Li Mu likes to deceive people, and because he has memories of more than ten years in later generations, he likes to deceive people with arguments that are completely contrary to the facts of later generations.
For example, he deceived Larry Page. Without cooperation with Makino Technology, Google would never rise and might even be killed. Larry Page believed it. He chose to believe Li Mu’s lies instead of believing that he could create something in the future. A business empire worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
For example, he lied to Apple, and if they left the profits of iPod and iTunes, the entire company would fall apart. He could kill them with only cheaper mango-me and YYtunes. They also chose to believe Li Mu's lies and did not believe that they could succeed in the future. Relying on an iPhone, it suddenly became a super giant with a market value of one trillion US dollars.
Now, Li Mu is fooling Bill Ford Jr., telling him: Your Jaguar has a highly overlapping positioning with Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, but you will never be able to sell Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi; your Land Rover is a bunch of Chinese, European and American people who don’t want to sell it. The garbage you like is ugly, has high fuel consumption, and is of poor quality, and may be boycotted by environmental organizations in the future; your Volvo hides all the valuable things inside the car, and what is the use of trying to install airbags in the car? Chinese consumers simply won’t pay for things they can’t see.
Being fooled by Li Mu in this way, little Bill Ford was completely shaken deep in his heart.
He suddenly felt that he had indeed failed. Li Mu could see the vitality gates of these three brands, but he could not.
Jaguar, damn, this thing can't be sold anywhere;
Land Rover is basically the same ball as Jaguar;
Volvo still has some market among some high-level intellectual groups in Europe and North America, but it is a niche after all.
Li Mu is right. The best models sold in China don't even have airbags. How can a brand like Volvo, which prides itself on safety, compete with such models without airbags
People can buy a Poussin for 100,000 yuan, but a Volvo can easily start at 20,000 to 30,000 yuan, which is on the same level as Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW. How to play
No wonder these three brands have been losing money. It turns out that the crux is here.
Comparing it like this, these brands in my hands are really worthless.
Once a person's belief is shaken, things will change qualitatively.
Little Bill Ford began to feel a little irritated. Jaguar, Land Rover, and Volvo suddenly became hot iron in his eyes, and it felt extremely burning in his hands.
It's not that he hasn't thought about adjusting the development strategies of these three brands according to the issues Li Mu mentioned, such as lowering the price of Jaguar and Land Rover products, and reducing the expensive costs hidden in Volvo's cars, but He no longer has the energy to restructure these three brands. For a car company, it is much easier to go bankrupt than to change its strategy.
Once you start to change your strategy, you will inevitably have to develop new products. This is a task that requires a lot of manpower, material and financial resources, and several years of hard work to complete. The most frightening thing is that the success rate of sharpening your sword for several years is not high. Many car companies launch a model with great ambitions, and it hits the market; then they regroup and come back, and they hit the market again; and they hit the market three times in a row, and they are almost close to bankruptcy.
It would be better to sell it in one go.
You can use the money to upgrade and improve Ford. After all, the Ford brand is the foundation for the entire Ford family to settle down.
However, Bill Ford Jr. was not willing to sell all three brands to Li Mu for US$5 billion. He still hoped to continue to obtain some benefits for himself, even if it was US$500 million, US$300 million, or even Only a measly $100 million.
Li Mu could see that Bill Ford Jr. was shaken deep in his heart.
Judging from the facts of the previous life, it is impossible for Ford to hold these three brands for too long, let alone have the ability to revive these three brands. These problems he mentioned are not nonsense. These problems are What actually exists at the moment and what I am really talking about is the future development of these three brands.
Among these three brands, although Jaguar has never been very popular, its overall sales volume is considered good due to its large number of models, wide coverage, and self-reduced price that puts it far behind Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi;
Land Rover has become synonymous with rich people. A lot of young men dream of owning one, and a lot of young women dream of riding in one, so it has been selling well for many years.
Volvo is even more interesting. Its positioning is actually very embarrassing. Its price is similar to that of Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, but its popularity and value retention rate are far behind. However, after it was acquired by Geely, it became the first well-known brand to be acquired by a Chinese company. As a car brand, its recognition in the country has skyrocketed. The strong national pride of media people gave Geely a great gift, so that Volvo suddenly became a well-known brand that everyone knew about.
If Ford bites the bullet and endures, maybe it can look forward to the spring of Jaguar Land Rover. However, it is impossible for Volvo, because Volvo's situation is quite unique. To achieve this, it must first nationalize Volvo and make it a Chinese The nation’s own brand.
Bill Ford Jr. hesitated for a moment and then said: "Mr. Li, as for the issues you just mentioned, I believe there must be some truth to them. However, the automobile industry is very complex, and it cannot be explained clearly in a few sentences. I think we should return the topic to acquisitions. You are willing to buy, I am willing to sell, and the rest is a matter of price."
Li Mu smiled slightly and said to Bill Ford Jr.: "Mr. Ford, regarding the price, I have just given you my final offer, so our remaining question is whether you are willing to accept this offer. If you accept, My team will communicate with you the details of the subsequent acquisition. If you don’t accept it, we can put this negotiation on hold for now and wait until next year, or the year after, or the year after that, and we can talk again when you have figured it out.”
As he spoke, Li Mu said with an indifferent expression: "As you know, I am actually quite busy in the future. Makino Technology is going to IPO soon, and my Taobao Technology, Taobao Logistics and Alipay also have to consider the subsequent capital operations, and I am very I want to launch these three brands into China, so I really don’t have time to invest in cars right now. My shareholders and core team know that I want to play with cars, but they all have some objections. If we can’t reach an agreement this time, then I can just do it. Concentrate on the business. When Taobao Technology IPOs one day, I won’t be so busy at work and can play what I want to play.”
Bill Ford Jr. has been bluffed by Li Mu. He feels that Li Mu is right. If he does not do business with a market value of hundreds of billions of dollars, he is actually just playing with things and losing his ambition. If he is Li Mu's shareholder or partner, he will not do it. I will definitely oppose him doing this.
Moreover, he did not doubt Li Mu's words at all. He felt that Li Mu really just wanted to play with cars, so he wanted to buy his own brand to realize his personal passion and dream for cars.
Since this is the case, if Li Mu really gives up or temporarily shels the acquisition plan, then he will feel uncomfortable.
Although the price of five billion US dollars is a trap, it is still a good opportunity to sell it. When the stock plummets, it is generally impossible to find a takeover. If you can sell it in time at this price, although it feels painful, it will be good for you. Also a good thing.
This is the same as if a leg is ulcerated and requires amputation. If you stop the loss in time, you still have a chance to recover slowly, but if you persist, you may be in an abyss.
Thinking of this, he deliberately said with a flattering look: "Mr. Li is joking. In fact, with your enthusiasm and insights into the automobile industry, I believe that you will achieve great achievements. It will never be as simple as playing around."
Li Mu laughed at himself: "I actually don't have confidence in myself. You guys who have been making cars for nearly a hundred years can't handle the business. To a large extent, I can't handle it either."
Little Bill Ford was afraid that Li Mu really wanted to give up, so he hurriedly said: "Mr. Li is being humble. With your abilities, I believe you must be much stronger than us."
Li Mu waved his hand and said: "Let me tell you the truth, I am ready to buy these three brands for five billion US dollars, spend another two to three billion US dollars on it, and finally sell them for less than five billion US dollars. , that is to say, if I buy these three brands from you now, I am already prepared for a net loss of about US$3 billion in three to five years."
Bill Ford Jr. smiled and said: "Mr. Li is really humble. I believe that if you are really prepared to lose money, as a shrewd businessman like Mr. Li, you will definitely not do this deal."
Li Mu smiled calmly and said: "For me, it doesn't matter if I lose a little money. Why do I make so much money? Isn't it just to spend it? Spending three billion US dollars on cars is a big deal for me. Entertainment, and I can totally afford it.”
As he spoke, Li Mu smiled and said: "How can I compare it to you? It's like you want to spend two million dollars to buy a customized version of Cadillac Army One. This car is very expensive, but will it maintain its value after buying it? It doesn't exist. It is estimated that after three years of driving, it will be good to buy it for US$400,000. But for you, it may be a very cost-effective thing to spend US$1.6 million to use Cadillac Army One. As for me, it is I am richer than you, so for me, spending three billion US dollars to build cars for three years is a very cost-effective thing."
Bill Ford Jr. is ashamed.
In this case, I am afraid that only Li Mu has the capital to speak out.
And three billion US dollars is indeed nothing to him.
He could only sigh: "To Mr. Li's financial resources, this little money is really nothing..."
Li Mu looked at the time and said: "Mr. Ford, my time is quite tight. I have to go to New York soon, so we will go here first. After I leave, my team will stay here. Stay for about three days. During these three days, you can slowly consider my offer."
Little Bill Ford didn't expect that Li Mu was about to leave suddenly. Before he could recover, he heard Li Mu say again: "But Mr. Ford, let me give you a little reminder. When my team left, I didn't take them with me." In the contract to acquire these three brands, in the next few years, you will witness with your own eyes the continuous losses and depreciation of these three brands. In a few years, when the purchasing power of currency has dropped by 20 to 30%, the price you get will not necessarily be better than what I am paying now. Your price is high, and it doesn’t matter if you’re stubborn, we can talk again in three years.”
(End of chapter)