2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 1070 is full of top-tier celebrities!

The last two months of each year are the most intense and crucial months for the automotive market.

"See that? This is the king of traffic."

"Yes, I've never seen anything like this before. Everyone says that President Tan is a marketing expert, but when it comes to creating hype, he's still a bit behind President Lei."

"Haha, our styles are different, and besides, there's no need for us to make such a big show now."

At the Guangzhou Auto Show in November, Xiaomi Auto made its debut, with Lei Jun himself giving a presentation. The Xiaomi booth was packed with people, attracting massive crowds.

Throughout the entire auto show, Xiaomi's booth attracted the most visitors and was the most talked-about attraction, without exception.

"That's true, who can be as glamorous as you guys?"

Shufu turned his head and glanced at Tan Jincheng. In October, Weilai was indeed riding high. Any publicity was meaningless in the face of absolute sales. Weilai's monthly sales of new energy vehicles exceeded 30 in October, and the L series delivered more than 4 vehicles in a single month.

Both of these figures represent historic achievements for Weizi and for domestic brands.

A monthly delivery of 30 vehicles translates to an annual delivery capacity of 360 million vehicles. Not to mention the sales of WILAY's Yuechi series of gasoline vehicles, just considering the annual delivery capacity of this new energy vehicle alone, WILAY has already joined the ranks of the world's top automakers.

In the new energy sector, Weilai has transformed from an initial follower into a definer, belonging to a unique category.

The fact that the L series was able to deliver more than 40,000 vehicles in a single month, despite Seres's comeback and rapid progress, not only proves their unshakeable position in the range-extended electric vehicle market, but also sets a new high-end record for domestic brands.

Exeed is a brand for everyone, and the L series is a champion in its segment. It is a dominant force, as well as a broad and deep brand. From technology to user orientation, Exeed has done a great job and can be a role model for domestic car companies.

"It's a good thing our booth wasn't next to theirs, otherwise, with this kind of foot traffic, it would have been really awkward."

Traditional automakers like BYD and Geely had their main exhibition areas in Zone A, while Xiaomi set up its booth in Zone D, which was dominated by emerging brands. Compared to Xiaomi, the other emerging brands in Zone D seemed rather lackluster in terms of popularity.

"Yeah, but you know what, I'm actually a little envious of that popularity."

Xiaomi and Chrysanthemum enjoy popularity that any company would envy. The fan economy is an important pillar that cannot be ignored in the current economic situation, and this popularity is enough to bring a continuous stream of sales.

"You'll be going there later too, right?"

"Yes."

ByteDance is still one of Xiaomi's shareholders. Although it has changed from a strategic investment to a financial investment and its role has decreased, the 14.4 billion shares it still holds still have a significant influence on Xiaomi in the secondary market.

Each reduction in holdings by ByteDance's advertising platform has a significant impact on listed companies. Xiaomi's stock performance in the past two years has been lackluster. After reaching a historical high of HK$35.9 in October 2021, it has been on a downward trend for two whole years.

The stock price plummeted to a low of HK$8.31, a drop of more than half. Although it has recovered somewhat, it has only returned to around HK$15. It's hard to imagine that this is the performance expected of a technology growth stock.

After two whole years of decline, it's worth noting that during these years, Huawei has been targeted, which is a rare opportunity for Xiaomi. With the outstanding performance of its mobile phone and AIoT businesses, even if the car manufacturing business is not favored by the capital market, it is unlikely to perform so poorly.

"Then go ahead, we don't have anything else to do here."

Supporting the Galaxy E8 isn't just a Geely affair; after all, good sales of the E8 also benefit Geely. The Geely Smart Selection mode has made a strong impact and won in internal competition. Currently, Chery has joined the Smart Selection mode industry, while JAC and Changan also intend to switch from HI mode to Smart Selection mode.

In October, over 10,000 new X7s were delivered. Seres demonstrated its ability to ramp up production capacity by using a large number of robots and advanced management models, which also reassured its hesitant partner companies.

The cooperation between Weilai and Geely is somewhat similar to the HI model of Chrysanthemum. There is nothing wrong with the HI model itself; it simply involves playing the role of a supplier. Weilai may not be incapable of doing a better job.

Everything depends on the sales of the E8. The MINI EV originally had a very good start, but unfortunately it was ruined.

To be fair, the MINI EV was relisted in early November. Although some users complained for a while, it didn't trigger any major protests.

This matter is pretty much over. MINI EV also participated in the exhibition this time. Although the exhibition area was not very popular, there were basically no netizens talking about it online anymore. The internet has a memory, but most of the time it is forgetful.

The MINI EV was originally intended to be the "HI mode" for the MINI, and it had a good start. However, unexpected changes occurred, and high hopes were placed on the sales of the E8.

The E8's giant screen sparked a huge discussion in October, but most users had never seen the actual product. The Guangzhou Auto Show was a great showcase, and the E8 on display there also attracted a lot of attention from users.

This giant screen is truly impressive to users who don't understand the intricacies of it; it's like having a giant TV installed next to the driver's seat, which is quite impressive.

Geely has already increased its investment in the production capacity of giant screens. Under Tan Jincheng's reminder, they also realized the seriousness of the problem. Although the delivery of E8 in October was not a complete natural month, the fact that only 2000 vehicles were delivered in the whole month was also affected to some extent by the production capacity of giant screens.

According to the original plan, the E8 delivery volume in November was only 4000 vehicles. With increased investment, the E8 delivery volume this month can be increased to more than 5000 vehicles.

As production capacity ramps up, as long as the E8's actual performance isn't too disappointing, monthly sales exceeding 10,000 units is only a matter of time.

Now that Chrysanthemum has abandoned the HI mode, Weilai can take bigger steps. Given that most car companies currently have relatively weak intelligent assisted driving capabilities, Weilai can leverage its technological strength to secure more partnerships.

The collaborations between Volkswagen and Xiaopeng, Strandit and Leapmotor, and BMW and Weilai all reveal a shift in the mindset of multinational corporations. If domestic automakers can seize these collaboration opportunities, they may become one of the leading forces in future technology exports.

Wei Lai needs to seize this opportunity. Recently, Wei Lai has been in contact with Toyota. After Toyota bought back Xingyuan and split it up, and Xingyuan's sales exploded, Toyota's mindset in China has changed significantly.

Cooperation with state-owned enterprises means that Weilai cannot compete with Chrysanthemum for the time being, but a joint venture is something we can try.

"Mr. Lei, congratulations! The SU7 is beautiful."

The Xiaomi booth was packed with people, and Tan Jincheng's arrival caused another stir. The two entrepreneurs, who are currently very popular and had previously worked closely together, met in the automotive industry.

From the perspective of the general public, Tan Jincheng used Meizu phones to enter the mobile phone industry and supplement the ecosystem of Xiaomi. However, Meizu's strategies in recent years have also affected Xiaomi's growth. Some even believe that the long-term slump in Xiaomi's stock price is partly due to Meizu's influence.

From its operating system to its design, and the Meizu and Meilan ecosystem, Meizu is remarkably similar to Xiaomi's initial cost-effective strategy. Both follow an extreme cost-effectiveness model. Meilan's low-price strategy and the goodwill it has built up during special periods have made the brand deeply rooted in people's hearts.

Meizu, like other leading Android brands, often gets to be the first to use Qualcomm chips, which implicitly establishes Meizu's high-end image. Although it is still only a second-tier brand, the Meizu brand has already gained momentum.

Most importantly, Tan Jincheng is not short of money at all. He never thought about making money in the mobile phone industry; it was just a strategic tool. Therefore, while other companies were constantly raising product prices in order to so-called break into the high-end market, Meizu insisted on its own pricing strategy.

Meizu's highest-end product is priced at 1999 yuan, while the highest price of Meizu's flagship phone does not exceed 4999 yuan. Overall, the prices are quite friendly for increasingly expensive mobile phone models.

In 2023, when OPPO, Vivo, and Xiaomi were already selling for over 7000 yuan, Huawei's most expensive models had reached over 1.2 yuan, and even ZTE's Nubia was selling for 6000 yuan, Meizu's insistence on not raising prices was quite unusual.

Throughout 2022, Meizu's global shipments remained around 1200 million units, close to a 5% market share. This was Meizu's bottom line, and they wouldn't bother competing for more. Maintaining this share in a saturated market was Meizu's strategy.

As for the IPO plan, Meizu has no such plans now. Anyway, the big boss is not short of money. With the improvement of its finances, Meizu will give dividends to minority shareholders and management every year, and also give employees a good year-end bonus.

In the current situation, maintaining stability is far more comfortable for Meizu than seeking an IPO and blindly pursuing growth.

Of the 1200 million units shipped, besides Meizu's own fans and those attracted by the product's strength and the no-price-increase strategy, the majority of the other users were former Xiaomi users.

Xiaomi phones priced at six or seven thousand yuan can indeed deter some Xiaomi users. If they are unwilling to lower the quality of Redmi phones, Meizu phones, which do not increase their prices, are the best affordable alternative.

The opinions of the general public are not entirely without merit. In a saturated market, Meizu's resurgence will inevitably impact the sales of other companies. Xiaomi and Meizu, two companies with a certain historical connection, do indeed have some competitive aspects in terms of their products.

In 2022, Xiaomi only shipped 3900 million smartphones. If Meizu had not been acquired by Tan Jincheng but had remained in Huang's hands, would Xiaomi have faced less pressure?
Now, Xiaomi Auto has entered the automotive market with the SU7, making a splash in the market and entering the home turf of Xiaomi. Although the price has not been announced, judging from the configuration and appearance alone, this C-class coupe is targeting models in the same price range as the Mazda3 and ET5.

In terms of popularity, Tan Jincheng and Lei Jun are equally popular, capable of commanding a large following. As for marketing ability, both Tan Jincheng and Lei Jun are widely recognized. The competition between Weilai and Xiaomi, and between Tan Jincheng and Lei Jun, will become increasingly interesting.

In some higher-level dimensions, there is actually a great deal of anticipation for the competition between Tan Jincheng and Lei Jun. Although Tan Jincheng is also very popular, he is just a senior executive of a company, unlike the founder of a company.

To some extent, the competition between Tan Jincheng and Lei Jun may influence the economic landscape over the next five to ten years and determine their respective positions.

"Thank you, thank you so much, Mr. Tan, for coming to support us."

Lei Jun, beaming with joy, had a highlight day in his car manufacturing career, finally appearing at a formal international auto show with his mass-produced model. No one said he was just there to gain attention anymore.

In previous years, Lei Jun, who attended every major auto show, gained a lot of attention and buzz, but because he had no products, many onlookers were disappointed by his PPT car manufacturing and criticized him.

"Oh, no, I'm just here to freeload off some traffic."

Although the SU7 has been criticized for plagiarism, it must be said that this thing is indeed very amazing. The appearance, color, and the announced configuration, if coupled with an acceptable price, will definitely become a hit.

The so-called plagiarism is just what some people think. The exterior does look very similar to a certain Porsche model, especially the front. However, this resemblance cannot be classified as plagiarism; it is more like a reference rather than a simple copy.

With the automotive industry having developed to such a mature stage, it's impossible for a large corporation like Xiaomi to simply copy Porsche. Besides, Porsche isn't one to be trifled with; if Xiaomi were to actually copy someone, they would definitely cause trouble for them.

On the other hand, this thing isn't so easy to copy. The Porsche did attract some sales, but the quality couldn't keep up, so it definitely wouldn't last long. The consumers of the SU7 era are completely different from the consumers of the Porsche era.

In a rational market, given Lei Jun's capabilities, it's absolutely impossible for him to make such a basic mistake.

This car may be controversial and may have many problems, big and small, but it will definitely be a qualified product. At least in terms of suppliers, there are no problems; they are all top-tier domestic suppliers.

"Mr. Tan, you're joking. Your presence is a great support for us. Oh, and by the way, I also want to congratulate Wei on his achievements in October."

With an astonishing monthly sales volume of 30 vehicles and L-series sales of 4 vehicles, each achievement is incredibly strong, forcing Tesla to repeatedly lower its prices and solidifying its reputation as a price killer.

Incidentally, Tesla lowered its prices again in October to stabilize its sales base in China. However, these repeated price cuts have also led to a significant decline in Tesla's gross profit margin.

From a peak gross margin of nearly 30% to around 18% this year, in less than three years, Tesla's gross margin has dropped. Although Musk has been stubborn and sales are rising, the pressure on Tesla is obvious.

In contrast, Wynn, which has achieved widespread success, has already turned a profit with its L series. Major new energy vehicle brands have been losing money. Even giants like Wynn and BYD are not immune to losses in their automotive businesses due to the huge investments they make.

Although the overall gross profit margin is considerable, there are still quite a few loss-making models within Weilai. The positive profit of the L series means that Weilai will achieve a qualitative leap, no longer losing money on every car sold. For a new energy company, the financial pressure will be much less.

After Li Xiang announced on Weibo that the L series had achieved positive profitability, Weilai's stock price surged by 14% in a single day, with its market value exceeding 1.6 trillion yuan, returning to its peak.

In the high-end model segment, the L series has achieved positive profitability, and the S01 under the Exeed brand has also achieved positive profitability thanks to economies of scale. The delivery volume of the Star Wish model has also shown a trend towards profitability.

From high-end to low-end, Weilai has its own profitable product lines. It's only natural that the capital market is optimistic about Weilai's ability to maintain profitability.

"It's not exactly a cause for celebration; achieving profitability is something we need to do anyway."

With multiple profitable product lines, Weilai will only become more terrifying. At least when it comes to price wars, Weilai can act without restraint. Any model that tries to challenge Weilai will have to withstand a more intense counterattack from Weilai.

They've discussed this in private meetings, and it's clear that Wei Lai is truly capable of doing it.

Looking at Meizu's pricing strategy, Orange Products' actions, and Xingyuan's technology transfer, once Tan Jincheng has the strength, he truly dares to forge a unique path. Moreover, given Tan Jincheng's current status, he doesn't need to worry too much.

Maintaining cooperation with Wei Lai, rather than competing head-on, will yield far greater benefits.

However, it seems that Xiaomi Auto is not a big deal for Weilai. They even dared to cooperate with Seres, and even if Hongtu sells well, they don't have any targeted policies. It seems that they don't care much about new forces.

"It's easier said than done. Xiaomi Auto has just been launched. I would appreciate it if Mr. Tan could help promote it more so that we can have more cooperation."

Currently, Xiaomi's battery cells are supplied by Jinshidai. In addition, the component suppliers under Weilai also have some business with Xiaomi, but the scale of business is not large. Lei Jun's words reveal his intention to deepen cooperation.

"No problem, we can sit down and chat when we have time."

Tan Jincheng didn't care too much. Lei Jun had been getting close to Boatman recently, and many of the parts in the SU7 came from Dizi's parts company, although the largest part, the battery, was taken over by Jinxin Times.

However, with the rise in Xiaomi's sales, it is only natural that BYD became Xiaomi's battery supplier. Compared to cooperating with Weilai, they still prefer to cooperate with BYD.

Companies choose suppliers, and suppliers with bargaining power also choose companies. Wei Lai has always been quite direct in dealing with clients. When LeEco faced a crisis, Tan Jincheng was able to decisively stop supplying them, and the same applies to Nezha now.

Whenever Tan Jincheng believes a company is beyond saving, the first principle of their companies regarding supply issues is always "quickly cut losses." The benefit of swiftly cutting ties is to avoid being dragged down.

It may seem a bit heartless, but that's how market competition works. Look at the number of suppliers dragged down by the belts. Sometimes, clinging to illusions is more terrifying than cutting your losses quickly.

Clients who are not large enough are obviously more willing to cooperate with traditional suppliers like BYD.

Aside from the traffic surge brought by Xiaomi, this year's Guangzhou Auto Show was packed with top-tier products and high-quality goods.

Wei Lai and Xiao Peng arrived with their first pure electric MPVs, both models with their own highlights. Together with the newly unveiled Volvo EM90, the three pure electric MPVs have started a three-way battle, and the niche MPV market has begun to see fierce competition.

The Galaxy E8 and the U8, carrying Geely and BYD's high-end aspirations, have entered the market. In addition, Tank, a brand under the Yuechi Group, also made its debut with a newly launched hybrid off-road vehicle.

Chery showcased its smart selection model in collaboration with Chrysanthemum, demonstrating that traditional models are accelerating their progress towards high-end and electrification trends.

"There are no small fry, only top brands. This year's Guangzhou Auto Show illustrates the current state of the automotive industry to some extent, which is gradually concentrating on the leading companies. The market doesn't need so many brands anymore."

Among the emerging electric vehicle brands, Seres, the most competitive, has also introduced its new flagship model, the X9, following the phenomenal sales of the X7. This model is expected to be priced at over 50 yuan, which has also attracted a lot of attention.

"We don't have any plans for models priced above 50 yuan under the main brand of Weilai. Our goal in the future is to make cars more and more affordable, so that more users can afford to drive cars and drive good cars."

At the Xiaomi booth, when asked about the pre-sale price of the Hongtu X9, Tan Jincheng's answer caused a stir, leaving Lei Jun, who was standing next to him, stunned for a moment.

If someone else said this, people might just laugh it off, and even if he actually did it, it wouldn't cause much of a stir. But when it came from Tan Jincheng, it was like a Damocles' sword hanging over the heads of any company.

Let's see what Weilai has on hand right now. In addition to a few best-selling models, Weilai has a mapless city intelligent assisted driving solution, an intelligent cockpit, an 800V high-voltage platform, and a Xingyu platform.

In addition to these, Jinshidai and ByteDance, both subsidiaries of Weilai, have made leading investments in semi-solid-state and solid-state batteries compared to their peers.

The head of a leading company with advanced technology, high sales volume, and ample cash flow, who wouldn't panic if he announced that he would make cars cheaper and cheaper?

"Haha, did you see that? As soon as Mr. Tan said that, Lei Jun's face changed. I wonder how the other car companies will react."

There were many people at the scene, including reporters, social media users, and casual observers. A relatively large number of people seemed to approve of Tan Jincheng.

While there may be many problems and issues with new energy vehicles, one thing is very certain: prices are becoming more transparent and cars are becoming cheaper. Since the emergence of new energy vehicles, the practice of paying extra to get a car, which was common in the era of gasoline cars, has become increasingly rare.

A car is essentially a consumer product, and consumer products should be approached with rationality.

(End of this chapter)