Chapter 709: Standing up a bid is the soul

Bill Ford was the first to learn of the union's failure.

What did you say? The union called off the strike without asking for any benefits? Bill Ford showed an incredulous expression.

The assistant nodded: Not only that, the management also refuses to recall those workers who have been laid off!

That means the United Auto Workers failed! Bill Ford was stunned for more than half a minute before recovering.

Bill Ford has been dealing with trade unions since the 1980s, and it has been more than 20 years now. Bill Ford knows better than anyone how greedy those union members are.

A century-old car company like the Ford Group has never been able to get a bargain in the process of confrontation with the labor union, so when he learned that Li Weidong was going to fight hard with the labor union, Bill Ford planned to laugh at it.

The result surprised Bill Ford. In his mind, he couldn't beat the United Auto Workers, and he lost!

I remember that the Chinese way to deal with trade unions is to keep layoffs, right? But this trick is useless to trade unions. He must have other tricks! Bill Ford said.

The assistant replied: Mr. President, I have sent someone to inquire in detail. Apart from layoffs, the Chinese have not used other means.

That's impossible! If layoffs could solve the strike, we would have done it decades ago. Bill Ford said, shaking his head.

The Chinese showed an uncompromising attitude from the very beginning. They not only announced layoffs, but also continued to increase the intensity of layoffs and put pressure on workers.

The assistant went on to explain: But the most important thing is the current economic environment. After the outbreak of the subprime mortgage crisis, many companies are laying off employees, and it has become difficult to find a job. This makes some workers who are on strike feel a sense of crisis.

Some people worried that they would not be able to find a job after being laid off, so they began to return to the workshop and clock in and go to work normally. Even if the production line is not running, just staying in the workshop and reading magazines can prove that they are working normally.

With more and more people returning to the workshop, the production line can also be opened. In addition, the union members have been laid off and cannot enter the factory to continue organizing workers, so the momentum of the strike has weakened a lot.

I understand. Bill Ford interrupted the assistant's words: For things like strikes, it's best to do it all at once. Once the momentum is weakened, it's not far from failure.

The assistant went on to say: Mr. President,

I think the reason why the Chinese were able to win this time is entirely due to their good luck! Who would have thought that the turmoil of the subprime mortgage crisis would affect the entire US economy so quickly. If it weren't for the poor economic outlook, the workers would surely have held on!

It's not as simple as you think! How can a person who can spend US$1.5 billion to acquire Jaguar Land Rover rely on luck alone? Bill Ford sighed and continued:

Knowing how to use changes in the external situation to achieve your own goals is a kind of ability! When Mr. Li came to negotiate with me before, I had already noticed this. What I didn't expect was that he could really win UAW!

Bill Ford said, as if he suddenly realized something, his face changed drastically!

No! We might be in trouble! Bill Ford exclaimed.

Mr. President, what trouble do we have? the assistant asked immediately.

The United Auto Workers has been deflated by the Chinese, and its reputation will definitely be hit. Workers will also reduce their trust in the union. In order to reshape the image, the union will definitely take action! Bill Ford said.

Mr. President, what do you mean, the United Auto Workers will continue to organize workers' activities? The assistant nodded in a daze.

That's right, after experiencing this defeat, the United Auto Workers must use a bigger victory to boost morale and reputation. They will attack big car companies.

Bill Ford let out a long sigh, and continued, I guess the target of the United Auto Workers is either GM or us!

...

The news of the failure of the United Auto Workers quickly spread among major American auto companies. For many companies, this was undoubtedly a shock bomb.

The three major car companies in the United States have been fighting with the labor unions for nearly a hundred years, but even in the most prosperous era of the three major car companies, they did not take advantage of the labor unions. The salary is much higher than other manufacturing industries.

Later, foreign-funded enterprises that entered the United States also followed the customs of the country, imitating American car companies, and following the so-called American rules. When the labor unions went on strike, they chose to compromise and give some benefits to calm the incident.

The earliest foreign-funded car companies to set up factories in the United States were mainly Japanese-funded companies. On the site of American fathers, Japanese good sons would dare to beep!

So when Li Weidong decided to compete with the trade union, many car companies were waiting to see a joke. Everyone was waiting to see this ignorant Chinese being severely punished by the trade union.

The result was beyond everyone's expectations, and it was the United Auto Workers who lost in the end!

In the past few decades, the United Auto Workers has never had a defeat, and in the worst case, it can fight with the management to a tie.

However, this time, the UAW faced Li Weidong, not only did not get the slightest benefit, but also caused more than a thousand auto workers to lose their jobs, and all union members were kicked out of the Bemher factory. This is obviously a crushing defeat. .

And this failure also caused a great blow to the reputation of the United Auto Workers.

Auto workers join the union in the hope that the union can help them win more benefits. Now that the benefits have not been reaped, and instead they have lost their jobs, these workers will naturally go to the trade union to settle accounts.

Other auto workers who have joined a union, or those who intend to join a union, will also wonder whether the union is reliable and whether joining the workers will benefit them. If you don't get the benefits, but harm yourself instead, then you must stay away from the trade union.

Of course, the United Auto Workers can't suffer from this dumbness. They started to mobilize public opinion to discredit Li Weidong, calling Li Weidong a black-hearted capitalist who doesn't care about the life and death of workers.

However, this does not do much harm to Li Weidong. In the United States, there are many black-hearted capitalists, and Li Weidong is not bad.

At the same time, in order to restore its reputation, the United Auto Workers also began to brew a larger strike.

As long as it can be proven that the UAW is still able to fight for the benefits of the workers, it can continue to get the support of the workers.

The United Auto Workers had previously mowed 11 billion yuan at Chrysler, and there are still many car companies that can continue to do so, especially General Motors and Ford, which are much larger than Chrysler. Definitely get more benefits.

In the end, history still followed the original path, and the United Auto Workers was preparing to launch a general strike against General Motors!

...

After resolving the matter of the American trade union, Li Weidong went to the UK again to inspect the Jaguar Land Rover factory in Liverpool.

Compared with the Bemhull factory in the United States, the Liverpool factory is the most important production base of Jaguar Land Rover, and the R\u0026D team and design team of Jaguar Land Rover are also here.

Ralph Speth, CEO of Jaguar Land Rover, led a group of senior officials to welcome Li Weidong.

Ralph Speth was not a successful CEO, because Jaguar Land Rover in history was reduced to a second-tier luxury brand under his leadership. Moreover, the many minor problems of Jaguar that consumers criticized began when Speth was in charge of Land Rover.

In the meeting room, Ralph Speth introduced the operation of Jaguar Land Rover to Li Weidong.

Mr. Li, last quarter our sales declined to a certain extent, which was mainly due to the impact of the economic environment. I believe that after a quarter or two, the economy stabilizes and our sales will pick up. Si Pace spoke.

Mr. Speth, I think your judgment is too optimistic. Let alone one or two quarters, even one or two years, the economy may not be able to recover.

Li Weidong cleared his throat, and continued: I just came back from the United States, and according to my observations, the financial crisis caused by the subprime mortgage crisis and the subsequent economic recession will not be resolved in a short time.

Moreover, the financial crisis will also cause a series of problems, such as the sovereign debt problem of some countries. In countries in southern Europe, the government debt ratio has always been relatively high, such as Italy, Greece, Spain and other countries.

These countries are all members of the European Union. Once a debt crisis occurs, it will inevitably drag down the economy of the entire European Union. Therefore, I am not optimistic about the European economy in the next two years.

All the people in the conference room were Europeans. Hearing that Li Weidong looked down on the European economy, his expression was a little unnatural. But Li Weidong is the boss after all, even if they are upset, they can only hold back.

Li Weidong went on to say: Compared with Europe and the United States, I am more optimistic about the economic growth of Asia, so I think that in the future, we can increase our efforts to develop the Asian market, especially the Chinese market. flagship model.

In the next few years, Land Rover Range Rover will indeed be sold in the Chinese market, and it will even be called the exclusive car for upstarts. Chinese consumers buy Range Rover just to tell everyone that I am a rich man! And Land Rover also relied on sales in the Chinese market to successfully turn losses into profits.

Li Weidong, the boss, has already said that he wants to sell the Range Rover in the Chinese market, so everyone has no objection.

Li Weidong went on to say: As for the Jaguar brand, its recognition in the Chinese market is not high, so in the next period of time, we will mainly establish the recognition of Jaguar in the Chinese market, so that Chinese consumers will be more familiar with the Jaguar brand. Have stronger cognition.

First of all, it is necessary to increase publicity and instill a concept in Chinese consumers. Jaguar is a first-line luxury car brand that is more luxurious than BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Driving a Jaguar is a status symbol.

We can subtly achieve this through the placement of advertisements in some film and television works or variety shows. In addition, China will host the Olympic Games this year, and we can also increase our popularity through sponsorship.

In addition, in terms of design, it also needs to be improved. If it wants to sell well in the Chinese market, firstly, the wheelbase must be enlarged, secondly, the interior must be luxurious, and thirdly and most importantly, the standard design must be restored!

Mr. Li, in this case, our cost will also increase. Ralph Speth said immediately.

Li Weidong replied: The wool comes from the sheep, and the cost has increased. We can raise the price. We are a luxury brand. It is normal to sell a little more expensive. For cars of the same level, as long as our price is comparable to that of BMW and Benchu. within the same price range.”

Libiao is obviously one of the symbols of luxury cars. A car without a sign may be a luxury car, but with a sign, it must be a luxury car.

To put it another way, if the car is not a luxury brand, if you put a sign on it, the car owner will feel that it is a pig with green onions in his nose, pretending to be like it! Not only would it lose face to drive out, it might even be ridiculed in various ways.

Especially in the Chinese market, consumers are particularly interested in Libiao. As a business model, one more Libiao will be more favored by buyers.

In terms of establishing a standard, the most successful marketing strategy is undoubtedly Mercedes-Benz.

The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is a model of the standard. In the Chinese market, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class can sell twice as much as the BMW 7 Series.

Later, Mercedes-Benz simply launched the standard E-Class, which is also a very successful model.

Before the launch of Libiao, the sales of the large-scale Mercedes-Benz E-Class were beaten by the BMW 5 Series. After the launch of the Libiao E-Class, even with various reductions in Mercedes-Benz, sales still rushed up. Can it surpass the BMW 5 Series? It's easy to say, but at least it sells better than the Audi A6L.

This is mainly due to the establishment of the standard. The car costs more than 400,000 yuan to buy an E-class, and you can enjoy the appearance of an S-class that costs more than one million yuan.

After tasting the sweetness, Mercedes-Benz decided to make persistent efforts, and even planned to launch the standard Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

Most Chinese consumers do not understand cars. Many people buy luxury brands for the sake of face and style.

Therefore, the more majestic appearance, luxurious interior, wide body, longer wheelbase, and a stand mark basically meet the needs of Chinese bosses for the brand.

Among the logos of many brands, the beauty of the Jaguar logo should be second only to the flying goddess of Rolls-Royce. You fly is much better.

But it is a pity that Jaguar canceled the design of the standing standard.

And that's mainly because of regulations.

The United Kingdom has long stipulated that the use of standing signs on the front of the car is prohibited, because the British believe that if a car hits a person, the standing signs are likely to cause greater harm to the human body.

In 2005, the European Union also followed up with this regulation, prohibiting the erection of vehicle signs.

Europe is Jaguar's main market, so Jaguar simply canceled the design of the standard. This also reflects the rigidity of the Jaguar management.

Now that Li Weidong has won the Jaguar, it is natural to revive the Jaguar's Libiao immediately.

With the little leopard leaping forward, Jaguar deserves the name!