paperwork. It still stung to think of his late best friend - and how he and Ron had drifted apart as a direct result of her death. Blinking, Harry opened his mouth to reply to the receptionist, but was interrupted by a boisterous greeting from the man himself.

"Hello Jimbo," Harry greeted, unable to stop the smile from spreading across his lips. Jimbo reminded him a bit of Colin Creevey, back when he had been excited by absolutely everything in the wizarding world and particularly Harry. Another life snuffed out too soon. But today wasn't a day for despondency. He was on a mission to make his business ventures more successful, and to subsequently distract him from such maudlin thoughts. Harry glanced at the sour faced receptionist as Jimbo shooed her out to get them coffees and pastries. Harry watched as she flounced away, his lips twisting thoughtfully.

Turning back to Jimbo, Harry arched a brow. "Yeah, dreadful. Never really understood why the reinstated it after Cedric..." Harry trailed off. There was no need for him to expound further on the details. Everyone knew about the Triwizard Tournament having ended in disaster in his fourth year. Harry had naturally campaigned against the decision, but Hermione's hands had been tied. There had been greater powers at work. And children had perished because of it. Harry's nostrils flared, and he swallowed down the righteous anger that bubbled in him. No. Now was not the time. He joined Jimbo in the seating area.

"I saw you've recently set up several business ventures," said Harry, diving right into it. "I've got my pub out in the West Country, which is flourishing. However, when I expanded to a new market here in central London, it's not really going as well. I want to make sure I'm doing the right thing and not draining my funds into a sinking ship," he said, leaning forward in his chair in earnest. "Are there any... plans? Or secrets? Or do you have any advice how to target a younger market?"

jimbo brian blishwick vi

[jimbo brian blishwick vi]

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"Yes well, our kind tends to forget these sorts of things rather quickly, doesn't it?" Anyone with half a brain cell and the strength to read through centuries of magical history would see the same errors made over and over again. Really that was a problem unique to humans, but where the muggles felt they could advance and move on, magicfolk still seemed to be stuck in the mud in a number of areas. Cracking the code on magi-tech was probably the first step in that, though they would only know once they looked back on it. Everything had to be perceived in retrospect, otherwise they'd never truly learn. His own career was rooted in bloodlines and the likes, so this sort of thing frequently interested him. Jimbo was only useful as long as the community allowed him to be. Realistically, a modern society wouldn't need a matchmaker. Yet here he was, the sixth in line and still with no signs of stopping. He secretly hoped that by the time he was ready to retire, his services wouldn't be needed anymore.

Obviously Harry Potter was not here for love advice - that was a concept that not even Jimbo wanted to think about. But business? He could talk about that all day. The pub was a great little place that he had visited a few times. As for the new location, Jimbo was ashamed that he didn't even know it existed. Which was why Harry was here today. "I think the first thing you need to look for is whether or not your diversifying from whatever else the locale has. For example, I never would have franchised that new Spellbucks here in the Alleys. Too many competitors and I'd hate to step on the toes of my longtime neighbors. But in Hogsmeade, the only place for a hot drink is Madame Puddifoot's. And to be quite frank with you, I barely trust their tea as it is. Whatever their pour-over is cannot be drinkable..."

Then there was the pizza parlor, which Jimbo often wondered why it hadn't become a misfire at the beginning due to its location. Hogsmeade two years ago was not the place to be. Now with the new and improved Hogwarts though, he couldn't have been luckier. That played into the younger market Harry probably wanted to know about. "Social media and advertising. You'll have to learn how to use one of the new phones and target them that way. Or hire someone to do it for you. Ads in the Daily Prophet don't cut it anymore Mr. Potter. I'm at the point where I think my name is more synonymous with the pizza then my matchmaking. Customers fall in love either way," he winked at Harry. He'd been holding onto that tagline for a while now. A cross promotion of sorts. A date and a slice, or something like that. It really did take a scheming mind to run so many different businesses. With his ambition, he really should have been in Slytherin, not Ravenclaw.

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[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Harry inclined his head slightly at Jimbo's response. It really did feel like the majority of the wizarding world forgot so easily their own history, and were destined to repeat it. Their focus was so narrowed on the next best thing, that they forgot that time was cyclical. In a dozen years, or a thousand, there would be another chosen one, another deadly fate. And they will all have forgotten about Harry. But instead of spending too much time mulling over the human condition, Harry outlined his problem, the one he knew Jimbo could help with.

Chewing on his cheek thoughtfully, Harry nodded. "I haven't been back to Puddifoot's since fifth year. It was the first and last time - dreadful place," said Harry with a wry smile. He considered what his new venture was and where it was - located in London, there were dozens of similar bars and lounges. But then again, the same could be said for his pubs. "How do all these pubs crop up, near identical to one another, and not suffer the same fate?" Harry probed. "There's always demand for a new watering hole - or so I'd thought," he added after a moment.

Harry's brow furrowed at Jimbo's proposal. "I have looked into that. And James has taught me about the phones, though it's been slow going, I'll admit," said Harry with a frown. "Do I make an... Instantgram? Is that what it's called? Account for the Lounge?" Harry paused. "And if I do, how do I get people to interact with it? I can't imagine sending incessant messages or anything like that would work. It would annoy the hell out of me."

jimbo brian blishwick vi

[jimbo brian blishwick vi]

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Jimbo refused to speak ill of any of his neighboring shopkeepers though there were a few that he knew he would be better off without. That was not saying that he would be fine with Puddifoot's disappearing completely, but he would be fine with it if it did. "I popped in once recently, before opening the pizza joint. It has not changed, if that solidifies never going back." How anyone could work in there without a nose plug actually confused him. Were there stranger magical locations and shops? Absolutely. On the scale of necessities though, Madame Puddifoot's did not belong there.

Harry's next question brought a shrug out of Jimbo. "There's clearly a market. But you obviously want to have a core group coming in at this new place just like the old one. And that's where the competition becomes difficult." Jimbo expected to eventually have a competitor in the pizza scene. It was an inevitable, and there were enough energetic Americans lurking around London now that they'd try their hand at it too. The goal was to obviously open a small storefront in Diagon or Horizont before that happened. He got lucky that Hogwarts burned down and created a new steady flow of students and employees for almost the entire year. Otherwise anything around here would cut into his profits in Hogsmeade. That was a guarantee.

"Well, you could use Instagram. To be honest, letting the kids do it for you at first is the smartest thing I ever came up with." Jimbo believed that he had a bit of a head start in that regard though. He had already been trying to figure out how to take advantage of the muggle dating apps for his own services well before the technology really exploded in the last year or so. Changing gears to advertising his pizza and Spellbucks was a natural move. And then he got an idea: "I've heard that there are ways to watch Quidditch online now...what if you figured out a way to get that onto a television in this new place? Show matches all day and you'll have people practically living on your bar."

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[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Harry smirked, shaking his head in silent agreement. It was strange for him to think of all the places that were still thriving based on location and longevity alone, just because they were so ground into the roots of their neighbourhoods. But Harry moved swiftly on from this thought, commenting on how there were so many pubs next to one another, near cookie cutter imitations, and still they succeeded. Maybe he was thinking too high - maybe he should just be happy with the meagre incomings from the Lounge.

Harry understood the concept of competition deeply. There were different sorts, but he knew that he had to figure out a way to win customers. Just like he'd drilled tactics into the Quidditch team when he'd been captain, they had to have a plan to go forward. "I'll admit, I sort of relied on the fact my owning the place would draw a crowd," admitted Harry sheepishly. He knew to play to his strengths - and even though he'd left the dark wizard catching days behind him, Harry knew to leverage his fame in a way that had solidified with time.

Harry suggested Instagram, having seen his children use it occasionally. "I just wonder if it's a good way to engage... I want people who have just moved to London after Hogwarts or whatever school to come and have a good place to drink and relax and..." Harry trailed off. "Like sponsoring a team?" asked Harry, confused. Then, Jimbo's words clicked. "Oh, just having televisions? I suppose that's a good idea, but I don't know if I want to turn the place into a sports bar. I'd rather the conversations draw people, but I guess if I want a certain demographic, I can't do things based off what I want..."

jimbo brian blishwick vi

[jimbo brian blishwick vi]

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Name recognition was a thing, so Harry wasn’t completely off the mark by believing that. Jimbo had done the same with his own image. Everyone that opened a copy of the afternoon edition of the Daily Prophet saw his perfectly aligned teeth and glistening grin staring back at them. Money helped, of course, and being able to help fund events in any magical community he pleased also put him at the forefront of everyone’s minds. Harry Potter, for as much of a hero as he had been at such a young age, also reminded people of when times were bad. That wasn’t his doing, but it was also the association that came with the name. Working around that would be difficult. On the other hand, having the novelty of meeting the man himself while going to grab a pint after watching a Quidditch match? Maybe that could work in his favor.

“I think if you’re trying to get a niche customer base, you may already be failing,” Jimbo corrected him. He knew how that sounded, especially coming from him. One of his businesses solely focused on the upper crust of magical society and the sanctity of ‘pureblood’, while the other two were made to make money off of the student population at Hogwarts. Obviously, he didn’t know how to run a pub. Yet. “It doesn’t have to always be a sports bar. But having that option available for the nights certain teams play could play in your favor. Sponsoring a team and then having their matches shown could definitely be the way to do it…” Jimbo liked that idea, and it definitely sounded like Harry had put some thought into it at least. Why hadn’t he thought of doing that before? With the pizza parlour in full swing, adding the logo to a jersey would only sell more. If Potter didn’t follow through on it, Jimbo already knew he would.

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[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

It was with a look of resignation that Harry nodded slowly. He was thinking too much about all of this. But, he countered his own mind, he had to do something. His current plan wasn't working, and that was just on his own personal brand. Harry sighed, running his hand through his perpetually messy hair. "You're right. I'm resting on outdated opinions. Maybe I'll even introduce karaoke night," he added with a snort. His bright green eyes found Jimbo's a look of fear in them. "But don't tell Ginny - she's an awful singer," he added hastily.

Harry took a deep breath, feeling slightly better now that he'd voiced his concerns. "You know, that was really helpful," said Harry. "Thank you," he added after a moment. "I should get back before all these good ideas leak out of my head," said Harry, rising from his seat. "I appreciate your help. Is there anything I can do for you in return?" asked Harry wryly. He didn't suspect Jimbo would take him up on his offer - though maybe Jimbo needed someone with a hero complex. Who was Harry to judge?

jimbo brian blishwick vi

[jimbo brian blishwick vi]

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A long bellow came out of Jimbo at the mention of karaoke. Now that was an idea! Just another thing that he hadn’t thought about but would have fit perfectly within his pizza parlor. The only issue being that when he started the restaurant, there was still no timeline for when the students would return. Trying to outfit a place after the fact would be too difficult and would quite honestly disrupt the flow of business he had going now. ”My lips are sealed. Though she’s bound to find out eventually.” Unless the Potters kept business talk completely off the table. His wife had loved hearing about the weird mishaps and arrangements that came from the matchmaking studio. Jimbo knew she would have equally liked his more recent ventures as well. If only…

”Of course! Offering advice, regardless of what it’s for, is my forte after all,” Jimbo stood from his seat at the same time as Harry. As for compensation, of sorts, he had a few ideas that started with a deal where this new pub solely sold pizza from his own shop and ended with a drink one day down the road. ”How about an invite to opening day? I think that’s fair enough,” he asked. He would be there regardless, as the circle of business owners sort of required such a thing to stay on good terms with everyone. Jimbo liked to support his ‘colleagues’ as much as possible, knowing that he by far had an advantage in terms of capital over the rest. Promotion and partnerships was his way of giving back and keeping the community running.

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[HARRY JAMES POTTER]

Harry smirked. "She'll find out eventually, I suppose. I just dread the person who has to be proven wrong," he replied with a dark chuckle. Harry thanked Jimbo for his advice - it was good to hear from someone who was a third party and completely uninvolved, rather than someone like Ron or Ginny who he would regularly turn to for ideas. His heart stuttered as he wished he could have asked Hermione about this - but he couldn't dwell on that for long, not without feeling an odd prickling wash through him.

Harry nodded once. "Absolutely. Top of the guest list," he said, glancing at his watch. "Thanks again. I'll catch you around, yeah?" said Harry, moving towards the door, eager to put their discussed plans into action.

-end harry-