article from bloomberg financial magazine
❝ they say that when Chuck Bass met the Queen of England, he bowed low and said "I'm Chuck Bass"
and that night, he was invited to a private party at Buckingham Palace. At age seventeen, Charles Bartholomew Bass has done what took Richard Branson almost thirty years to achieve. At age sixteen, he was the youngest judge ever for the Miss World competition. That same year, he was the poster boy for Ralph Lauren's argyle campaign, even walking the runway to show off the new designs. Though can someone as charismatic as Chuck Bass really hold investors?
At age seventeen, Chuck Bass has a long lineage to carry on. His mother, a very well known socialite of the Upper East Side, died after delivering Charles leaving his father, the Midas of investing to raise his son on his own. Coming from humble roots, Bart carved his way into the world of New York investing with assets such as the famed Palace Hotel. The shock of Bart Bass' death shook not only the investment world, but it also thrust his notorious party-boy son, Chuck into the spotlight. After a long and bitter struggle with now estranged uncle Jack Bass (who was locked out of everything after he attempted to strangle Mrs. Lily Bass), the current holder and acting CEO of Bass Industries, Lily Bass was left as executor of Bart's assets until Chuck turned eighteen years of age. But, will investors see Chuck as more than the playboy that he is?
❝ chuck bass sits casually at the bar, water in front of him
as he flirts with a waitress. When you greet him, you're automatically sucked into the world of Chuck Bass. Technically, he's supposed to in school at the moment, but Chuck laughs it off.
"Seniors have a more flexible schedule, luckily for me that I have all my classes planned that I get out after the first four periods," He says taking a sip of his water and leaning forward. The twinkle in his eye tells a more mischievous story.
When you converse with him, you find out why universities such as Princeton, Cornell, Columbia and even Harvard wanted him to attend their institutes. Chuck Bass knows that his name has weight and he isn't afraid to use it. The name Bass could get either a new wing, new equipment or even a new college. He decided that he wouldn't attend college, his presence within the company was inevitably going to consume him and he didn't want to have the title "____ drop out, Chuck Bass".
"My vision for Bass Industries is a simple one. We are the elite of the elite, we will not be the people who claw their way to the top and before they know it, they're being attacked by barbarians and their empires fall. Lily [Bass] and I both know what has to be done to make sure we're still a formidable opponent in the investing world."
He's right, Chuck Bass managed to tap the market that so many have been trying to - the youth market. The return on equity for investors of the Victrola nightclub saw an incredible percentage in returns. But, was it just a fluke? Many worry that Chuck's ideas on business are still too young or too naive for the real world or his antics will run the company into the ground. Currently, investors are trying to make more of their money while Lily Bass is in control of the company. Many consider the Bass heir to be too much of a risk, while others are willing to take that chance and reap thrice the reward.
When asked, Chuck gives a small smile and says, "I'm Chuck Bass."
There's no real explanation why, but that seems to work for investors.