A Marriott hotel in downtown Detroit, in the presidential suite:
Henry Morgan poured the red wine in his hand and said: "This is a collection I got from a European nobleman. It was preserved in the 10s. I can't buy it even if I want to."
"Good wine, tastes good." Chen Zhiwen took a sip, nodded and said, "It's really difficult to buy this kind of antique wine now."
Many people know about the 1982 Lafite, but it’s not yet 1982. The best wine on the market currently comes from the 10s to 20s. During that time, due to food problems, alcohol prohibition was implemented in many places. The demand The decline has resulted in a large number of wine merchants having to produce higher-quality wines in order to obtain higher profits and gain recognition from high-end consumers. At that time, what can be retained will naturally be high-quality products, especially after being retained for a sufficient period of time. It tastes better.
"Actually, it's not difficult to buy one. Many declining nobles in Europe own some castles. In addition to historical sentiments, there are only various kinds of wine left in these castles. You also know that in Europe, the idle nobles have always liked to drink. He even likes to hide wine." Henry Morgan said with a smile.
"You want me to buy those ancient castles?" Chen Zhiwen asked.
"If you are interested, you can go and have a look. It is not necessary just for the sake of wine. However, like antiques, the number of such ancient castles is always stable and may become less and less, so it has a strong value preservation Investment value: Since last year, after the price of gold plummeted, many European and American capitals have begun to speculate on these ancient castles. Besides, these ancient castles themselves are also valuable, and many of them come with large tracts of land, just like farms in Europe and the United States. Many are also complete vineyard farms,” said Henry Morgan.
"If you have time, I'll go take a look. You bought it too?" Chen Zhiwen nodded and said, if you really meet something you like, it doesn't matter if you buy one, just think of it as buying a place to live in Europe.
"Yes, I bought a manor in France. Look, these are photos." Henry Morgan smiled and took out a few photos from his pocket.
"It's very nice, the scenery is very good." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said, this castle is on the edge of a lake, surrounded by several paths, and many green plants climb on the walls of the castle, giving it a unique flavor.
"Of course, but it cost me $20 million." Henry Morgan said.
"It's quite expensive. It seems that your business has been good during this period." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
"It's all up to you. I didn't expect that sales of red and white consoles and handheld consoles in just three states would exceed those of arcade machines in the past. It's incredible," Henry Morgan said.
"Normally, the civilian market is the largest market in the world." Chen Zhiwen said. Whether it is supermarkets, electronic products, games, cars, etc., they are all connected end users, even banks. Most of the world's top 500 companies are such companies.
Henry Morgan has a long history of cooperation with Chen Zhiwen, and the family behind him has also been very helpful to Chen Zhiwen. Therefore, Midea has given the agency rights for its red and white consoles and handheld consoles in California, New York and Maryland. He, however, wants to exclude large supermarkets. Midea has direct cooperation with large supermarkets in Europe and the United States. Local dealers specialize in various small stores.
"Eric, I heard that Midea launched a personal computer? Are you ready to flex your muscles in this market?" Henry Morgan asked with a smile.
"Of course, I can tell you that Midea's current achievements in the gaming field are far behind the potential of the future personal computer market. The future consumer electronics market will still focus on computers." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. He has already You probably understand why Henry Morgan took the initiative to come to him. He was obviously interested in the personal computer market.
"Is it really so powerful?" Henry Morgan's eyes lit up and he said, "I also know that many people in the financial market are hyping personal computers now, but I never thought there would be such a big space."
"It's much more powerful than Wall Street can imagine now." Chen Zhiwen said. When a technological product is born, no one knows how much potential it will have, not to mention laymen, even insiders. For example, Steve Jobs, who later launched the Apple mobile phone in 2007, said at the press conference that ultimately The goal was to gain 1% of the global mobile phone market. Although this number was small, it was already a big goal for Apple at the time, but the final results exceeded his imagination.
The same is true for personal computers. No one could have imagined that the Internet would be born later, linking all mankind, with countless software and so on.
"Then can I get the agency rights for Midea's personal computers? Anyway, now that I have opened up the channels, it is easy to add another computer." Henry asked.
"The highest selling price of the Famicom is US$699. This price is actually not a small sum of money for many American families, but it is still affordable. Midea's cheapest personal computers are close to this price. Three times the price, so your previous channels will no longer work." Chen Zhiwen shook his head and said.
"So, Midea's personal computers only focus on large shopping malls and supermarkets?" Henry said a little disappointed.
"No, shopping malls and supermarkets will be one of the main channels, but it is not absolute." Chen Zhiwen said: "As Midea's product line gradually becomes richer, I am planning to launch a special channel system, 711 Supermarket, Henry, listen Have you passed?"
"711? That small chain franchise store? I know, you mean, a professional franchise store?" Henry Morgan was also a smart man, and he understood it instantly.
"Yes, many big brands, especially consumer goods brands, will adopt this model, such as small supermarkets, clothing stores, shoe stores, etc. I am also planning to let Midea adopt this model, and will initially promote it in Hong Kong and the United States. In addition to computers, , various consumer electronic products such as game consoles, handheld consoles, and music players will be stationed." Chen Zhiwen explained.
"So, are you planning to replace the current model?" Henry Morgan said.
"No, the coexistence of the two will become the norm. The expansion of franchise stores requires substantial capital investment. It is not easy to build them all over the world. However, it will definitely squeeze the interests of other small stores. Besides, , this has little impact on you, no matter what channel, you need dealers." Chen Zhiwen said. In the mobile Internet era, it would take many years for Apple and Huawei to establish nationwide franchise stores, not to mention the low-efficiency era in which this type of mobile phone has not yet appeared. Besides, the brand monopoly of personal computers is far greater than Not on the phone.
"So, I need to convince a large number of people to join?" Henry Morgan nodded and said. Sure enough, it is not that easy to make money just lying around. It took a lot of effort to reach channel cooperation with a large number of small stores. Now customers have to We are ready to set up a franchisee channel.
"In the long run, the channels for franchisees have been opened up, which is more conducive to the expansion of our brand. In the future, Midea will also launch other games, other models of computers and other electronic products. Relying on others will not last long. ." Chen Zhiwen said again.
Although the franchisees are not their own, to a large extent, they can use contracts and interests to deeply bundle them. In this way, all channels are in their own hands, and they can better guarantee after-sales services, etc. Although this In the sales system, dealers still exist, but when all channels are clear, it is the most convenient for brand companies and they can also obtain the greatest benefits.
"I understand, I will start preparing for this matter." Henry nodded and said. When Midea grew larger and larger and became a global electronics giant, he understood that he could no longer be the same as before. Then you can have a normal conversation with it. Because the dependency relationship has completely changed, it would be nice to be able to continue to enjoy the shade under this big tree.
Preparing to build the entire franchisee distribution system is actually equivalent to making all of his sales transparent. In the future, Midea will let him earn 100 US dollars, but it will be difficult for him to earn 110. But in general, as Midea becomes stronger and stronger, the product It becomes more and more abundant and popular, so even if its profit margin is lower, it can still make more overall.
"The specific method of cooperation still needs to be decided based on the situation in the US market. Moreover, it is just a test in the early stage. There will be no large-scale expansion for at least two or three years. You still need to manage the existing channels well." Chen Zhiwen He said with a smile.
"Okay, I understand." Henry nodded and said, "Then the home appliances you own are not put together?"
"No, home appliances is another sales network, but I haven't built it yet. At present, it mainly relies on large supermarkets and some trading companies. Midea Home Appliances currently does not have the ability to build other channels on its own." Chen Zhiwen shook his head and said.
"It's a pity. Without channels, it's difficult to develop and grow just by relying on your own supermarket." Henry said.
"I know. In fact, I originally wanted to discuss this matter with you, but since you are here, it just happens." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.
Costco is its own company, and Wal-Mart has a good relationship with itself. Together, these two supermarkets can support several medium-sized factories in Hong Kong or the mainland. For Hong Kong people, this factory is not small, but compared with traditional home appliances The giants are completely a drop in the bucket.
If you really want to make it big, you can't rely on these alone. Therefore, Chen Zhiwen has long been thinking about how to break the situation.
Of course, if Costco, Wal-Mart, and Best Buy become really big in another ten or twenty years, then these companies alone can become one of the home appliance giants, but this time is too long, and in the future, with Wal-Mart, How the relationship will turn out is hard to say.
"What can I do?" Henry Morgan asked curiously.
"Does your Morgan family have a good relationship with General Electric?" Chen Zhiwen asked.
"Yes, a few decades ago, the Morgan family was the major shareholder of General Electric. Later, it slowly reduced its shares, but there are still some." Henry nodded.
"Do you know General Electric's new CEO, Welch?" Chen Zhiwen asked again.
"I know, but I don't know him. I heard that when he was the vice president of General Electric, his results were very good." Henry said.
"Of course, the person who can be selected as the CEO of General Electric is of course the best among people." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile: "I know a little more than you. He proposed a [one-number-two principle] within General Electric. This means that if General Electric cannot be ranked first or second in the fields it will be involved in in the future, then it will not do it.”
"So exaggerated?" Henry Morgan was shocked after hearing this and said, "Not even the third one?"
"That's a bit exaggerated. If it were to be the third largest company in the world, I don't believe that GE would abandon this business. But after all, this is Welch's governing principle. As far as I know, GE's home appliance business is not It’s very good, but there is still a certain gap between it and the top ten in the world.”
In the 21st century, later generations of Economic Weekly selected the top 100 CEOs in the world, and General Electric CEO Welch was one of them, including of course Lee Iacocca, who saved Chrysler.
Although General Electric in the 1980s was unprecedentedly powerful in terms of scale, Welch was well aware of the crisis. The entire company was involved in too many businesses, from complex aero engines to the simplest power tools. General Electric had more than a thousand businesses. , the entire company's management is bloated, with hundreds of senior executives responsible for different businesses of the company, and each business has several or even dozens of regional directors, etc. Even many senior executives themselves cannot figure out how many people there are in the company. business.
In this case, a large amount of management resources were consumed. In order to sort out the entire company's business, Welch proposed the principle of "one of the best". As long as it is not the top three levels, or has the potential to become the top three levels of business, all others will be sold. , regardless of whether this business is profitable now, if it is profitable, sell more money, and if it is not profitable, sell less.
This strategy has encountered great resistance within GE. It is the most difficult to revolutionize oneself. Those groups that will lose profits due to the revolution will desperately resist. These people do not care about the future of the company, but only care about themselves.
In addition to having a strategy, a powerful CEO also needs to have the ability and courage to accomplish this goal. Welch is such a person. It took ten years to sell most of GE's businesses, and the rest is The most cutting-edge top technology company above Blue Star.
"Do you want to acquire GE's home appliance business?" Henry Morgan was shocked and said: "Eric, although GE's home appliance business is indeed not the strongest, the market size is not small. If you want to acquire it, I'm afraid Without a billion dollars, we can’t stop it.”
"The more money you have, the happier your investment banks will be," Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
In the original history, General Electric sold its home appliance business to a European company a few years later. Even next year in history, Welch sold his central air-conditioning business, because this business only had 10% of the U.S. market. % share.
This share is of little significance to General Electric, which has bloated management. After all, competition in the field of home appliances has long been fierce, and the profit margins in this market are very low. However, for Midea, it is a breakthrough. It can not only obtain technology, but also We can also obtain channels. As for the issue of profit margins, production in the United States certainly has profit margins, but if it is moved to Asia, or to the mainland where the route will be clearer in a few years, there will be no problem.
"Okay, then I'll make a call later and discuss it with people from Morgan Stanley. They should be very interested in this acquisition and may send someone over in the next two days." Henry nodded and said, thinking about it carefully. , although the acquisition price may be around one billion US dollars, investment banks can use funds. Based on the development of several businesses under Chen Zhiwen, any investment bank will lend him money.
"Okay, I'll wait for them here." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said. AMC wanted to cooperate with General Electric before but failed, which reminded Chen Zhiwen that in the 1980s, this giant sold a large number of businesses, and he, It happens to be missing quite a bit, and the combination of the two couldn't be more perfect.
(End of chapter)
