Reborn Industrial Tycoon

Chapter 458 You are ignoring me today

Ke Cilei held the phone and beeped crazily.

"Mr. De Jong, this is really not my responsibility. The sales of razors in the Chinese market have dropped mainly because the Chinese have also created double-head razors.

China's production costs are much lower. The Chinese's double-head razors are cheaper than ours, so they have taken the market away from us. This has nothing to do with my business strategy!

Price reduction? Yes, of course I have also reduced prices, but the price of Chinese razors is only half of ours. Our Philips razors cannot be sold so cheap!

Mr. De Jong, when it comes to comparing prices, we are definitely no match for the Chinese, so I think we should compare the quality of razors with the Chinese. In this regard, Chinese razors are definitely no match for our Philips.

I have already got a shaver produced by the Chinese. The style is indeed very beautiful, but the technology is still very backward. They have not yet used rechargeable battery technology, the shaver still uses dry batteries, and the Chinese shaver does not support washing.

In addition, the blades used in Chinese razors have a much shorter service life than ours. Their motors are also noisy, and the longer they are used, the louder the motor will be!

So I suggest that we should use better technology to take back the Chinese market! Yes, the high-end products we sell in the Chinese market already have charging technology and water washing functions, but I think this is not enough.

I know that the new products we have launched in Europe have begun to use motor silent technology. In addition, the floating cutter head technology that has been successfully developed, I think it should also be introduced!

Yes, Mr. De Jong, I know that floating cutter head technology is the main feature of the upcoming HQ8 series. But without these new technologies, it will be difficult for us to regain the Chinese market.

Mr. De Jong, I am not exaggerating. The razors produced in China do pose a great threat to us. We need to go all out to win in the competition.

Well, I know you won’t believe me just from talking on the phone. I have already sent samples of Chinese razors to the Netherlands. When you see the ones produced by the Chinese, you will definitely believe me.”

After putting down the phone, Ke Cilei breathed a sigh of relief.

As the head of Philips Asia Pacific, he must be responsible for the decline in product sales.

However, Ke Cilei didn't want to take the blame, so he simply shifted the responsibility to his competitors.

…

In the Netherlands, Philips headquarters, an old man is holding a knife and opening a package.

The old man’s name is De Jong, the head of Philips’ Quality Lifestyle Division.

After entering the 1990s, Philips was divided into three departments.

First of all, let’s talk about the lighting division. Philips itself started out by making light bulbs. At the end of the 19th century, it was the largest light bulb manufacturer in Europe, so the lighting and heat business has always been Philips’ core business.

Next is the healthcare division, which is mainly responsible for the sales of medical devices.

As early as World War I, Philips produced medical X-ray machines. In the future, Philips would become Europe's top medical device manufacturer.

The third is the Quality Life Division, which is mainly engaged in Philips' home appliance business. It includes white appliances, kitchen appliances, daily cleaning electronic products, audio and video electronic products, etc.

Philips' kitchen appliances have very high sales in Europe, such as rice cookers, water heaters, coffee machines, bread machines, ice cream machines, etc., which are all Philips' flagship products.

The package that De Jong was opening at this time was sent from Asia, and the sender was Ke Cilei, the person in charge of Asia Pacific.

De Jong opened the package. Inside was a somewhat rough-looking packaging box. There were images and text on the packaging box. The text was in Chinese and De Jong could not understand it. The image was of a middle-aged bald Chinese man holding a shaver in his hand.

Mustache.

This middle-aged bald man is naturally Mr. Ge, the spokesperson of Puppy Electric.

Printing the photos of brand spokespersons on the packaging became popular in the 1990s. So Puppy Electric also printed Mr. Ge’s photo on the packaging.

The image of Teacher Ge is quite special and highly recognizable. Printing Teacher Ge on the packaging is also easier to produce an advertising effect.

However, in De Jong's view, this kind of packaging with the spokesperson's photo is too old-fashioned. The key is that the spokesperson is not that good looking!

De Jong took out the box of the puppy shaver from the package, opened it and curled his lips with disdain.

"It's just a box and a bubble bag. It's really a rudimentary packaging! Chinese products are only of this level!"

Simpler packaging can reduce costs. Moreover, puppy shavers are only sold domestically, so there is no need to carry out exquisite packaging like export products.

For the Chinese people, a box is enough. If you say you don’t need a packaging box and give it ten yuan cheaper, I guess most people won’t want a packaging box.

De Jong took out the razor from the box and frowned when he saw the tapered design of the puppy razor.

"Ke Cilei didn't lie to me, this design is really beautiful, but I seem to have seen it before somewhere!"

De Jong thought for a while, walked to the filing cabinet, rummaged through a bunch of files, and finally found a drawing.

This drawing shows an electric shaver, which is 80% similar in appearance to a puppy shaver.

"Why does it look familiar to me? The design department has submitted a similar appearance to me before. I thought the design was very good at the time and planned to use it in the future, but I didn't expect that the Chinese would beat me to it!" De Rong thought to himself.

De Jong does not think that Puppy Electric has copied Philips' design. After all, this design only exists on drawings. It is impossible for Puppy Electric in China to come to the Netherlands to check out Philips' razor design drawings.

The appearance is similar, but the design creativity is different, which is also a common thing.

De Jong installed the battery on the shaver, then pressed the start button and tried it on his chin.

"Although the noise and vibration are a bit loud, this shaver can still be used."

De Rong frowned, and then remembered that Ke Cilei mentioned during his report that the price of a puppy shaver was only half that of Philips.

"Perhaps we should really bring out the technology of floating blades!" De Jong murmured to himself.

But the next second, De Jong shook his head again.

"The floating cutter head technology is intended to be used in the HQ8 series, and will also become the main selling point of this series. It is not worth taking out the floating cutter head technology just for the Chinese market! This will affect our Philips global position

strategic layout!”

De Jong thought for a long time and finally decided to remain unchanged in response to all changes and do nothing.

…

In the mid-1990s, Philips' premium lifestyle department was at its peak. In 1994, Philips launched an automatic home coffee machine that took the European world by storm.

In 1996, Philips introduced sensors into kitchen appliances and launched a fully automatic rice cooker. This was definitely a revolutionary product at the time. Even the Japanese rice cookers that were so popular in later generations were inferior.

In 1997, Philips cooperated with Sony to launch DVD, the fastest-growing home appliance product in history, which also brought Philips' home appliances to the pinnacle.

In this era, Philips is in a state of all-round development in the field of home appliances, including traditional home appliances such as refrigerators and televisions, kitchen appliances such as toasters and juicers, cleaning appliances such as vacuum cleaners and hair dryers, and audio and video appliances such as audio and home theaters.

All within Philips' business scope.

In comparison, Philips' razor business does not appear to be so important, and the proportion of razors in the business has become insignificant in the huge home appliance business.

When the brand Philips is mentioned, Chinese consumers will most likely think of razors, and many people will only think of razors.

That's because Philips' main product in the Chinese market is razors, and Philips' other products have not been launched in the Chinese market.

For example, Philips coffee machines sell very well in European and American countries, but Chinese people do not have the habit of drinking coffee, so Philips will naturally not sell coffee machines in China.

Compared with Philips audio equipment, the quality is also very good, and it is a very cost-effective product in European and American countries. However, for the Chinese in the 1990s, audio was still a luxury product, and most people would not buy it.

.

In Philips' view, although China has a large population, it is not a big market because the income of Chinese people is still too low and Chinese people cannot afford expensive products. In the Chinese market, only some cheap, low-profit products can be launched.

.

In comparison, people in European and American countries are much richer. They can afford Philips' high-end products, and Philips can also earn higher profits.

Selling 100 entry-level HQ30 shavers in China is not as profitable as selling a high-end speaker in Germany!

In this case, it is of course necessary to focus on Europe.

There are not many brands that have withdrawn from the Chinese market because of low profits. However, when they want to come back, it will be difficult to reach the sky.

Facing the Chinese market in the 1990s, brands from European and American countries were indeed not very down-to-earth.

European and American culture is inherently full of colonial and plundering factors, so European and American brands are better at dumping goods than cultivating the market.

In Chinese culture, more emphasis is placed on self-sufficiency and self-reliance.

On the one hand, they want to dump goods, and on the other hand, they want to be self-sufficient. Conflicts naturally arise.

It is also for this reason that many European and American brands have encountered problems in China. They will find that the strategies they used in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia will not work at all in China.

People in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia will happily buy expensive goods shipped from Europe and the United States, but the Chinese are thinking all day long about how I can make one for myself!

Most European and American companies came to China just to dump their products rather than take root in China, and eventually they all left the market in disgrace.

On the contrary, those companies that are willing to take root in China are willing to move their supply chains to China and are willing to launch corresponding products for the Chinese market. In the end, they all make a lot of money.

…

Li Weidong looked at the sales report of the razor and showed a surprised expression.

"This month's sales have increased by 40% compared to last month. Good job, Lao Zhong! Our current sales have reached half of Philips's!" Li Weidong praised.

"Director Li, our current sales have almost caught up with Philips! Because Philips' sales have dropped by nearly half, we have eaten them all!" Zhong Yemao said.

Li Weidong secretly thought that the marketing master is indeed a marketing master, and he has eaten up half of Philips' market in one move.

Zhong Yemao continued: "Philips has also tried to lower prices, but in a price war, they are no match for us! When they lower prices, we also lower them, so their price cuts have no effect at all.

However, our price reduction has also produced some sequelae. After all, the razor has just been launched and the price has been reduced immediately. Those customers who first bought the razor will definitely be a little dissatisfied."

Li Weidong nodded. No matter what product, the price is reduced as soon as you buy it. This is indeed very disappointing. Fortunately, this is a razor. If you are selling a house and dare to reduce the price, the sales office will definitely be smashed.

Zhong Yemao continued, "So I gave some compensation to those customers who had already bought razors. I originally planned to compensate them with a set of blades, but then I found out that the blades are quite expensive, so I changed it to compensate them twenty-five cents."

dry cell battery.

Our shaver can be used for 40 minutes with two dry batteries, and 20 batteries can be used for 400 minutes, which is almost enough for a year."

"We are still not as good as Philips in terms of motor power consumption. Philips' HQ30 shaver can be used for 60 minutes with two batteries." Li Weidong shook his head helplessly.

"Yes, Philips' technology is indeed much better than ours. They have rechargeable models that can also be washed. Although the washing function is not very useful, it is better to unplug the cutter head and shake it. The rechargeable function will

It's still very real." Zhong Yemao said.

"The use of rechargeable batteries for small and micro home appliances is the future trend, but our country is still lagging behind in this regard." Li Weidong thought for a while and then said; "In a few days, I will go to the south. There should be people in the Special Economic Zone who can

A company that produces rechargeable batteries.

In addition, you should also keep an eye on Philips. They are a world-class large enterprise with a profound foundation. They may come up with some new products that transcend the times and directly bring changes to the entire industry!"

…

The Philips shaver market is constantly being eroded by puppies, but Philips has not made the slightest move, allowing the puppy shavers to dominate the domestic shaver market step by step.

This surprised Li Weidong. He thought Philips would counterattack immediately, but in the end Philips just ignored him.

Li Weidong could not have guessed that Philips' business is so huge that they simply don't care about the Chinese razor market. Selling coffee machines and stereos in European and American countries is much better than selling razors in China!

However, for Puppy Electric, the shaver business has just started. If it wants to continue, a lot of follow-up research and development is needed.

What Li Weidong introduced from Braun was only the double-head razor technology. Although this could help Puppy Shaving seize some markets in a short period of time, it was not enough for Puppy to carry out subsequent expansion.

You still need to be strong when making iron. If you want to gain more markets, you must come up with better products.

The first thing Li Weidong needs to solve is the problem of rechargeable batteries.

So Li Weidong came to Shenzhen, the Special Economic Zone.

In 1995, a small business with only more than 20 people was just born here.

Ten years later, this company has grown into the world's top rechargeable battery manufacturer!

Today's update is delivered. Thank you for your subscription. Yesterday, I suddenly received a notification to get the second dose of the vaccine, so I didn't stay up late to code. I slept for fourteen hours. When I woke up, I had waist pain, back pain, and neck pain.

It took me a long time to get some relief from the massage, so I'm even late. I'm very sorry.