Chapter 252
Chapter 252
The Blue Dragon, which was famous as a famous SUV, suffered a major crisis during the IMF crisis. After that, it did not recover and was eventually sold to Shanghai Motors in China.
At the time of the acquisition, Shanghai Motors made a firm promise to revive the Blue Dragon car by investing a large amount of money to develop and launch a new car. However, after the acquisition, the words changed.
Rather than investing, they rushed to take away the technological prowess of the Blue Dragon. In the end, all the technology was stolen, the development team and other important personnel were transferred to another corporation, and then sold again when the use value was lost. Meanwhile, sales and profits plummeted, and many workers lost their jobs.
It would be better to say that it was acquired with the intention of robbing it altogether.
It would be impossible for a Chinese company to acquire Eunsung Motor as a whole, but taking over only a Chinese subsidiary is a possible scenario.
Although it is difficult in Korea for various reasons, Eunsung’s technological prowess is world-class. Benz, BMW, Toyota, etc., which have a superior technological edge over Eunsung Motors, may not feel the need to acquire them, but it will be worth salivating from the perspective of Chinese automakers.
The silver star situation isn’t quite that serious yet, and the CEO and management won’t make that stupid decision, but shareholders may think differently.
If the company is in a difficult situation and shareholders want to liquidate the poor overseas business, it is impossible to oppose it blindly.
In fact, despite many bad examples, many companies have been sold to China. A few months ago, even Kum-Oh Tire passed to China’s Triple Star.
There is a strong possibility of being robbed this time, but there was no choice but to take over the Chinese company.
I told Daryl.
“Watch the situation and let us know if you really see any signs of that.”
“Okay.”
After the video conference was over, the screen went off. I put down the material I was holding and leaned back on my chair, thinking.
Experts cited this year as a singularity. From this year on, there will be major changes in politics, society and the economy in general.
In fact, change has been around for a long time and has been prepared for. Now it is only showing up on the surface.
This is also true of the automobile market.
Karos introduced the self-driving car, and the OTK Research Institute developed the OTK battery, sparking a change.
Just as other companies flocked to Gubble’s Andromeda camp after the release of Enphone, companies that were developing future cars came together.
In the United States, Nikola, Iver, NPL, Gubble, GM, Ford, etc., Toyota, Honda, SFT Bank, etc. in Japan, and Daimler, BMW, Volkswagen Group and PAS Group in Europe formed alliances.
Taek-gyu asked after hearing the explanation.
“Are we the only ones being bullied?”
“Well, we are also holding hands with Seosung Electronics and Seoseong SB.”
Karos’ share of the market is still small. Nevertheless, they are being held back by companies.
The Stone Age did not end when stones fell.
When a new technology emerges, the existing technology naturally goes down the road.
When the N-Phone was released, sales were only a few percent of the total cell phone sales. But within just a few years, smartphones overtook feature phones and took over the market.
Could it be that Nokia failed to make a good feature phone? The opposite is true. It was made better than any other company and went bankrupt. So, even when other companies were all eager to develop smartphones, they did their best to make feature phones.
Even though bronze and iron tools appeared, they were making bigger and better stone axes.
Currently, automobiles are in the process of transitioning to the next era. In the process, companies that adapt will enter a new era, but those that do not will naturally perish. That’s why everyone is desperately moving in order to survive.
* * *
We came home from work.
“Dinner at Chinese restaurant?”
“That’s right.”
At this point, I think I might be able to buy a Chinese restaurant.
I changed into comfortable clothes and sat on the sofa. I sighed while drinking a can of beer, and the food arrived.
“Thank you for always using us. I added dumplings as a service.”
“Oh, thank you.”
Taek-gyu set the food on the table and unwrapped the wrapping.
“How is your sister?”
“I went to the hospital with Henry yesterday, and he said there was no problem.”
Hyun-joo’s older sister was noticeably full. Now, instead of high-waisted skirts, they wear wide dresses. I was still working, but I didn’t work overtime and left work on time. According to Ellie, Golden Gate employees are happy when the branch manager leaves early.
Henry rushed to the building next door when it was time to leave. These days, his expression is completely blank. I’m dying like this, but I don’t know how I’ve endured it.
“When are you moving?”
“next Saturday. Take the time off that day. We have to go together and move things.”
“… … Huh?”
I wonder if we can just buy a moving company, but maybe it’s our virtue to help each other on the day of moving?
By the way, I think Hyunjoo noona and Henry will really live together. Looking at this, it seems that there is a real relationship.
I turned on the TV to watch the news.
At the same time, the news about the Eunseongcha strike was coming out. The union is currently on a partial strike and has declared that it will go on strike if the demand is not met by the next round of negotiations.
This is the first collective bargaining agreement since Chan-Young Lee took office as chairman. And the same goes for union leaders. It seems that both sides do not want to be pushed into a battle of flags.
The biggest issue in this collective bargaining agreement is the issue of hiring union members’ children first. The media also paid attention to it.
Taek-gyu asked as if he didn’t understand.
“How in the world can you come up with the amazing idea of employment inheritance? How is this different from inheriting titles from nobles?”
That’s why it’s called aristocratic union?
Although it is a framing created by the conservative media, it can be considered appropriate for this issue.
The union argued that it was a reasonable compensation for the sacrifices they had made for the company.
It sounds plausible at first glance, but in hindsight, it makes no sense.
According to this logic, what kind of people would be convinced that the state will hire the children of civil servants who have worked for more than 15 years first?
Currently, youth unemployment in Korea is a serious situation, and in many cases the employment competition ratio of large corporations exceeds 100 to 1. Naturally, it is difficult for general applicants to surpass the children of union members in the job competition.
Ultimately, this is an act that deprives other job seekers of opportunities.
Taehyung continued to grumble.
“If the parents are employees of a large company, the children will also go to a large company, and if the parents are employees of a small business, the children will have to work for a small business for the rest of their lives. Are your parents also talented?”
I sighed inwardly.
When did this country become like this?
However, this is not the case only in Eunsung cars.
There are not one or two large corporations with similar provisions in the face of union pressure. The Eunsung Cha union is also taking it as an example and insisting that they do the same.
As a result, large corporations are reluctant to build factories in Korea, and quality jobs are gradually disappearing. As it becomes difficult for young people to find employment, unions are increasingly clinging to hereditary employment.
“Eunsung car sales are going down right now, is it okay to go on strike like that?”
“Of course not.”
“I’m glad the Karos union isn’t like that.”
In the past, the American Automobile Union was also notoriously strong.
However, the big three collapsed due to the financial crisis, and large-scale restructuring followed. Instead of providing public funds, the US government demanded concessions from both companies and unions.
It was at this time that American workers realized that if the company collapsed, their jobs would also be lost.
Since then, American auto workers have taken a different path. The American Auto Workers’ Union held a collective wage agreement every four years and refrained from strikes as much as possible. It was reborn as a union for coexistence, not a union for struggle. However, even at that time, the Korean Automobile Workers’ Union went even more rigid.
The reason is that there was a strong belief that the company would not go bankrupt even if this was done.
Meanwhile, the average wage of regular workers has risen to nearly 100 million won. 100 million is a good word, but if you add various welfare benefits to this, the burden on the company will be much greater.
It is certainly a good thing that workers get a high salary.
However, if it is an industry with a low labor cost and high added value, such as semiconductors, it is inevitably difficult for the general manufacturing industry to continue to adopt this high cost structure.
It’s less of a problem when things are going well, but problems arise as soon as sales go down. It is easy to raise the labor cost, but it is impossible to lower it.
If you think about it, it’s a funny situation.
There are a lot of people in Korea who want to work even on an annual salary of 40 million won, but companies go abroad for expensive labor costs. In addition, instead of hiring regular workers to meet labor costs, only non-regular workers are continuously increasing.
As a result, jobs are not increasing in Korea, and the jobs that do exist are polarized.
Ultimately, this problem has to be resolved, and companies, unions, governments… … No one is touching it.
While I was thinking about not eating, Taek-gyu stared at me.
“what? Why do you look like that?”
“Aren’t you trying to help? no way.”
“… … .”
It’s our house, why are you mad?
“Is it true that Yeji told us to cooperate?”
“It feels like that.”
Taehyung continued to ask.
“If it’s like that, it’s like that, if it’s not, it’s not. What exactly was the foresight?”
“that’s… … .”
When Taek-gyu heard my story, he was startled.
“What? Is that real?”
“Huh.”
I remembered the wisdom I saw.
* * *(Read more @ wuxiax.com)
There are few sectors where economies of scale play as great as automobiles. Experts predicted that the automobile market would be reorganized with a few companies that survived the competition.
Although it is not necessarily the words of experts, even now, mergers and affiliations are actively taking place among companies.
GM has Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC, Buick, GM Korea, BMW Group has MINI and Rolls-Royce, and Volkswagen Group has Skoda, Audi, Porsche, Bentley and Lamborghini as affiliates.
Just as GM acquired Daehu Motors and Renault acquired Suseong Motors, there is no law prohibiting the acquisition of other automakers in the process of Karos becoming a global company.
“Are you saying that one of them is Eunseong Cha?”
“I will.”
What Yeji shows is the future.
I know the result, but how does it happen?
“In order to do that, doesn’t Eunsung Cha need to collapse first?”
“Then the Chinese side will reach out before us. What would you do if you had to take over a company that went bankrupt and lost its technology as an affiliate?”
Taek-gyu thought for a moment and then asked.
“What if I help out for nothing and the future changes? What if Eunsung Cha succeeds in its recovery without going bankrupt?”
“That’s the problem… … .”
Every time I see Yeji, I think the same thing every time.
Is the future fixed or can it be changed? Did the future I see even predict my future actions? What will happen if you forcefully make your foresight wrong?
I’ll have to think more deeply about this part, but anyway, I’ve never been wrong about my foresight. So, can I trust you again?
As Chairman Im Jin-yong said, it is also true that production bases in the Asian market are needed. China is betting its life and death on the development of future cars at the government level, and in Japan, too, traditional powerhouses such as Toyota and Honda will not give up the market easily.
At this point, the most important thing to consider is whether it is beneficial to us or not.
As long as the future doesn’t change, it would be better to take over in as good a condition as possible.
Taek-gyu muttered with his arms crossed.
“Hmm, is it going to be ours anyway?”
To be honest, I don’t really want to get involved with Eunsung Cha. But he showed foresight, and he just couldn’t ignore it.
Still, I have no intention of reaching out to my side. I don’t know if I’d ask for help from the other side first.
But a few days later, I got a phone call from Chan-Young Han.
[Hello, CEO Kang Jin-hoo. This is Chanyoung Han of Eunseongcha.]“Yes. long time no see.”
[If you have time, can I see you for a moment?]
