2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 819 The Lieutenant's Merit Is Insignificant

January 5th, the first Monday of 2015.

In the CEO's office on the top floor of the Flash Drive Building in Ningbo, a rarely seen guest arrived.

Still with that same simple and honest look, Zhang Yiming, wearing glasses and sporting short hair, looked around the large office.

Apart from adding some office furniture and replacing some equipment for work purposes, the decoration is not much different from when Tan Jincheng first moved in.

However, the number of people in the adjacent offices has increased significantly.

The president's office has now expanded to a team of 20 people, managed by Zeng Jixiang, the director of the president's office. An additional office has been added for Li Xiang, who works on the top floor as a special assistant.

"Mr. Tan, you're really not going? I'm starting to panic if you don't go."

After touring the office, Zhang Yiming looked at Tan Jincheng with an expression of utter disbelief. In fact, he had given quite a few interviews this year, including during the Internet Conference.

However, this year's event is the Top Ten Economic Figures of the Year. Although it is no longer organized by CCTV, its influence remains.

"I had already made an agreement with them to give Sina and CBN one interview each, so I won't be going this time. Besides, I really can't get away."

It's that time of year again for the annual review. As one of the most influential lists today, the annual economic figures list has been held for more than 10 years. I don't know why CCTV didn't hold it this year. Last year's highlight was the bet between Lei Jun and Dong Mingzhu.

Lei Jun set up a one-yuan bet, while Dong Mingzhu, at the height of her power, aggressively demanded a ten-billion-yuan bet, somewhat losing her composure.

What was originally a very interesting matter has lost its charm because of Ms. Dong's fuss. Although it has increased the buzz, it has also ruined the whole thing.

It's more like a pure gamble.

This year, for some reason, CCTV stopped hosting this authoritative event and instead handed it over to Sina Finance and CBN. But it's possible that Ms. Dong's bet last year caused too much of a stir, and they felt it had a bad impact, so they changed the host.

These days, state media still have considerable authority, and they will promptly stop any bad trends.

"It's alright, at most we'll get a lecture from our CEO Ma, no big deal."

Tan Jincheng was selected as one of the top ten economic figures of the year for the second time. The comment was that he was embarking on a new journey. The Weilai Group, which is almost like a second startup, successfully listed on the A-share market this year. Its power battery business has successfully entered the ranks of world-class component suppliers and is competing with companies from Japan and South Korea.

The production capacity and sales volume of new energy vehicles account for half of the domestic market, which has played a significant role in promoting the new energy industry.

Tan Jincheng ranked fourth, followed closely by Zhang Yiming. They were the only two people born in the 1980s among the ten on the list.

ByteDance's rapid expansion in 2014, despite the doubts surrounding its business strategy, could not stop the rapid growth of its various apps, including Toutiao and Neihan Duanzi.

Currently, the core Toutiao app has over 200 million users and a daily active user base of 20 million. While strengthening cooperation with the media, ByteDance has also reduced the number of lawsuits it has been involved in, and it is no longer the internet company that was constantly being sued and named.

"Haha, I don't mind being scolded by Mr. Ma. He probably doesn't think much of us and wouldn't lecture me. It's just that it feels a bit awkward not having anyone I know here. Actually, it would be a good thing for our company if Mr. Ma gave us a lecture."

Who is the most successful person in the business world this year? It is none other than our Mr. Ma. He has become the richest man in China, and the Internet Conference has almost become a one-man show for him. He is enjoying immense success.

Although CCTV will no longer host the year-end "Top Ten Influential People" event, the new organizing body will definitely invite him to attend, and given his penchant for the limelight, he will certainly be there.

Although the two did not speak directly at the Internet Conference, they were clearly at odds, especially now that Express and Didi are fighting again, and he is not on the same side as Ali.

Too lazy to listen to his nagging, Tan Jincheng simply made up an excuse to refuse to go.

"That's settled then, go ahead. Anyway, ByteDance's relationship with the media is still pretty good, so they shouldn't make things too difficult for you."

Zhang Yiming came to Shanghai to open a branch office. ByteDance is no longer the small company that was once crammed into a residential building. It has already moved to a proper office space in Beijing. With the development of its business, it is necessary to set up a branch office in Shanghai as well.

Zhang Yiming mainly came here to oversee the work of the Shanghai branch. He just stopped by Ningbo to visit someone, so there was nothing else going on.

2014 was a big year for the internet, and also a big year for him. After four failed startups, he finally didn't have to worry about his company going out of business, and he also realized his dream.

Currently, apart from needing to improve in commercial development, ByteDance already has a very leading advantage in algorithm computing, having developed a unique algorithm.

"There's no need to rush about income. Look at our power batteries, we were losing money like crazy a few years ago, but things are looking up now."

Although they are in different industries, ByteDance and Weilai have some things in common: they both follow the path of technological accumulation. Their businesses may not seem impressive at first, but once they take off, their power is enormous.

To be honest, Tan Jincheng thinks the interface of Toutiao (a Chinese news aggregator) is low-quality no matter how he looks at it, and the layout of Neihan Duanzi (another Chinese news aggregator) is also low-quality. But many people like it, which is mainly due to the algorithm, in addition to the content.

In terms of marketing and advertising, ByteDance didn't have much in the early stages. Zhang Yiming was extremely stingy with company funds, saving money wherever possible and preferring part-time work to full-time work.

“Alright, since you’re not going, Mr. Tan, I’ll go by myself. Speaking of which, it’s definitely beneficial for you to set up a branch in Shanghai, Mr. Tan, because Beicang is too remote.”

"Haha, things are much better now. It was much more troublesome before there was a subway. You're lucky to have caught a good time."

More than one person has complained about this. The main reason is that Tan Jincheng's current status is quite high. Unless someone is particularly powerful or someone he values, they all have to come to Beicang to find him. Someone like Zhang Yiming now has to take the initiative to find Tan Jincheng.

The subway in Beicang District officially opened for trial operation in May this year. The subway has indeed made things much more convenient, and some talents from other areas of Ningbo are also willing to come to work in Beicang, which has also brought many benefits to the recruitment of workers in Weilai.

"Okay, I'm off then, going to be a nobody."

Being selected as one of the top ten economic figures of the year for the first time is still a bit of a social anxiety for Zhang Yiming, who prefers to keep a low profile, especially when he thinks of the heated scene from last year.

"Go ahead, it's okay. We're all juniors anyway. If we get criticized, we should fight back. They're the ones who should be embarrassed."

Being young is certainly a disadvantage most of the time, but in some situations it can also be an advantage.

Aside from being too lazy to listen to Lao Ma's nagging, Tan Jincheng has indeed been quite busy lately. His first priority is to finalize the design plan for the Shanghai branch as soon as possible, with a total cycle of 60 months, or five years.

He didn't want it to drag on for that long, otherwise it would be too late. According to Tan Jincheng, everything had to be delivered and occupied before 2018.

Given Tesla's past speed in Shanghai, if we hurry up, we can shorten the construction period.

However, the first step is to finalize the design plan.

"What did General Manager Cai say? Does he agree with our suggestion?"

"Haha, of course they'd love to. Mr. Cai said he'll come over in the next few days to have a good chat with us."

What's interesting is that the land that ByteDance bought in Shanghai is next to miHoYo, a two-dimensional game company founded in 2011. It is a very unique company in the game industry, having received almost no funding.

One of the founders, after receiving a job offer from Cisco, transferred his 1.3% stake to two other founders for 13 yuan.

It's a rather interesting company. Their only investment was also unexpected. Tan Jincheng had inquired about it, but since the company didn't accept it, he wouldn't force them.

It's impossible to invest in all the good companies.

This year, their Honkai Impact series has reached its second installment, which immediately topped the iOS App Store paid charts upon release. No one expected the anime market to be so large.

With several games in hand and a large cash flow, they certainly don't need to raise funds.

However, since they're on the same street, it seems like we could do something interesting by combining elements from both companies, which would make the subsidiaries seem more appealing.

"President Cai was very happy with our proposal, as it would greatly enhance their company's image. He was also willing to cooperate with us to work on this plan."

"Hehe, Mr. Cai also said that it's a pity they don't have the money to build the building now, otherwise they would have built it along with them, which would have made it look even cooler."

He was initially a little worried, as the wealthy and powerful Boss Tan was right next door, and his company's collection of steel buildings would make it lose its unique character.

Now, Boss Tan is willing to cooperate with them to create a street dedicated to anime and manga culture. This will not only not affect their existing characteristics, but will also further enhance their popularity.

Could it be that Boss Tan is also a fan of anime and manga?

"Haha, don't underestimate the power of anime and manga culture, and don't underestimate their purchasing power."

Traditionally, people think of anime and manga fans as mostly otaku, but that's not actually the case. Even otaku have travel needs, play other games, and their spending power is quite high.

Anything that can attract a segment of ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) users, such as a collaboration between a car brand, an electric scooter brand, or a clothing brand, could be a good option. Don't forget that Tan Jincheng also owns a clothing brand.

In games, cooperation can be achieved in a mutually acceptable way, which is beneficial to the company's products. As for whether adding anime elements to the branch office headquarters building would negatively impact the company's image?

What does his massive engine project have to do with the Weilai Group?

After all, the building will be named the Giant Building in the future, and the nature of the vague industrial company was also decided from the beginning. There is a rumor on the Internet that Pinduoduo's headquarters cannot be found. Tan Jincheng in his previous life also knew about it, but he didn't know if it was true.

If it's true, it only shows that Huang Zheng is quite cunning.

Besides finalizing the design plan, another important thing is that Mr. Tan and his wife are currently trying to conceive. They are taking a rare break at home, and he doesn't want to waste this opportunity listening to Teacher Ma brag.

Besides these, the end of the year is the time for annual review, and the businesses of several listed companies are very busy.

Preparing an annual report is necessary, especially for Weilai Group. Although there is still some time before the annual report is released, it is still very important as Weilai Group's first annual report after its listing.

This morning, the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) released the overall car sales figures for 2014, and the various lists were very impressive.

It must be said that ride-hailing services have indeed boosted the overall sales of the automotive industry, especially low-end sedans and new energy vehicles with huge subsidies. This year, the total sales of automobiles in China reached 2350 million units, an increase of nearly 7% compared to last year.

FAW-Volkswagen and SAIC-Volkswagen remain the biggest winners in the market, ranking first and second with sales of 289.2 million and 206.2 million vehicles respectively. They are also the only two OEMs with sales exceeding 200 million vehicles, and their positions are unshakeable.

Several companies have achieved sales exceeding one million units, and overall, the market is beginning to show a trend towards becoming a leading player.

Judging from the sales figures released by major automakers, the top ten are still dominated by joint venture brands, while domestic brands have had a difficult year.

Yesterday, Weilai also announced its 2014 sales figures. The China Passenger Car Association is now at its wits' end with Weilai, as the sales figures they released in the previous years differed somewhat from Weilai's.

Now, as long as Wei Lai hasn't announced the sales figures, they're not in a hurry to issue a statement.

Throughout 2014, WILRE continued to perform well. While domestic brands did face some difficulties that year, that was only in the sedan segment. As two of the leading brands in the rapidly growing SUV segment, WILRE and Great Wall Motors still fared quite well.

The Yuechi A1 and A3 series, along with the Haval H6 series, form the kingpin lineup on the domestic SUV sales chart, firmly suppressing joint venture brands. This year alone, the Yuechi series sold 32.17 units.

Although the Haval H6 has performed strongly, in the SUV market, especially in the 10 to 20 yuan price range, the position of the Weilai remains very stable.

Despite Wang Fengying's outstanding abilities and Great Wall's established brand advantages and powerful marketing system, Great Wall was still unable to defeat Weilai in direct competition.

Tan Jincheng had considered poaching him before, but gave up after seeing Zhang Li's expression. As a president in charge of production, Zhang Li was a lieutenant, and as a man, he didn't want to hurt his pride.

As for Wang Fengying, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future. She went public two years earlier than Weilai, so it would be difficult to poach her now, since she still can't cash out her shares.

There will be plenty of opportunities in the future, but for now, Zhang Li is still more important than his wife.

An excellent production manager can solve many problems for a company, especially in a high-asset, high-risk supply chain like the automotive industry. Being too conservative will lead to insufficient production capacity, while being too aggressive will result in insufficient sales and a lot of inventory.

Weilai's outstanding performance is not only in the SUV track, but also in the highly anticipated new energy vehicle track this year, where Weilai is forging ahead.

The Aion S received 16724 orders throughout the year, with 9200 undelivered. The ES6 received 8116 orders throughout the year, with 2700 undelivered orders. Including bus orders, the total number of new energy vehicles delivered by Weilai reached 28055.

In 2014, the total sales volume of new energy vehicles was 7.5 units, accounting for 37.4% of the overall market share. On the surface, the market share dropped from 50% to 37.4%, but those inside and outside the industry know what really happened.

With a surge in sales of new energy vehicles and a fierce subsidy war this year, even Zhidou, a sub-brand of Zhongtai, has claimed to have sold 7400 vehicles.

If the sales of the Aion S and pure electric buses are questioned due to their cooperation with local bus companies and tourism companies, with some suspecting that the company may be using connections to obtain subsidies, then the sales of the ES6 are beyond doubt.

The Weilai ES6 follows the same sales strategy as the Tesla Model S, offering both online ordering via the app and official website, and offline ordering and pickup. There are no middlemen involved, and delivery and registration are both straightforward.

This data is beyond question. Like Tesla, it's privately registered, so there's no way to criticize it.

Tesla's sales in China for the whole year were 8000 vehicles, falling short of expectations. Similarly, Tesla's sales in the fourth quarter also fell short of expectations, with the total sales of 3.13 vehicles for the whole year failing to reach the previously set target of 3.5 vehicles.

This also led to a sharp drop in Tesla's stock price in December, although its sales of 31,300 vehicles still made it the world's number one.

To some extent, Tesla's promotional efforts in China are hampered by the high import prices. In reality, these import tariffs are a form of protection for domestic brands, and Tesla doesn't actually make much more money from them.

The same applies to BYD's exports to other countries. Given Tesla's popularity in North America, if they also sell for 30, it will be extremely difficult for the ES6 to be promoted.

Tesla, Wynn, and BYD all sold more than 20,000 new energy vehicles throughout the year.

Domestically, BYD ranks first, BYD ranks second, and Tesla ranks third. However, looking at the global landscape, although the three companies have performed well, they are still not the most outstanding; they can only be considered newcomers.

In 2014, the global sales volume of new energy vehicles totaled 353522 units, which includes the combined sales of passenger cars, electric special-purpose vehicles, hybrid vehicles, pure electric vehicles, etc.

Global passenger vehicle sales totaled 323864 units. The Nissan Leaf was the best-selling vehicle, with a total of 6.1 units sold throughout the year. The Tesla Model S and the Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in hybrid ranked third with 3.11 units sold.

In terms of single-vehicle sales, the Aion S ranked sixth, and the BYD Qin also made it into the top ten.

It's surprising that both Wynn and BYD, two companies that are seriously involved in new energy vehicles, have entered the top ten globally. This achievement was unexpected for both Wynn and BYD, and it was also unexpected for the higher-ups who benefited from policy support.

Subsidies are available in every country, and the global automotive supply chain is not in our hands. We can only produce some low-end models of gasoline-powered vehicles and earn a negligible profit.

From a top-down perspective, new energy vehicles may be a calculated move by foreigners, but we have no choice but to go all out to develop them. If we don't take the bait, we'll never be able to develop our own automotive industry chain.

Wei Lai has been quite successful in recent years, with the Yuechi A1 and Yuechi A3 selling very well. However, Tan Jincheng is hesitant to venture into the realm of gasoline-powered vehicles priced above 30 yuan.

We really can't beat them.

This isn't something you can reverse by simply copying the design of a G-Class. Most people who buy high-end cars aren't actually looking for practical functionality, but rather for prestige.

If you say a Mercedes hood ornament is worth 20, then it is.

New energy may be a scam, but only by making breakthroughs in this field can we gain a foothold in the automotive industry. Now, Woolai and BYD have given the higher-ups hope.

Especially for mid-to-high-end models like the ES6, with a guide price of over 30 yuan, the fact that it is so popular in the market provides a new path for domestic automakers.

As a pioneer in the new energy vehicle industry, Chuanfuge's contributions are commendable, but as a follower, the newcomer Weilai Motors' contributions are equally noteworthy.

The chaos surrounding subsidies remains unstoppable, but the emergence of two top-ten global domestic new energy vehicle manufacturers in 2014 signifies the success of the policy direction.

The fact that the Aion S, a newcomer under the Weilai brand, has achieved sixth place in global sales, surpassing the BMW i3, has greatly encouraged domestic brands.

Interestingly, Thomas, the current design director at WWE, was previously the designer of the BMW i3.

After the annual sales figures were released, Tan Jincheng joked with him, saying that he wouldn't regret coming to Weilai. Right now, the Aion S's sales have surpassed the BMW i3, but one day the ES6, which is comparable to the BMW i3, will also be able to surpass it.

"Our annual sales reached 43.77 vehicles, which is much better than our previous expectation of 40 vehicles. This was beyond our expectations. Of course, we are also very grateful for the support of our consumers. We are still a very young company, and I hope that in the future we can do our best to give our consumers a satisfactory answer through our quality and service."

Although he did not attend the Person of the Year celebration, Tan Jincheng still recorded a video message to offer his blessings.

Not long after Zhang Yiming left, Tan Jincheng gave an exclusive interview to CBN in his top-floor office at the Flashpoint Building.

They arrived remarkably quickly. According to them, as soon as Mr. Tan agreed to the interview, they immediately arranged for someone to set off.

A year has passed, and everyone is talking about happy topics. Tan Jincheng, of course, is mostly sharing good news.

When discussing Weilai's sales figures, Tan Jincheng smiled, but his words remained humble. As for the title of being the number one new energy vehicle manufacturer in China, Mr. Tan also humbly stated that it was merely a fluke.

“Our first-mover advantage is obvious. In the field of power batteries, we started not much later than established players like BYD. In addition, we also went through a long period of preparation before launching the Aion S and ES6.”

"The first is the reward for our hard work, but the real market competition has not yet begun."

"I don't know if you've noticed, but more and more companies and individuals are entering the new energy vehicle sector, including many internet professionals and various types of capital."

"The challenges that will come to us in the future are still very great."

The real competition has not yet begun, a fact that Tan Jincheng is well aware of.

P.S.: I suddenly realized that I can't stop updating during the recommendation period, otherwise there will be no more recommendations, which is really bad.
(End of this chapter)