Reborn Industrial Tycoon

Chapter 457 Direct Competition

In a certain shopping mall, a young man walked to the razor counter.

He subconsciously touched his mouthband, where he had saved three months' salary. The young man planned to use this money to buy himself an electric shaver.

The young man looked like he was in his early twenties. He was probably at the age when he was looking for a partner and needed to pay attention to his image, so he planned to buy an electric shaver so that he could shave without any trouble and keep his appearance.

Seeing a customer coming, a female salesperson in her forties immediately came forward to greet her.

"Young man, I'm going to buy a razor!" the salesperson pointed to the counter and said, "This is domestic, and that is imported. Domestic ones are cheaper, and imported ones are more expensive."

The young man glanced at the counter of domestic shavers. There were two main products, one was a domestic reciprocating shaver, and the other was a domestic rotary shaver.

Domestic reciprocating razors, even twenty years later, have not produced very effective products, and they were even worse in the 1990s.

Whether it is blades or high-speed motors, domestic reciprocating shavers are far inferior to Braun and Panasonic. Buying a domestic reciprocating shaver is not as good as getting an electric clipper for haircuts.

Domestic rotary shavers are all single-headed. At that time, the single-headed shaver had a nickname called hair puller. Looking at the nickname, you can probably know the performance of the domestic headed shaver.

Seeing the domestic products on the counter, the young man frowned in dissatisfaction, and then went straight to the imported brand counter.

At the counter of imported brands, there are shavers from Philips, Braun and Panasonic, but there are not many varieties.

Then the young man looked at the selling price and immediately frowned.

"These imported razors are so expensive! The cheapest one costs six to seven hundred yuan!" The young man seemed to be muttering to himself, or complaining to the salesperson.

The salesperson explained: "These are purely imported. Things produced by foreigners must be expensive. But you get what you pay for. Look at the workmanship of these imported goods. They are not much better than domestic ones!"

Moreover, imported razors make less noise and are more durable. For example, this Philips razor can be used for ten years without any problem. If it is made in China, it may break after four to five years.”

What the salesperson was pointing to was a Philips HQ30 shaver.

When the young man saw the price, 680, he immediately showed a daunting expression.

"Six hundred and eighty yuan is too expensive. Can I get a discount?" the young man asked.

The salesperson shook his head: "You can't get a discount. There are no discounts on imported products! But this Philips razor is expensive for a reason. You see, it has a double head, which is much easier to use than a single head.

It’s a clean shave and it doesn’t hurt.”

The young man nodded. Of course he knew that a double-head shaver was much easier to use than a single-head shaver, but the price of 680 from Philips directly dispelled the young man's desire to buy it.

Young people's wages are often not too high, so spending 680 yuan on a razor is indeed a bit reluctant.

The saleswoman saw what the young man was thinking, and she said, "If you think imported razors are more expensive, you can consider domestic ones."

"The ones made in China are all single-ended, so they are not easy to use." The young man said.

"There are also double-headed shavers made in China, but they are new products." The salesperson said, pointing to a silver-gray shaver on the counter.

"Is this made in China? I thought it was imported! And it looks so beautiful, like a new imported product, I didn't even dare to look at it just now." The young man said.

"It's made in China, a new product launched by puppies." the salesperson said.

The young man looked down at the price and was shocked: "Three hundred and forty yuan. Such a beautiful razor only costs three hundred and forty yuan?"

The salesperson nodded and continued, "There is also a razor bag and two blades inside. Let me show it to you."

The salesperson said and gave the sample to the young man.

As soon as I got the sample, the young man couldn't put it down. The appearance of this shaver is so beautiful!

The HQ60 series copied by Li Weidong originally relied on its appearance to win. In terms of performance, it is actually similar to the HQ5 series. The reason why it was originally sold more expensive than the HQ5 series was mainly because of its appearance.

This exterior design was very fashionable and technological after 2000, and it was even more top-notch in 1995.

Mustache looked at the puppy razor in his hand, and then at the old-fashioned Philips HQ30 on the counter, and suddenly felt that imported razors no longer smell good.

The salesperson then introduced: "There are four types of this shaver, type 101, type 102, type 103 and type 104. The machines are all the same, but the colors are different."

"I'll buy this one! The silver gray one looks great!" the young man said without hesitation.

…

The puppy razor advertisement appeared on CCTV's prime time. Although it only lasted for fifteen seconds, with Teacher Ge's help, the advertisement's effect was still very good.

The 1990s were definitely the period when TV advertising revenue was the highest. At that time, there was no Internet, and watching TV was the most common daily entertainment activity for families. Basically everyone would see advertisements on TV.

And there are not many TV channels. In addition to CCTV, if you find four or five provincial satellite TV stations to advertise, your advertisement can be seen by TV viewers across the country.

This is what Puppy Electric did. It placed advertisements on CCTV and several local stations. It didn't take long for Puppy Shaver to become a household product.

Previously, double-head razors had been monopolized by Philips, and domestic brands did not have double-head razors. Now Puppy Electric has launched a double-head razor, which is equivalent to filling the market gap for domestic double-head razors.

Philips shavers are all imported, and the price is not ordinary. The entry-level price is as high as 600 to 700 yuan, the middle grade is 800 to 900 yuan, and the high-end one costs more than 1,000 yuan. This was not the case at the time.

Most Chinese people can afford it.

Although the quality of Philips was very good at that time, a shaver could be used for more than ten years, and on average it cost sixty or seventy yuan a year, or more than ten cents a day.

But there is a saying that it doesn’t hurt if you ask consumers to pay one or two cents a day for ten years. However, if consumers pay six to seven hundred yuan in one breath, it will hurt.

.

In comparison, a puppy shaver that is only half the price is obviously more acceptable to consumers.

In the mid-1990s, there were few wealthy people in China. Imported Philips razors were a luxury item for most families. Many people bought Philips razors with the intention of using them for ten years.

years.

For daily consumer goods, price is always the most sensitive factor. The reason why Chinese manufacturing can be spread all over the world depends on low prices.

The price of a puppy shaver is half the price, which is enough for many consumers to abandon Philips and switch to the arms of puppies.

The advertising effect is still great. In just one month, Philips' sales in China have dropped by 30%. These markets have been taken away by puppy shavers, and puppy shavers have also quickly occupied China.

market.

Historically, when the Feike double-head shaver first appeared, it did not capture the Philips market. Instead, it squeezed many domestic single-head shavers out of the industry.

This is mainly because when Feike first went on the market, it adopted a low-price strategy. At that time, the wholesale price of Feike razors was only a few dozen yuan, which was similar to other domestic razors.

Consumers who are willing to spend 700 to 800 yuan to buy Philips shavers will not look at cheap products that cost 180 yuan, and naturally they will not pay attention to Feike shavers.

Moreover, Feike initially used Yiwu Commodity City as its sales channel, while Philip had already entered the counters of major shopping malls and stores.

The bulk channels for small commodities are also different from those in hypermarkets. Those who like to shop for goods in small stores or street stalls will not go to professional hypermarkets; for the same reason, those who shop in hypermarkets on weekdays will not buy goods from street stalls.

.

In other words, the early Feike and Philips were aimed at two completely different consumer groups, and the markets they faced did not overlap. Even though Feico's price was very cheap, it did not affect Philips' market.

It was not until later that Feike gradually developed and began to seize Philips' market. In the end, both parties accounted for about 40% of China's razor market.

Puppy Electric is different. Li Weidong has channels in major stores and home appliance malls, so Puppy's shaver will directly compete with Philips' shavers as soon as it goes on the market.

Every time the puppy takes a bite of market share, it means that Philips will lose that bite of market share.

…

Philips' Asia-Pacific regional headquarters is in Singapore. It moved to Hong Kong Island in 2005 and established a so-called Greater China headquarters in China in 2017. This also shows how much Philips attaches importance to the Chinese market.

The head of Philips Asia Pacific is named Ke Cilei. He is a German who went to university in the Netherlands and joined Philips after graduation.

Ke Cilei had previously been in charge of Philips' audio and display components business, and was recently sent to Asia as the regional head.

At this time, Ke Cilei looked at last month's sales data and frowned.

Sales data in Japan and South Korea are basically the same as before. These two countries mainly use Philips components and are not too dependent on Philips consumer products. After all, these two countries have their own home appliance brands.

Sales data in Southeast Asia are rising steadily. In recent years, the economic development in Southeast Asia has been very good, and the desire to buy imported goods is also very strong. It is a very good product dumping place.

However, in China, another large market in the Asia-Pacific region, sales of razors dropped by 30%.

When he first saw this data, Ke Cilei even felt that he was dazzled or that there was something wrong with the statistics.

If the sales volume is slightly bullied, it is a normal phenomenon, but the sales volume dropped by 30%, but this is a very strange thing.

"Sales have dropped so much in a short period of time. There are three possibilities. First, there is a problem with supply; second, there is a problem with the Chinese economy; third, there is a strong competitor.

There is definitely no problem with supply. I have never heard of any shortages. China's economy is on the rise. As Chinese people become richer and richer, the demand for various daily necessities should continue to increase.

This means that a strong competitor has emerged to carve up the Chinese market, so our sales will be cut in half. Who will this competition be? Is it Braun?

It’s unlikely. After all, Braun’s business focus is in Europe. If Braun takes action, it will be implemented in Europe first. It is impossible for China to come to Asia and take the first shot.

That's Panasonic! Panasonic has always regarded the Asian market as their back garden, but in the Chinese razor market, Panasonic has never been our rival to Philips.

However, this time, our sales were cut in half. It seems that Panasonic held back a big move and wanted to catch us off guard. If I guessed correctly, they must have also launched a rotary shaver."

Rotary shavers have always been made by Philips. The other two major shaver brands, Braun and Panasonic, make reciprocating shavers.

So when Philips' sales in China plummeted, Ke Cilei's first reaction was that Panasonic was also entering the field of rotary shavers.

Thinking of this, Ke Cilei picked up the phone and dialed the phone number of Philips China.

"Has Panasonic released a rotary shaver? Send me some samples immediately." Ke Cilei said directly.

However, the other end of the phone answered: "Mr. Ke Cilei, Panasonic has not launched a new shaver in China recently!"

"Isn't it Panasonic? Is it Braun?" Thinking of this, Ke Cilei immediately asked: "Has Braun launched any new products?"

"Neither Braun." The other party replied.

"That's strange. Since it's not due to competitors, why did your sales in China drop by 30%?" Ke Cilei asked.

"Well, I've sent people to investigate, but the investigation results haven't been reported back to me yet." The other party paused and then said, "But I think it's most likely because Chinese companies have also launched double-head razors.

.”

"The Chinese also made a double-headed razor?" Ke Cilei frowned.

"Yes, although I have never seen a Chinese double-head razor, I heard that this razor has a beautiful design and is cheaper than our razors."

The other party paused for a moment, then emphasized: "I think the key is cheapness. After all, the income level of Chinese people is relatively low, and they are more willing to buy some cheap products."

"Then we can also lower the price appropriately!" Ke Cilei thought for a moment and said, "I'll give you a 15%, oh, no, 10% price reduction authorization.

Our Philips shavers are number one in the world. Our products are so excellent. If we lower the price a little, we can easily regain the lost market!"

…

Before 1998, the vast majority of foreign investors only regarded China as a dumping ground for goods, so their response to the Chinese market was also very lagging, always several beats slower.

European and American companies have always been like this. Even though China's consumer goods retail market has become comparable to that of the United States in later generations, many European and American companies still look at the Chinese market with a pair of arrogant glasses. They wait until they are driven out of the Chinese market by their competitors.

When I was there, I started to cry for my father and mother again and say bad things about China.

It is precisely because of this that the puppy shaver took away 30% of Philips' market share, and Philips reacted.

But even if Philips reacted, it did not conduct in-depth market research or formulate targeted strategies, but simply reduced prices.

The key is to reduce the price, which is a big hemorrhage, and only reduces the price by 10%.

There is no doubt that Europeans' arrogance towards the Chinese market has penetrated deep into their bones.

However, this time, Philips faced Puppy Electric, an opponent that was very good at price wars.

Zhong Yemao is in charge of the marketing of Puppy Electric. This marketing master responds to the market much faster than Ke Cilei.

When Philips lowers its price, the puppy shaver also immediately drops its price, always remaining half the price of Philips.

For products made in China, there is no need to be timid about price wars!

When Ke Cilei got the sales report for next month, he was shocked to find that Philips' sales in China were only half of the original!

Ke Cilei finally realized that if things continued like this, Philips' razors might be driven out of the Chinese market.

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