Chapter 366 $2 billion
That’s right, Fang Xiang had previously promised to give Huo Zhenting two new car models.
The Camry and Lexus have just been running for a few months and have completed road tests.
"Mr. Fang, how many cars are there in this batch?"
After squatting at the door of the production line and counting numbers for the whole morning, Huo Zhenting happily ran to Fang Xiang's office.
"When we first started producing, we only had a few hundred units."
Fang Xiang was writing a lesson plan when he saw Huo Zhenting push the door open. He looked up and threw him a cigarette.
“I originally thought that Mr. Fang was not going to produce mid-sized cars.
Now that I see these two cars, I feel relieved. "
Huo Zhenting actually doesn’t like smoking, but he still lit up the cigarette that Fang Xiang threw to him.
"I heard that a while ago, Mr. Trump smashed Xiao Rizi's car in front of the White House?"
After Fang Xiang finished writing this line, he put down the pen.
“Indeed, it was broadcast live nationwide and it caused quite a stir.
Moreover, not only the car was smashed, but also many other daily products.
There is a serious resistance to Japanese products in North America right now.”
Huo Zhenting nodded when he heard Fang Xiang asking about this matter. "The reason is actually very simple. Japanese cars and Japanese products are cheaper and better than those produced by Lao Mi.
Many blue-collar workers in the United States say that the easy life has robbed them of their jobs and salaries, and call them wage thieves.
So at the beginning, it was a small-scale protest in the central industrial area.
Then it gradually spread to the east and finally to the west.”
Huo Zhenting said this while sighing.
“I heard from a manager in the automotive industry.
Last year, the sales volume of Japanese cars alone reached 500,000 in North America.
Many models are very popular among families with agricultural income.
But this year, it’s obvious that some of them are not selling well.
Unfortunately, North America’s own car companies are not living up to expectations, with large displacement, high fuel consumption and high prices.
Ford and GM's sales are falling year by year, production is also declining, and workers' incomes are decreasing.
Coupled with their media propaganda and guidance, many unemployed people blame their easy lives for the cause.
If the sales volume of Japanese cars drops by half, there will be a market of more than 200,000 units vacated. Mr. Fang, you better hurry up."
Huo Zhenting became more and more excited as he spoke, digging out the root causes of the current situation in North America.
“Our car has many advantages.
More importantly, no one cares whether we are a North American brand or whether we are produced locally.
I noticed something very interesting.
In Los Angeles, many people think that GAC is their own North American brand and a sub-brand of GM.
Many people say that they want to support American products, and some even think that we sell them too cheaply.
I doubt whether it is enough to pay the workers and I wonder when the price will increase.”
As he spoke, Huo Zhenting couldn't help laughing.
It is not difficult to understand why many Americans mistake GAC for GM.
GAC’s logo is a big G.
The universal symbol is a GM.
Moreover, General Motors has many car brands.
There are many familiar brands such as Buick, Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC, Holden, Pontiac, etc.
Because both have a G, it is not surprising that many Americans think that GAC is a sub-brand of GM.
You know, even in later generations, there are still many Americans who believe that the earth is flat.
"In that case, should we change the Lexus logo?"
After listening to Huo Zhenting's words, Fang Xiang also smiled.
Lao Mi is not the first to do this kind of thing, nor will he be the last.
You know, many Indians still think that MoDi is a domestic product.
But for Lexus, Fang Xiang originally wanted to do the same as later generations and grab the brand and logo first.
As for whether to develop into an independent sub-brand and release a series of OEM or re-skinned cars, he has not yet decided.
But if, as Huo Zhenting said, Mr. Mi now has such a high brand recognition of GAC, it may not be a good thing for Lexus to change its logo.
To be honest, it may even drag down sales.
"That's not necessary. As long as it's not a cheap brand, Lao Mi doesn't really have any feelings about it now."
Huo Zhenting pondered for a moment and shook his head.
"Then let's try selling it first. If it sells well, we can make it a sub-brand and add a few more models."
Fang Xiang nodded.
Speaking of which, today is not like the future where we engage in brand wars.
Whenever there is a problem, they create a new brand. If it succeeds, they continue to sell it. If it doesn’t, they switch to a new brand and continue to sell it.
If this Lexus really sells well, it would be a good choice to bring it to Shanghai Auto and design a few more models specifically for them.
“Mr. Fang didn’t finish talking about the expansion last time.
I would like to learn more.
Didn’t I just say that Japanese cars have annual sales of 500,000 units in North America?
Now the whole of North America is against Japanese products, and their sales are visibly dropping.
We must seize the vacant market!"
Although Huo Zhenting likes big cars, he likes money more.
The cars currently on sale have already made a name for themselves in North America, and orders are pouring in like snowflakes.
It’s so easy to make money.
Moreover, the money earned by GAC has basically been turned into new production lines.
And he was the one who took the initiative to purchase the new production line, which meant that the property passed on to another person.
Even if you don't make any profit from the price difference, at least you can get some benefits from the fat meat passing through your hands, right?
Therefore, Huo Zhenting has long been dissatisfied with GAC’s current production.
You should know that what we just talked about are only the data for North America. Southeast Asia, South America, and Central and Eastern Europe are also the traditional sphere of influence of Second Automobile Works and GAC.
Although the Bao family is in charge, the Huo family also has shares.
Therefore, if GAC increases production, it will make money for them, so how can they not care?
"Well, now, a national automobile industry corporation has been established..."
Seeing Huo Zhenting asking about this matter, Fang Xiang explained it again.
"Then when can Shanghai Auto be..."
After hearing this, Huo Zhenting's eyes suddenly lit up.
In the past, Shanghai Auto was completely invisible in Huo Zhenting's eyes.
The kind that won't even look at it.
But now it’s different. In Fang Xiang’s hands, Huo Zhenting is fully confident that he can turn decay into magic.
After all, from Second Automobile Works to GAC, Huo Zhenting witnessed it all with his own eyes.
Although the Santana produced by Shanghai Automobile is not very good, what if it is replaced by a GAC car?
For such a big factory, an output of 100,000 units is not too much, right?
This is all glittering money!
"At least until next year."
Fang thought that Huo Zhenting's pulse was steady. As soon as he opened his mouth, he knew what he wanted to say.
But Shanghai Auto really can’t be rushed.
It's winter now and the New Year is coming soon.
Although Shanghai is located in the south and the temperature rarely drops below zero in winter, the construction conditions are definitely not as good as those in other seasons.
The speed must be much slower.
Because we have a contract with Volkswagen, we definitely cannot change to GAC’s car midway.
In addition, most of Shanghai Auto's current production lines were purchased from Volkswagen at high prices, which are incompatible with the cars designed by Fang Xiang.
Unless Fang wants to redesign a new model based on Shanghai Auto's existing production line.
But the workload and difficulty are too great.
Therefore, Fang Xiang’s plan was very simple: continue to produce and sell Santana.
Then the price is reduced by 5% to 10% every year.
“Okay, next year then.
I took away the last batch of this year.
This time, I brought 200 million dollars in foreign currency, including part of the deposit for the next batch of orders.
Next year, it is estimated that it will increase several times.
With so much money, are you ready to spend it, Mr. Fang?"
Huo Zhenting didn't say anything about Fang Xiang's words.
Instead, a document was pushed over.
The above is the money earned from the previous two batches of cars. In reality, it is definitely not that much.
But in order to look good, Huo Zhenting managed to scrape together 2 million yuan.
When the document was placed on the table, Fang Xiang stretched out his hand and shook hands with Huo Zhenting.
Just when Fang Xiang finally breathed a sigh of relief and felt that he could have a good New Year.
A phone call came in.
