In the next few days, Chen Zhiwen stayed at AMC's headquarters and had in-depth exchanges with some AMC personnel. At the same time, he also visited another factory also located in the Detroit area. This factory is AMC's sedan production line. , these cars are also AMC's main mass-market models. However, under the huge pressure of Japanese brand cars, they have been in a state of loss. Fortunately, the brand has a certain continuity. For many years, AMC small cars have also been considered in the US market. There is a certain reputation, so even if Japanese models are more fuel-efficient, some people are still willing to buy them.
The current AMC can barely maintain the balance of its own operations. It may lose 20 to 30 million US dollars every year, leading to a crisis in the capital chain. After Chen Zhiwen's capital injection, there will be no more financial problems in a short period of time, and if in the future If the sales capabilities of terminal channels can be further expanded, then perhaps AMC can balance its own revenue.
However, with the current trend, no matter what, normal operations can be maintained at most. It is impossible to have the opportunity to develop rapidly with other industries under Chen Zhiwen. The automobile industry is the crown of human industry. , any golden fingers are useless. Even if a large amount of money is invested in research and development, it will take a long time to achieve results. Besides, compared with automobile giants such as General Motors and Toyota, even the profits made by Chen Zhiwen in gold futures, It's far from comparable.
After a preliminary inspection of AMC, Chen Zhiwen took Gu Dehua to a coffee shop next to the AMC office building. The sun shone directly on everyone through the glass. The weather was bright and sunny. In autumn, this kind of weather was just right. Bask in the sun.
"A cup of cappuccino, thank you." Gu Dehua said to the waiter.
"Me too." Chen Zhiwen continued.
"The coffee here is very good, slightly sweet, and very suitable for our Asian tastes. Many Chinese people here also like to come here to drink coffee." Gu Dehua said with a smile.
Chen Zhiwen nodded and asked, "Are there many Chinese in Detroit?"
"There are many, but most of them are in the service industry. Globally, our Chinese catering is absolutely No. 1. Only those who have never tried it like to sit back and look at the sky, wishful thinking about how good European and American food is." Gu Dehua said with a smile. : “Many big cities in the United States have Chinatowns, including Detroit, but it’s not that big and there are many Chinese living here.”
"How many people work in the automobile industry?" Chen Zhiwen asked again.
"As for the automobile industry, the number is not very large." Gu Dehua thought for a while and said: "There are basically very few Chinese workers, not even black people. The automobile industry is a high-welfare industry in the United States. It can be said that except for Wall Street and those who have just emerged in the past ten years, In Silicon Valley, few other industries are as good as automobiles. These high-paying jobs are difficult for non-whites to get.
However, engineering or management talents depend on ability. There are still some Chinese in the three major automobile giant companies, some are from Bayan, and some are Chinese who grew up in the United States. "
"Well, then I will give you another task. Recruit more Chinese engineers, especially in terms of quality and technology. However, if you are a native Chinese and don't even know Chinese, you don't need to consider it." Chen Zhiwen continued.
The acquisition of AMC requires certain conditions to be reached with the company, labor unions and the U.S. Department of Commerce. The most basic one is the employment issue. In addition to this investment, he also needs to rely on existing AMC managers. Therefore, after the acquisition, AMC’s There will basically be no changes in the top management, but Gu Dehua, as his spokesperson during this period, will stay at AMC as the vice president. His main tasks are to be responsible for personnel and financial monitoring. It is the most suitable thing to recruit people.
"Recruiting Chinese? Boss, it is difficult to recruit too many Chinese, and the purpose is easy to discover. Can I know why?" Gu Dehua thought for a while and asked.
It is not difficult for AMC to recruit people, but it is much more difficult to specifically recruit Chinese engineers, who have very few Chinese engineers. Moreover, a large number of Chinese people joining the company may cause trouble. In the United States, no one dares to accept the label of racial discrimination. .
"Because I want to invest in the mainland." Chen Zhiwen suddenly said.
"Mainland?" Gu Dehua was stunned for a moment and asked: "The mainland market is indeed not very small. Boss, do you mean to invest in sales terminals and after-sales service in the mainland, and then send the cars to the mainland for sale?"
"How can such a good thing happen? There are so many cars from international brands, including Volkswagen, Toyota, and General Motors. Which one is not much better than us? If you were an official in charge of imported cars in the Mainland, would you choose us?" Chen Zhiwen asked with a smile. .
With Chen Zhiwen's current cooperative relationship with the mainland, if he really wants to do this, it does not mean that he cannot let the mainland choose some AMC cars. But after all, they are not famous and it is impossible for them to purchase on a large scale. This is the instinct of people to shop. Everyone wants it. Buy something more reputable, unless it's too expensive, but for large car companies, they basically cover both low and high prices.
"We are going to build a factory in the mainland?" Gu Dehua said in surprise.
"Yes, build a factory. Only by building a factory can we reduce costs on a large scale, and then we have the opportunity to win part of the mainland market." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.
What is different from other countries is that the country has always had the idea of self-reliance and development, or it can be said to be an obsession. In any industry, it wants to be able to produce it, unless it is mineral resources that it does not have, etc.
This is the case in the home appliance industry. Although the mainland has agreed to Midea's investment, there are many restrictions. In fact, it wants to introduce foreign investment, learn the technology and management model of foreign investment, and then develop its own industry. Of course, this process is difficult, and it also leads to Many former big brothers in electrical appliances were acquired by joint ventures, a history of blood and tears. However, in the end, domestically produced home appliances defeated foreign brands after the new century and also moved towards exports, making the entire mainland the largest production base of home appliances in the world.
The same is true for the automobile industry, and because technical barriers are higher, domestic executives have long known that it is impossible to reach the level of international counterparts in a short time, so they proposed the most famous "market for technology" strategy.
Let’s not talk about the results, but on the surface, if you want the mainland market, you need to come to the mainland for joint venture production. Otherwise, if you expect to produce in your own country and then export to the mainland, then basically don’t even think about it.
Before SAIC-Volkswagen started mass production, China had no choice but to import cars every year. But after that, the number began to decrease on a large scale, and the tariffs were set very high. Although imported cars have not disappeared, there will be a cliff-like decline in the number. plummeted.
"Will the mainland have such a large consumption power?" Gu Dehua asked hesitantly: "I know that GM's former CEO went to the mainland in 1978 and discussed cooperation, but it was ultimately rejected by the board of directors because of GM's investigation. Information shows that the monthly per capita income of many people in China is only a few tens of dollars, and some even only a few dollars. Many people may not be able to afford Coke in their lives, so how can they afford to buy a car?"
"Although you are of Chinese descent, you also grew up in the United States. If you have the opportunity to go to the mainland in the future, it is a market of one billion people? The annual import and export trade volume is as high as tens of billions of dollars. Even if it is only a few dollars a year, Ten thousand cars is also a good deal. I have investigated this aspect a long time ago. You should also know that my company in Hong Kong also has a lot of investments in the mainland. I know more about this than the GM board of directors." Chen Zhiwen said calmly. said with a smile.
GM went to China long before the country was reopened and visited some famous domestic factories. Originally, the intention was to ask GM to buy technology, but GM CEO Thomas was smarter and knew that long-term profits would be more beneficial, so he proposed It can be said that this was the first time that China understood this cooperation method, and it was also the basic regulation for foreign investment in the automobile industry in the following decades.
Unfortunately, the smart CEO met a group of board of directors who knew nothing and vetoed Thomas's proposal. Coupled with the outbreak of the oil crisis again, Thomas did not give up the joint venture investment plan in the mainland. When the mainland was making a lot of money, General Motors realized it and wanted to invest in China again. But it was already 15 years later, and the market was basically occupied by the public. After more than ten years of hard work, General Motors achieved success again. It's not a small achievement, but it won't last long.
At present, in the country, that is, in the 1980s and the following years, the automobile consumption capacity is indeed very weak, but things are developing. The development speed of the domestic economy has exceeded everyone's expectations. Even the several planners responsible for the reform, It’s also impossible to predict the future.
Historically, the Santana produced by SAIC-Volkswagen in the late 1980s was basically in short supply. Apart from government procurement, the biggest demand was from a bunch of companies from Hong Kong, Bay Area and some overseas companies investing in China.
If I had deployed domestically earlier, I might have had the opportunity to grab some of Volkswagen's business. Besides, even from the original history, the Yanjing Jeep in the 1980s was still a sacred car in the eyes of ordinary people, especially when the domestic road conditions were poor. A vehicle like Jeep is very useful. In this life, it is impossible for him to make the same mistake as AMC. Even if it is a Jeep, if it really becomes the representative of SUVs in the hearts of domestic people, it can make a lot of money. At the same time, it can also help the country reduce a lot of foreign exchange for car purchases. losses, and the ability to cultivate some related industrial chains as soon as possible.
"I understand, then I will contact some Chinese engineers in Detroit." Gu Dehua nodded, and then said: "Just do we have a time plan for our investment in the mainland, so that I can arrange it easily?"
"Not yet. Although I want to invest in China, I hope that China can take the initiative to find AMC. After all, we are not very famous. If we are too proactive, we may be hot but cold." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
Even for Midea's investment, he basically waited for some officials from the mainland to come to him. He had foreign exchange in his hands, so there was no need to take the initiative. People with insight in the country would naturally contact him. He only proposed the business of helping his uncle. This was also because of his family relationship. He also hoped to use these powerful investments to send his uncle to a higher position.
The same goes for the automobile industry. He has actually been paying attention to news in this area for a long time.
Although it was the end of 1978, the country decided to wholeheartedly develop the economy and use foreign capital for development. This was a decision that had been made in early 1977. However, the pace would not be big all at once. Therefore, in the early stage, the country still sent a large number of officials and relevant experts there. Overseas countries, visit some major local large-scale industries.
Automobiles are naturally one of them. The Ministry of Machinery Industry, which is in charge of automobiles in China, sent experts to visit automobile giants such as General Motors in the United States, Toyota in Japan, Mercedes-Benz BMW Volkswagen in Germany, Renault Citroën in France, and Fiat in Italy, with the intention of reaching a cooperate.
However, except for the initial intention of the GM CEO, only Volkswagen has not rejected it. Others feel that the best way to cooperate with domestic companies is to produce it locally and then sell it to you.
Although Volkswagen was willing to invest, it put forward many conditions, which were quite cumbersome. In the original history, from the time of contact in early 1978 to the cooperation in building the factory in 1984, it took a total of 6 years and more than 60 negotiations before success.
If we cooperate with China, the progress of negotiations will naturally be reduced a lot, so it is not urgent now.
"In that case, we can release a message." Gu Dehua thought for a while and said: "Considering that you, boss, are from Hong Kong, we can announce to the outside world that AMC is preparing to build a branch factory in Asia to facilitate the development of the Asian market. If the mainland If they are really eager to build a joint venture with a foreign car company, they will definitely ask."
"Okay, I was originally planning to invest in automobile channel terminals in Southeast Asia, so it can be matched." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.
In later generations, Jardine had a very large car sales company under its umbrella, with terminal retail stores for cars and motorcycles in many Southeast Asian countries. This was a pure capital investment. After acquiring AMC, Chen Zhiwen also had the same plan. .
This industry itself can make money, because there is no local automobile industry in places like Southeast Asia. If foreign automobiles want to enter, they have to rely on a large number of sales terminals. At present, the economy of Southeast Asia is the same as that of the mainland. It has just started to improve, and the number of automobiles has also increased. Very low. The future market is on the rise. As long as I build a sales terminal, I won’t have to worry about running out of business.
The second role is naturally to help his own cars. Whether imported from the United States or imported from mainland factories in the future, one can drive employment in the United States and better stabilize Chen Zhiwen's business in the United States. The second can drive domestic profits. Foreign exchange, kill three birds with one stone.
Of course, if we want to quickly expand and strengthen this type of industry in Southeast Asia, we still have to cooperate with local giants, such as Robert Kuok, or partners introduced by Robert Kuok. Appropriate benefit sharing should still be done.
"I think of a person. She is a former colleague of mine at General Motors. It is said that she has a certain relationship with the mainland. If the news is accidentally given to her, it should be able to spread to the mainland." Gu Dehua said.
"Well, let's give it a try." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said, "One more thing. My agreement with Lee Iacocca also includes the purchase of some patents. You can discuss it with Hughes to see what is needed and make a list. Come out, now Chrysler is begging us, there won’t be this store after this village.”
PS: That’s it for this chapter today. I’m a bit busy doing part-time coding and having things at home.
(End of chapter)
