Energy Group

In Cuba, there are still a few brands that you can resist. The most powerful one is the Earl of Monte Cristo, also called Montecristo. Montecristo is by far the most popular Havana cigar. m【】【】Of course, when Li Cong’s healthy cigars did not come out, now he can only insist.

In the past, about half of the cigars exported by Cuba each year were of this brand, and the cigars were affixed with a simple brown and white label. This brand was introduced to the world in 1935 and is still produced by the H.Upmann factory or the Partagás factory. Its distinctive taste has made cigar consumers a pleasant experience. It has occupied a superior position in Havana cigars for 20 years. .

When Alonso Menedes and Pepe Garcia founded the brand in 1935, they deliberately restricted production and sales, and only launched 5 sizes. At that time, they had just purchased the Upman brand from Franco in the UK and focused on expanding its volume. Montecristo's predecessor was Upman's Sele series, which was placed on behalf of the Dunlu Company in New York. It was a very promising brand at the time, and it was also a test of Menedez’s tobacco technology and Garcia’s production knowledge. Touchstone. Later, influenced by another British agent, John Hunter, this cigar brand had a simplified name "".

Because Franco is responsible for the sales of Upman cigars. And hope that Montecristo cigars can be sold. So Hunter Company designed the eye-catching red and yellow crossed sword logo on the humidor. During the Second World War. The distribution of Havana cigars to the United Kingdom was interrupted, so the brand was mainly sold in Dunhill cigarette shops in the United States.

Film director Hitchcock was obsessed with Montecristo for a long time, and he even regularly sent cigars to British friends who were restricted by wartime supplies and could not smoke cigars. After World War II, Montecristo added the s size, otherwise the series would remain the same. Soon after the Cuban Revolution, the Menedez and Garcia family moved to the Canary Islands. However, a small amount of Montecristo cigars are still produced on the island of Cuba, and the legendary "la" who stays on the island is responsible for the production of Joseph Manuel Gonzalez. Today, he is considered the best cigar maker in Havana and the most stringent supervisor in the eyes of cigarette workers. He is highly praised for maintaining the consistently high quality and unique blend of Montecristo cigars.

In the early 1970s, the brand added A and three new sizes of al, .2 and ta made with (ba).1, .2 and .3 as templates. after that. The brand developed rapidly and became the favorite of many entertainers, such as singer Tom Jones (nes) and British film giant Lou Glad. But success also brings some problems, for example. It is a big problem to ensure the high quality of the large numbers of cigars sent to Spain. Many people believe that high-quality cigars can only be bought in small markets such as the United Kingdom. However, when the Spanish National Tobacco Bureau and the Cuban Tobacco Bureau had a trademark dispute and planned to suspend the import of Montecristo cigars, there was almost a civil war in Spain. Montecristo cigars use a unique, slightly oily brown wrapper, with a soft smell, medium to rich flavor, and a unique and strong taste. Among them, .2 is very famous and worth a try. Many regular customers also think that .1 (Cervante size) is slightly inferior.

The current owner of the Count of Monte Cristo is an American. In the past, he could make at least US$200 million in profits for himself every year with this brand, but he only sold less than US$3 million in goods in the past two months. , This is still ordered by previous old customers. Those new customers have basically been thrown into the arms of the energy group. At this moment, the boss Mott Randall is looking at the empty workshop, in a daze, how can he not believe it, it was here two months ago It's still very busy. Why is there a temporary suspension of work here after two months? In the past, he was always thinking about how to expand his production workshop, but now he is not thinking about this problem at all. What he is thinking about is how to maintain it. People from the energy group have come to him a lot. I hope I can sell all this, and the price offered is not very low, at least I am not paying, but I did not agree at the time. On the one hand, I feel that my brand will still survive. Moreover, this brand was created by my grandfather's generation. If others say that I would sell this, then I am a complete prodigal. Besides, I don't really lack money.

"It's really sad, please forgive me Mr. Randall, I didn't want to break in directly, because the doorman told me that I could come in before I came in, and I also registered in accordance with your company's regulations. It’s the person in charge of cigars in Cuba by the Energy Group. You can call me Mr. Li. My people asked you two months ago. I offered you 500 million dollars to buy your factory and this brand. You told me that you don’t want to sell, now I’m open for 20 million dollars, I don’t know if you will or not?" Li Cong said with a smile, it was this guy in front of him that prevented his unification cause, even if he is now on the verge of bankruptcy. , But you can't give the other party any chance, know that a single spark can start a prairie fire.

"It turns out that you are Mr. Li. Look at my factory. A factory run by three generations of our family has now become like this. Are you satisfied? Do you feel fun? I tell you, 20 million US dollars. It doesn’t matter to me. I don’t care about this place. I still have a lot of businesses in the United States. Even if I lose money every year, I will continue to run this place. If you want me to sell it to you, dream.” Randall He stood up and said loudly, this guy is really a man. Nowadays, there are not many people who dare to refuse the energy group like this, but he is a relatively tough one.

"Hehe, there are too few businessmen like you now. I was joking just now. I thought you would sell your business after listening to what I said. After all, if this month passes, I think no one will pay 20 million US dollars, but I changed my mind after hearing what you said just now. I will give you a chance. Come to work in my company, I know your home is In this industry, if I give you a platform, maybe you will become the king of cigars in the world, and I can guarantee that your annual income will definitely exceed your 200 million US dollars a year." Li Cong smiled Said, he has always investigated the details of this guy. In the United States, this guy has a lot of industries, but he doesn't make much money, and this guy is unwilling to run some other things. He still prefers him. His ancestors left him this industry. So Li Cong felt that he would take this guy under his own name, and he couldn't resist the temptation of the cigar king. Of course, the premise was that all of the investigation was true.

"You mean to ask me to work at your place?" This guy's mind is not too stupid, and he soon thought of Li Cong's ideas, but this time Li Cong's abacus was wrong. This guy is not born Working for someone else, "Hehe, don't be delusional. I won't work for my enemy. Don't dream it. Even if I go bankrupt, I will guard our family's own property. *" The guy said stiffly After finishing talking, Li Cong left no matter what he said. After such a long time, Li Cong really rarely saw such a person. This person is really interesting. But even if this guy doesn't help himself, the energy group's cigar industry has already begun to be listed globally. At this time, Li Cong suddenly germinated the idea of ​​establishing a luxury brand. Some of the products operated by the Energy Group were already luxurious enough. If they were gathered together, it would be very profitable.

In short, a luxury brand is a brand that serves luxury goods. It is the highest grade brand in the brand grade classification. In life, luxury brands enjoy a very special market and high social status. In the commodity classification, the corresponding luxury goods are mass commodities. Luxury goods are not only goods with use value, but also goods with high added value; luxury goods are not only goods with tangible value, but also goods with intangible value. For luxury goods, its intangible value is often higher than the visible value.

The brand charm of luxury brands is rich and luxurious. Luxury comes from the Latin "light" (Lux). Therefore, luxury goods should be shiny, bright, and enjoyable. Luxury goods convey these contents through its brand visual identity system. From a sociological point of view, luxury goods are belonging to the noble class. It has status, status, and superior privileges. It is a representative of the image of aristocracy. Although society is now democratizing, people's "view of wealth" has not changed, and luxury brands can meet people's instinctive needs.

In the eyes of western consumers, the British "Rolls Royce" car has the symbol of noble car. The ultra-long "Phantom" launched in 1925 was selected by the Queen of England as a special car and used as a roadway car to receive foreign heads of state. Since 1875, the Cuban "Romeo" brand, which has exclusively supplied cigars to the United Kingdom, later created the "Churchill" model with the length of the cigar that Prime Minister Churchill liked most, and it has long been a world-famous cigar. So it can be said with certainty that the "rich and noble" element is the core value of luxury brands.

Luxury goods must be the most beautiful commodities. No matter how many kinds of aesthetic consciousness people have, there is only one kind of luxury, and that is "praise when you see. The products served by luxury brands must be "the most advanced". This "superiority" must be reflected one by one from appearance to quality. The luxury of luxury should be visible. It is precisely because people admire its beauty and luxury that it can bring glory to the master. Therefore, luxury goods should provide more "visible value"-people seem to say good. Those who buy luxury goods are not pursuing practical value at all, but pursuing the "best" feeling of all mankind.

This is true for "Vacheron Constantin" watches; so is "Dior" fashion. "Cartier" jewelry was born in Paris in 1847. Not only represents class, wealth, nobility and taste. It is also a symbol of beauty and eternity. The Italian "Bulgari" jewelry brand initially followed the rigorous style of the French academic school, but in 1934 it merged the essence of Greek and Roman classicism, and added the Italian Renaissance and the 19th century Roman goldsmith school. Gradually deduce his own unique luxury classic. Therefore, products without aesthetic enjoyment are not luxury products.

Luxury brands are often proud of themselves, they continue to set up the banner of individualization, creating their own highest state. "Benz" pursues top quality, "BMW" pursuers driving pleasure, "Rolls Royce" pursues hand-built, "Ferrari" pursues sporting speed, and "Cadillac" pursues luxury and comfort. They have great ingenuity and show their abilities. It is precisely because of the personalization of commodities that it creates reasons for people to buy. It is precisely because the personalization of luxury goods is not like mass products. It shows its noble value.

The French "Lafite" wine was quite famous in the 14th century. At that time, it not only needed 10 years of storage and aging period, but also the marine climate, gravel soil and average age of grapevines in Bordeaux area of ​​40 years gave it a rich flavor. Exquisite and very different. In 1985, a bottle of "Lafite" produced in 1787 sold at Christie's in London was sold for US$1.6 million, making it the most expensive wine in the world at that time, but now this record has been given by the Great Wall Wines of Energy Group It was completely defeated, and I couldn't even see the back of my head. Therefore, luxury goods often create unique forms of goods. Personalization makes them stand out.

Luxury brands are very specific, and they cannot be easily extended and used at will. The so-called brand positioning specificity means that the brand only serves a certain product or a certain type of product, and the brand classification level cannot be changed. Luxury brands cannot make marketing strategies for mass brands. It is difficult to see that a luxury brand is used across multiple industries and has achieved the same success. [] Brand diversification is itself a taboo in brand management. Li Cong wants to bring together multiple luxury goods of the Energy Group. There is still a big risk.

In the 1960s, "Pierre Cardin" clothing was no longer a real luxury item since it went from customized operation to the beginning of popularized franchise production.

Mr. Pierre Cardin once said: "I am an adventurer like James Bond." It is precisely in this way that this costume master not only bought the Maxim restaurant, but also extended the brand to the wine industry. A batch of "Pierre Cardin" wines failed. Marketing is regular. If "BMW" dared to launch a shampoo, "Procter & Gamble" would definitely be happy and generous. Therefore, do not change the nature of the brand, maintain positioning, and abide by value. This is a very difficult task for luxury brands.

But in fact, real luxury brands have a deep background, and some luxury brands have existed for hundreds of years. After a long time of testing, its main products have become deeply entrenched, and more products are naturally derived at this time. Brands such as R Dior, Zens Fu Yingshi, n Louis Vuitton have crossed different industries.

Popular distance. As a luxury brand, you must create a sense of sigh. It is the mission of luxury brand marketing to make most people feel unattainable. In terms of market consumption positioning, luxury brands serve a small number of "rich people". Luxury consumers are even less willing to use a commodity that everyone has. therefore. To maintain the superiority of the target customers, we should create a sense of distance between the public and them. Distance produces beauty. Luxury brands must constantly set up consumer barriers to deny mass consumers thousands of miles away. There is a huge contrast between the number of people who know the brand and the people who actually own the brand. This is the charm of luxury brands.

The common method to create a "popular distance" is to raise the price threshold, adopt an ultra-high pricing strategy, and make people feel embarrassed through extremely high prices. The price of a 9-meter-long "Cadillac" is 600,000 U.S. dollars, or about 3 million yuan; the popular "Rolls Royce" Phantom on the market has a minimum price of 460,000 U.S. dollars; the top Ferrari sells for 650,000 U.S. dollars in line Can't buy it yet. So for most people. Luxury brands can only be "dream" brands.

Historical reputation is also an important connotation of luxury brands. The cultural value of luxury brands is very high. This cultural value of the brand mainly comes from its historical reputation. The longer the history of a product. Its cultural connotation will be richer.

From the perspective of brand traceability, the brand is based on blood. The British "Chivas" whisky came from the Chivas brothers in Aberdeen, Scotland in the 19th century; the Chinese "Moutai" evolved from the "Lai" family in Moutai, Guizhou. In 1929, a man named Lai Yongchu inherited the brewing method of "Goji sauce wine" in the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in 135 AD in Maotai Town, and built the famous "Hengchang Shaofang", which is the earliest brand. The famous Moutai. China's "Dahongpao" is known as "Tea of ​​the Emperor" because in ancient times, a student went to Beijing to rush to the exam. He was critically ill at the foot of Wuyi Mountain on the way. Fortunately, the monk used temple tea hydrolysis to save him and was the champion of high school. When the queen had abdominal distension and pain again, the imperial doctor was incapable. The champion offered tea, and the queen was as ill as ever after drinking it. The emperor gave the tea tree a "red robe plus body", so the tea tree tea was immediately worth a hundred times. From this we experience. The quality of a luxury product is not enough; more brand stories must be told.

From the perspective of production management, luxury goods are “top quality” products manufactured using “precious raw materials” and “mysterious craftsmanship”. The founders of "Rolls-Royce", Rolls and Royce, are called the perfect combination of "the most advanced material provider" and "the most advanced technology applier". They only use the best cowhide from the "Scandinavia" peninsula and the best walnut wood from the plateau forest of "Lombarde" in Italy, and only use pure handcraft to make car interiors. The Swiss "Piage" watch was from 1874. In the 1960s, he was the first to use colored gemstones such as black agate, turquoise and lapis lazuli as the surface, and he was known as the "master of watch altar jewelry." In the 1980s it made one of the most expensive men's earthenstone watches in the world. The watch used 154 grams of platinum, 296 diamonds, and a brilliant blue diamond weighing 3.85 carats. The total value is 3.5 million Swiss francs. Therefore, we can say without evasiveness that luxury goods are "raw materials determine everything." Today, luxury goods are not only synonymous with traditional exquisite craftsmanship, but also representative of the top products manufactured by it.

In short, to speak in layman's terms. Luxury brands include such seven characteristics: rich brand image, perfect look, distinctive uniqueness, abiding by value, historical reputation, ultra-high price, top quality performance, some of the energy group's luxury products are basically They don’t have such qualities, but they have a few of them. For example, they are expensive, and they have things that others don’t have. That is, they are absolutely good for people, which other luxury brands don’t have. So Li I still have the confidence to get this right.

The energy group has not received news from the former president for a long time, and it never occurred to him that the president would ask the senior executives of the entire group to hold a virtual meeting in Cuba. The former president has not walked into this conference room for more than a few years. Up. Although what they see now is only a virtual image, it is undeniable that everything about the former president seems to be still affecting the group. The current president Li Er and the current CEO Li Yinluan have already carried all their subordinates. While waiting for Li Cong, the advantage of the development of the virtual system is that there is no need to concentrate all the high-levels in one place. The argument that throwing a grenade can paralyze the energy group no longer exists, because they are all in different places. It is estimated that there will be no time to gather together in one year, except for important things of course.

"Hehe, you guys, it’s been a long time since I saw you. Many new faces have come and many old faces have been preserved. This is a good thing. If a group does not change the water, it may be a stagnant pool. I am very satisfied with everything. This time I bring you a new experience. I need to build a super high-end luxury brand. The name of the brand has not yet been thought of, but I hope this luxury brand can accommodate us. For all the products of the group, you can directly say what you recommend, brainstorming, and the same as before." Li Cong said with a smile. He seemed a little nervous when he saw everyone seeing him. They were so nervous if they didn't speak. If you continue to be serious. There is no need for this meeting. So it's better to relax.

"Sir, as far as I know, at present, our group has jewellery, cigarettes, and alcohol that are luxury items. The others are all closely related things for people. It seems that there are no luxury items. If we establish It seems that the new luxury storefront in China is a bit inadequate. After all, those items have their own sales stores. Our new establishment seems to be superfluous." A senior director of the finance department said, he was following Li Cong The old man, knowing that Li didn't care how everyone talked before, so he spoke more directly.

The others nodded in agreement. There are still some car brands under the group, but if you talk about the luxury of cars, those under the group can only be said to have a firm footing, and there is still a certain gap between the world's top luxury products. So they also think that it is not a good time to establish this now.

"Hehe, everyone, I am clear about what Assistant Wang said. I blamed me for not making it clear. My idea is to rebuild some new products, separate them from our previous products, and issue them in limited quantities. This luxury store does not need to be opened. Too many, thirty stores in the world are enough, but the store must be brilliant. It not only includes some of our group’s previous luxury products but also needs new things. For example, our group’s main source of profit is environmentally friendly oil. It sells a car that does not need to be refueled for a year. Of course, the quantity of such things must be strictly controlled, and everything must be calculated. The high-end secrets of the group must not be revealed, so that some of the group’s military products can be relaxed to civilian products. The ranks, cigarettes and alcohol do not need too much, the packaging is all made exquisite. When necessary, you can use a variety of precious gems, so that they feel that they are not buying wine, but wine bottles, or even all-platinum cigarettes. Boxes are also okay." Li Cong thought for a while and said, these ideas are just a general idea in his mind. It will take a lot of time to actually practice it. This is mainly because of cigar smoking.

The boss has an idea. The people below basically have to break their legs for the boss’s idea. As long as the boss can use part of the military products for civilian purposes, then they are not afraid that this matter will not be done. The planning department must be in half. A brand new plan came up within the month, and the Ministry of Construction began to look for suitable locations in 30 major cities around the world. According to Li Cong’s request, they estimated that the price of these 30 stores would definitely exceed US$100 million. one.

The meeting was very short, less than fifteen minutes, but these people here are not fools. They just listened to a few words from Li Cong and saw the huge business opportunities inside. If a car that does not need to be refueled for a year comes out, then this car will definitely allow the wealthy businessmen to spend money in their pockets. This is undoubtedly, Li Cong is still very good at dealing with the rich.

When the meeting was about to adjourn, Li Cong received a report from Li Xian. The group is preparing to start a one-month military exercise next month. 1.65 million troops from the three armed forces will participate in this exercise. Since he was able to approve the exercise plan, Li Cong knew at a glance that the money he made on cigars was basically gone. Good guy, a month’s exercise would cost Lao Tzu 320 billion yuan. Damn, it’s almost like a war, but Li Cong also understands that other places can save money, but the military can’t save money. Moreover, Li Cong has also discovered several recent events that people in the military system do things. It is indeed very capable, and the money is still worth spending.

"Sir, although this exercise plan only used more than one million people, I can guarantee that everyone will be proud to participate in this exercise. All our troops hope to participate in this exercise. Have you said no before? Soldiers who have experienced war are not good soldiers. The peace period is too long. Our soldiers also need some war training." Li Xian has already compressed this plan very strongly, but the transfer of millions of troops is not that simple The cost of 320 billion yuan has been compressed and cannot be compressed. Of course, the quality of the exercise will not be reduced.

"Hehe, your kid is waiting for me here. Go ahead. I approved this plan. All the money made on Cuban cigars will be given to you this time. I will give you an extra 20 billion RMB. I don’t spend less money in training. At this time, I can’t be stingy. I don’t ask too much. I will ask you to train soldiers that I can use at any time. Guards should not participate in this exercise. They have trained very well and gave the opportunity to more people." Li Cong thought for a while and said. The senior guards who followed Li Xian were immediately annoyed. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Li Xian’s eyesight. Stop talking, the fighting strength of the Guards is more than just a little bit higher than that of other troops. In the past, they directly ravaged people during the exercises. It is a waste of money for such people to participate in the exercise. It is better to give the opportunity to those who need it more as Li Cong said.

After finishing a few things, Li Cong turned off the real-time virtual system. This guy was very expensive. It costs 5,000 RMB per hour. Although it is not very expensive for Li Cong now, for the entire group, Li Cong held this meeting with thousands of people. If one person is 5,000 RMB, one hour is enough. It’s five million yuan. It costs five million yuan to hold such a short meeting. It’s great to make money, and it’s also great to spend money. You can’t just see making money. I can't see the money.

"Sir, the news is coming. The military in the old United States has already quarreled with people. According to our insider's statement, neither side admits to speaking to them. The military said that the criminal has been handed over to them. They demanded that no private courts should be set up and that it should be resolved on the table, but they firmly denied this matter. They believed that this matter was lying by the military, and they did not receive any generals at all. On the contrary, dozens of them died. Among them is a senior inspector who is asking the military for an explanation." Karelina is not here. On the 1st, she has become an intelligence analyst for Li Cong. At this moment, this guy is holding the news that he just received. Entered happily. Seeing his enemy's infighting, I am very happy in every way.

"Haha. This is expected. These old Americans have caused such consequences because their internal institutions are too responsible. It's no wonder that others are asking us not to move on the old American side. Now it seems that they have not suspected this matter to us, so other people can't move around. If they really attract their attention, I think our underground activities in Laomei It’s over. We’ll just sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight for now. Don’t talk nonsense about the Three D parties. It doesn’t matter what they do.” Li Cong thought about it and asked a few more words. He has always been a gunpowder keg, but he is helping Li Cong with things, but Li Cong can't control his ally. Although he mainly supplies them with money now, in Li Cong's view, even if there is none. With their own support, they can live very well, so he is equal to people like himself, and Li Cong doesn't like these people. In Li Cong's view, he has to form an alliance with himself and stay under control.

The Three D Party is very strange to the Skull and Bones, but it is also the same for Li Cong. Li never wanted to have such a strange ally, and Li Cong felt that there must be something more behind the Three D Party. I don't know the powerful forces, but I don't know why they don't come to the stage with such a huge force? Maybe this force can match the Skull and Bones, but this world is nothing strange.

This time, Li Cong really didn’t think about it. Who knew that General Walter was so cooperative, and even Ken called out one of his subordinates, and this person was still a general. I don’t dare to think about it. Here is the reality. Li has turned off this matter. But the three D parties in the United States and the United States don’t think so much. In their view, this is the same as the military in China. The big pillars, they are completely controlled by the Skull and Bones, as long as their internal fighting is more fierce, the Three D parties will be able to reap more benefits.

Mike summoned a gang of top three D parties to discuss this matter at their headquarters, and they thought it was an opportunity.

"Everyone, such opportunities are not available every day. I think we should seize this opportunity to insert our people. According to our calculations, even if the incident is investigated to this level, the military will at least Hundreds of positions will be vacant, so the backs in their training camps are definitely not enough. Our people can enter. It is foreseeable that in the next two to three years we will People who are going to come to the front desk and start to take the lead.” said a very wretched guy with glasses, who is the intelligence minister of the Three D Party.

"Haha, what Laugin said is really good. I called everyone here today. That's what I mean. You all go back to see the clever guys under your own hands. If they can all be accepted, then these people will be accepted in a few years. All walked to the front desk. At that time, it was even more helpful for us to fight against the Skull and Bones. This time everyone can't stay behind. If we miss this opportunity, it is impossible for us to put hundreds of people in. I The requirements of the squadron are not high. It’s good if we get a quarter of the hundreds of people. If we can get a third, it would be even better.” Mike said with a smile. This guy has been thinking about this these days. Now, it can finally penetrate into the military and the two major departments, and in the future, its own intelligence will definitely rise to a large level.

"Sorry, I interrupt everyone. I don't think this thing is a good thing, because this thing is beyond our control. Let's take a look at where this thing originated? It's Guantanamo prison, which has never been a Skull and Bones. Weak areas, on the contrary, because of the energy group's relationship, it is now more important to everyone~www.wuxiaspot.com~ It is very difficult for us to avoid there. Why should we fall into it? There is a distance from the energy group. The naval bases in the Americas are so close. Have you ever thought about whether this matter has anything to do with the energy group? Skull and Bones are the same group as the energy group. What about us? The gap between us and them is too big. If they look at it If it is transferred to us, we may have no bones left. Therefore, I do not agree to mix in at this time. If this matter has something to do with the energy group, then we will not be able to go in. If we mix in, we will be affected by the two There’s nothing left of the group’s fighting." Miss Bahrain thought for a while and said. She didn’t want to speak out, but she was too blind to see these people. Although she likes Li Cong very much, this organization belongs to her family. Hope for a lifetime, and she can't make fun of the future of the family.

If Miss Bahrain was just a girl in her twenties, she would probably be thrown out when she said that, and he would not be able to get in. She said that nobody refuted it because of the Morgan consortium behind her. This is not a simple matter. So many people immediately agreed with Miss Bahrain’s words. Their strength is good, but they are far behind the Energy Group and Skull and Bones. It’s really going to kill them to mix them up. (To be continued...)

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