Steffy saves Hope for the Future on Bold and the Beautiful but with a catch (Sept. 16, 2024)

As I thought, Steffy didn't do what Brooke and Hope thought she would on Monday, Sept. 16's episode of The Bold and the Beautiful. Hope had been in the hot seat unsure if Hope for the Future was going to get the axe because of the financial projections that showed sales down once again. She thought Steffy was going to finally have a reason to cancel her line but the Co-CEO didn't order HFTF to stop production. No, she gave Hope another chance.

Brooke called the decision "mature" while speaking to Ridge and Taylor after the meeting. Though it should be noted that Steffy would have had every right to end the brand, or at least put it on a pause, since it's been draining resources and hasn't been profitable since Thomas left for Paris. What Brooke said was condescending and Taylor rightfully chafed since her daughter is a savvy businesswoman who makes decisions based on what she fills would be best for the company.

What Taylor doesn't know, however, is that Steffy chose to keep Hope for the Future around because she's using it has leverage. She already laid down the law about her rival staying away from Finn, her husband, but to ensure that Hope follows through, Steffy is making the line her bargaining chip. If Hope so much as flirts, looks at Finn inappropriately, or goes in for another kiss, HFTF will be canceled so quick her head will spin.

The brand is Hope's baby. It has been since she was a teenager. The issue is that she's a brand ambassador, a philanthropist, and non-profit whiz not a fashion designer. Hope relies heavily on the creativity of others to make her line work and to execute her vision. While her years in the business have provided her with the knowledge to run Hope for the Future, she's left vulnerable if she doesn't have a designer by her side who can carry out the fashion element of her line.

That's why Steffy's historically wanted to nix HFTF so that the company doesn't run into a problem whenever Hope's on the outs with her most successful lead designer, Thomas. But this vulnerability does have its uses and in this case it's a quid quo pro. Hope gets what she wants, which is her line surviving, and Steffy gets what she wants, which is her rival backing off of her husband.

The move she's made, however, did leave Carter and Ridge suspicious. They seemed ready to end Hope for the Future and were surprised that Steffy wasn't. I do wonder if that'll come up soon. Ridge knows his daughter and that save was odd.

What wasn't odd was his own feelings on the matter but they certainly have ruffled Brooke's feathers. She pushed for him to tell her that he wasn't going to cancel Hope's line. He didn't answer her in the episode but it was pretty clear that he wasn't against that action and would have fully supported Steffy if that's what she wanted to do.

For as much as Brooke keeps talking about the brand being important to Forrester and how bothersome it's been that everyone only wants to talk about it floundering, it doesn't actually seem like this is something the executive team is battling over. They'd cut HFTF if need be and move on, what's keeping it on the roster is Steffy and the notion she presented that the line is a good way to usher young women to the couture collection as they mature.

We'll see how long this ultimatum works. Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more coverage and follow us on X!