Li Mu's attitude made Bill Ford Jr. uncomfortable.
On the one hand, Li Mu's attitude was a bit too trusting. He said from the very beginning that he just wanted to play with the three brands in his possession, and he also claimed that he was the only possible buyer;
On the other hand, it was this kind of negotiation where everyone was not on the same channel that prevented him from finding his own entry point.
If any car company wants to acquire these three brands, then everyone will follow the normal routine and take out all the information, assets, patents, and employee placement plans, and everyone will sort it out. Talk a little bit.
But Li Mu doesn't play this trick. He doesn't understand the current specific situation of these three brands at all, and he doesn't want to know. He just told Bill Ford Jr., I want this thing, five billion US dollars, one cent more. I won't give it to you. If you don't want to sell it, you can weigh it yourself, or look at other car companies to see who can afford it or who is willing to buy it.
Li Mu's approach is indeed very damaging. He does not put himself in an equal position with Bill Ford Jr., but puts Bill Ford Jr. in a position that is one level or even multiple levels lower than himself. Bill Ford A powerful sense of oppression, and a sense of helplessness that seems to have no choice.
The atmosphere at the negotiation table became awkward for a moment. After being silent for nearly two minutes, Bill Ford Jr. said, "Mr. Li, since it is a negotiation, I think we should approach it from a more professional perspective and with more specific details. Let’s expand a bit, as for the price issue, both of us can temporarily put aside our intended prices, and after discussing the details, we can negotiate the price again.”
Little Bill Ford felt that he had been led too far by Li Mu, and now it was time to bring Li Mu back to his own frequency.
It's like a battle between a lion and a shark. Bill Ford Jr. is the lion and Li Mu is the shark.
Little Bill Ford was dragged into the sea by Li Mu before. He could not use any of his skills and could only let the shark bite and devour him. However, if he reached land, the shark's strength would also be greatly affected.
It's like two people in different fields sitting together and chatting and debating. If the topic is in one of the fields that they are good at, the other person can't argue.
Li Mucai was too lazy to talk to him about cars. There was no point in talking about cars because he only had a partial understanding of the basic principles of the engine. He didn't know how the turbocharger increased the pressure, and he couldn't figure out how the gearbox changed speed. Understood, he only knew that there were multiple different gear ratios, but what kind of mechanical structure it was, he was also confused. The only transmission system that he knew all the principles of was the bicycle transmission.
Talking to him about these details by yourself would not only be meaningless, but would also make you passive.
So, Li Mu waved his hand and said: "Mr. Ford, with my current status and what I am doing now, I can no longer discuss more detailed matters. I have too many things to take into account, so I can only look at the macro view." If you want to talk about details, you can talk slowly with the colleagues in my team who are responsible for details after I leave."
Little Bill Ford felt another heart-piercing blow.
In Li Mu's eyes, a five-billion-dollar deal is just drizzle. Isn't it uncomfortable to talk to him about the details of drizzle
There was no other way. The guilty Bill Ford Jr. could only take a step back and said: "It's okay to talk about the macro. From a macro perspective, the world's auto market will definitely develop tremendously, especially the Chinese auto market. All of us in the same industry Everyone believes that Huaxia will become a huge market in the near future. From this perspective alone, the potential of these three brands in the future is also unlimited."
"Really?" Li Mu smiled slightly and said: "I have read some data reports on China's automobile industry before coming here. In the past six months or so, China's automobile industry has been relatively sluggish as a whole. The decline in sales is the key, and the sales of imported cars have declined even more. It’s amazing, your Jaguar Land Rover and Volvo’s combined annual sales may not be as much as the Honda Accord or Volkswagen Santana, right?”
Bill Ford Jr. looked a little confused and said, "We can't compare with Volkswagen or Honda. This is inevitable."
Li Mu nodded and said, "So you told me that the market will grow in the future, so these three brands will definitely have development potential. I think what you said is very irresponsible."
After saying that, Li Mu paused and then said: "The automobile industry has been developing since before World War II. However, the development of the industry does not mean that all companies in the industry can rise to heaven. Look at this How many car brands have failed over the years? Haven’t they enjoyed the benefits of industry growth? Of course not, industry growth comes evenly, but the key point is that your own conditions are too poor, even if the industry grows, you may not be able to survive .”
Bill Ford Jr. immediately argued with some disapproval: "Mr. Li, Jaguar Land Rover and Volvo, these three brands can be considered to have a long history. They have enough accumulation, and they have the same characteristics as the car brands you mentioned that have disappeared and closed down. It’s a world of difference.”
Li Mu smiled and said: "Let's put it this way, Jaguar Land Rover and Volvo, these three brands are not suitable for the Chinese market at all. If you can't even see this, then you really don't have enough understanding of the Chinese automobile market."
Bill Ford Jr. said unconvinced: "Mr. Li, we have been studying the Chinese market for many years, and it has been through very professional research and research. I believe that my understanding of the Chinese market is at least no worse than yours. "
Li Mu waved his hand and said, "Since you are so confident, I will tell you why."
After speaking, Li Mu stretched out a finger: "Let's talk about Jaguar first. It is positioned as a luxury car. The models are generally larger, heavier, more expensive, and have higher fuel consumption. There is no market for this kind of car in China itself, let alone Jaguar itself has little brand awareness in China, and let me tell you, half of the sales of luxury cars in China are owned by Audi. Audi's cars are mainly for official use, and the remaining 50% is for the general civilian market, but there is also Mercedes-Benz in it. What do you think of BMW or Jaguar? Who will buy it?"
Bill Ford Jr. looked embarrassed.
Over the years, Jaguar has indeed been ignored in China. When placed next to the Audi A6, its sales volume is not even a fraction of the A6.
Li Mu then stretched out two fingers and said: "Let's talk about Land Rover, my God, I don't even bother to evaluate this brand. The model is huge, heavy, expensive, has high fuel consumption, looks ugly and has an extremely high failure rate. The Chinese market itself There is no room for consumption of such luxury off-road vehicles, and the main models of off-road vehicles are Toyota and Mitsubishi, which are more stable, more practical, and cheaper. If Land Rover does not change its approach, let alone being unable to sell in China, it will gradually be sold everywhere. Can’t sell it.”
As he spoke, Li Mu said with a serious face: "Don't be unconvinced when I say this. The only country in the world that recognizes Land Rover is the United Kingdom, and only the United Kingdom. But how many Land Rovers can the United Kingdom sell in a year? But how many Land Rovers does this car have? Sales are booming in the UK, but why is it that a British company can’t continue to sell to you?”
Bill Ford Jr. was a little angry and wanted to refute, but he didn't know where to start.
What Li Mu said was actually nonsense.
Land Rover, a stupid car, will be wildly sought after by Chinese tycoons in a few years, so what he said are all lies.
However, Land Rover really cannot be sold at this stage, so from a results-oriented point of view, even Bill Ford Jr. is speechless if it is not good.
Li Mu continued to say mercilessly: "Also, you know that Land Rover is a car with a huge displacement. Such a large displacement is okay in the United States, because the gas price in the United States is cheap, and Americans also prefer large-displacement cars. , but the key point is that Americans don’t like Land Rover! They have Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC and Lincoln in the same class of cars. Why buy a Range Rover that is expensive, ugly and prone to failure? You yourself are a member of the American auto industry You local snake, you should know how many Land Rover units are sold in the United States a year, right?"
"Also, you should know what is going on in Europe. How environmentally conscious are Europeans? Even if they fart, they are afraid of adding burden to the earth. Anyone who drives a Land Rover will be looked down upon by many people in a day. In Europe In people's eyes, the Fiat 500 is the best car, it is economical, affordable and environmentally friendly. Therefore, I can be sure that Land Rover will become more and more pessimistic in the European market in the future, and someday, some non-governmental environmental protection organization may even jump out. Slogan: Give me back the blue sky, reject Land Rover, what will you do then? Where will you sell the Range Rover you built?"
"Sell to Asia? As I said just now, with the current consumption level of Chinese people, most people can't afford this kind of car, and they don't like this style of car. You should also know the situation in Japan and South Korea, right? Koreans basically I only buy Korean cars, and the same goes for Japan. However, rich people in Japan do like to buy imported cars, but they really don’t like Jaguar and Land Rover. They like German cars. Although it is a right-hand drive country, young people like to drive them. Left-hand drive Mercedes-Benz and BMW, how many Jaguar Land Rovers have you seen in Japan?”
"Southeast Asia? Oh my gosh, with the consumption level there, even Ford may not be able to sell well, right? Not to mention Jaguar Land Rover?"
"The Middle East? The weather and environment there are so harsh. Land Rover's after-sales service alone will be enough for you to drink."
Little Bill Ford looked at Li Mu dumbfounded, feeling extremely horrified.
It seems like what this guy said is really...
After being fooled by him like this, even Bill Ford Jr. felt that a car like Land Rover really had no future...
Li Mu then stretched out three fingers and said: "Come on, come on, I'll talk to you about Volvo again. When you talk about Volvo, you give me a thumbs up. When you talk about Volvo, you say safety. What is the selling point of safety? I won't comment. , but the best-selling models in the Chinese market should be the Volkswagen Santana or Jetta, but did you know that the best-selling models of these two models have no airbags, and the only safety devices are seat belts, so, do you think you Tell me there are four, six, eight or 800 airbags in a Volvo, does that make sense?”
(End of chapter)