The Industrial Giant Reborn

"Guo Taiming? Never heard of it." Chen Tianfu thought for a while and said. In the past two years, he has invested a lot in Wanwan. He already has several commercial plazas and office buildings. He also knows some local celebrities in Wanwan. , although it is impossible to involve business in all industries, if you count the well-known people in Wanwan, you should still know it. After all, Wanwan is only a small place, with a population only several times that of Hong Kong. In Hong Kong, it is slightly Unless a businessman of some scale is very low-key, even celebrities in Hong Kong will know about it.

"Normally, he's not that big yet. I've also heard discussions from some people in the United States in the industry. This guy is very powerful. He's currently negotiating OEM matters with established companies such as Apple, IBM, and HP. He's said to be very eloquent. It is very profitable and very capable in actual management. There is a high probability that we can get these orders. In addition, we have also taken the initiative to contact Midea." Chen Zhiwen nodded and said.

Guo Taiming is basically known to many people in the mainland in later generations. Hon Hai Precision controls the employment of millions of people in China. When Apple mobile phones and iPads just took off, I don’t know how many provinces wanted Foxconn to go to their territory. Investment, although Foxconn can only get a small profit in the Apple system, the assembly industry will drive an incredible number of jobs, leaving a lot of jobs and wealth.

No one who could rise up in the original history was a vegetarian. Even if history changes, such people will still succeed with a high probability, because the wind outlet definitely does not fall on someone randomly, but is chosen by those who have the ability and ability. Those who prepared were caught, and Guo Taiming was one of them.

In fact, in Wanwan, many businessmen in the electronics industry are currently developing into the full-scale OEM industry. In essence, this is also a very good industry, and currently in Southeast Asia, Wanwan is the most suitable place. To develop this field, Wanwan's labor is not very expensive, and it also has related supporting facilities and many professional talents. Global industrial transfer and those that can attract foreign investment on a large scale all have their own unique advantages.

Whether it is South Korea, the former Hong Kong, the Gulf, or the mainland in the future, success is not due to luck. Otherwise, Mexico is closer to the United States, and with the North American Free Trade Agreement, it is also closer to Europe's shipping distance, and at the same time attracts foreign investment. It’s even earlier than the mainland’s reform, but in the 21st century, it still wants to become the world’s factory after the “mainland”?

In the same way, India is the same. It had close relations with the West in the 1950s, had a good location, and had a large population, but decades later it was still the same.

Therefore, investing in these places that can accommodate global industries, whether investing in potential companies or real estate, will not result in losses in the long run. However, there will be fluctuations, especially in developed countries, where the scissor gap will be the worst. It’s like cutting leeks, so if you use leveraged investment, it is possible to fail.

"Okay, since you said so, I will go to Wanwan to check, and I will also consider those potential OEM electronics merchants." Chen Tianfu nodded and said.

"Then I will let Midea cooperate with you, and our order will be quite attractive." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.

"Okay, then I will look for some suitable investments before I retire, otherwise it will be too boring to always collect rent from real estate." Chen Tianfu laughed.

"Don't worry, this income will definitely not be worse than real estate." Chen Zhiwen said, of course he can also invest by himself, but since his old man is interested and wants to find some suitable funds to invest, it doesn't matter if he gives it to him. It's from the Chen family.

Time flies, and soon it is early August. Everything in Hong Kong is as expected. The real estate market is heating up at a faster pace. Many real estate projects have seen various competitions, queues, chaos, etc. There are even people over there in Hung Hom. Death from a heart attack due to a quarrel was originally considered an accident, but it was widely publicized by the media and regarded as one of the landmark events of the rise of the real estate market.

At Disneyland, negotiations between Land and Disney and the Hong Kong government have also made very smooth progress. At present, there are only some issues related to price, taxation, and employment. It is estimated that the formal signing will be soon, and it will only take half a year. , it is still very fast, much stronger than Europe in history, but this is normal. First of all, the investment scale in Europe is very large, and Disney has many choices. Countries such as France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom are all vying for this project, allowing Disney to Instead, don’t rush and wait for the best conditions. What’s more, Asians, especially the three East Asian countries, are much more efficient in doing things. Japan’s projects were quickly settled on the project, and the same was true for Hong Kong in history.

The progress of another large-scale project of Land Group is naturally several five-star hotel projects in China, especially in Shanghai, which can also be wholly owned. Today, Land Group has cooperated with Yanjing and Tianjin. Eight cities including Guangdong, Jinling City, Ningbo, and Hangzhou have signed cooperation intention agreements for 12 hotels. These 12 hotels require joint ventures with the mainland. In addition, 3 hotels have been signed in Shanghai. , two are in Puxi and one is in PT District. These three are wholly owned. Because of this, the scale of investment is very large. Each hotel covers a large area, and there will be several buildings plus internal parks, etc. The total investment The scale even exceeds the 12 in other cities.

There is also one in Shenhai City. You can actually build it at will. However, before Chen Zhiwen, there were already several hotels, including 2 belonging to his old man. If more are built, it may lead to serious oversupply. , although by the 1990s, the scale of Shenhai City had exceeded this, but since Shenhai City was not very happy, let it go. As compensation, Shenhai City gave Land a few commercial sites and allowed the construction of office buildings. Land was naturally a dream. , Chen Zhiwen also acquiesced to Land's expansion in Shenhai City.

Before 1985, although my capital was not small, there were many places that needed to be used. Therefore, there was no need to rush to invest in real estate on a large scale in Shenhai City. Moreover, before 1985, the total GDP of Shenhai City was less than one billion. , there is no point in investing on your own, and now that Shenhai City has entered the period of its fastest development, it is naturally better to invest appropriately in real estate. Unlike other cities, Shenhai City has very low restrictions on foreign investment.

Hutchison Whampoa is focusing on the No. 5 Container Terminal in Kwai Chung and the Shanghai-Hangzhou-Ningbo Expressway in the mainland. Others are just following the normal business rhythm and doing their own business well.

Midea and Red Bull also developed at their own normal pace. Especially for Red Bull, Chen Zhiwen basically didn’t interfere much because in this field, he had his own idea on the matter of making "functional drinks". Other things are promoted by the entire team and the company themselves. What Chen Zhiwen can still interfere with in the future may be the blank market in the mainland. As for Midea, the most important thing at the moment is the launch of "The King of Fighters".

Today, Midea has become the largest game developer in the world, with a large number of high-quality design, animation, and software development technical talents. Under the direct instruction of Chen Zhiwen, a large number of resources were used to start "The King of Fighters", and finally after less than a month In the past year, the first version of the game model has been produced, and will be sent to the United States for the first batch of tests.

And because Chen Zhiwen also had some official business to go to the United States, so this time, it was Chen Zhiwen's plane, carrying a total of 100 arcade machines to Los Angeles, the United States.

Of course, Chen Zhiwen doesn't need to worry about new arcade games. This is no longer five years ago. Although Midea's main business is still games, it no longer relies on one game. Even if it becomes a hit, it will not become the only pillar. , this is also a method for any normal group to avoid risks. After integrating multi-game strategy, game hardware strategy, computer games and third-party platforms, a huge game empire has been formed, and any game is just an army under the empire. There are strong and weak, but it is definitely not said that all the fate is on it. In the same way, Midea itself is also using the profits and resources obtained from games to develop other electronic industries. Even if it is only in the electronic industry, it must also be in the electronic industry. diversified development in this industry.

After getting off the plane, Chen Zhiwen came to one of the most famous Hilton hotels in downtown Los Angeles. In the presidential suite, Chen Zhiwen met an old friend he had not seen for a long time.

"Tea or coffee?" Chen Zhiwen asked, looking at Jobs who looked decadent and unenergetic in front of him.

"Thank you, no need. Just some mineral water." Jobs shook his head slightly and said.

"Well." Chen Zhiwen then handed over a bottle of mineral water owned by Coca-Cola and said, "Jobs, what are you going to do next?"

It was mid-1985, and as historically speaking, Jobs was finally kicked out of Apple's board of directors.

Although history has undergone major changes, with the addition of Chen Zhiwen, Apple did not lack funds or even early customers in the early days, and it developed very rapidly, but the subsequent history is basically the same as before, at least in the general direction. .

The reason is very simple. In the early days, it developed rapidly due to various reasons, but the company's upper limit has not changed. In the 1980s, no matter how hard it was, Apple's market value was probably at its peak of US$3 billion, and it was impossible to go up. First, because the 1980s were just a few years after the development of personal computers, the market ceiling was limited, and the ceiling was there, and no one could break through. Second, it was the strength of competitors, such as IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and Texas Instruments. They have a strong technical background. They want to make computers. No matter what happens in the future and whether they can do it or not, in the short term they are still very strong. This creates strong pressure on Apple. Even Midea's computers are facing these strong competitors. Even if you have funds, you can't beat them. After all, companies like IBM will never be short of funds.

Third, it’s Steve Jobs himself. He was very capable and talented in marketing and user needs. His later smartphones were the pinnacle, but he is still a bit too young now, and his personality also changes after he becomes successful. Being arrogant and extreme, he was obsessed with building the best computer, but he ended up in a dead end. The things he built were indeed good, but the cost was too high and did not meet market demand.

Because he is the founder of Apple and an entrepreneurial hero in the United States, even if there are strong opinions within Apple, it is difficult to oppose him. It was not until the losses caused were too great that he was finally kicked out. Apple also suffered from internal friction and lost a large number of markets, and it has never been in business ever since. Hit rock bottom.

After being kicked out of the company he founded, Jobs also fell into a downturn. It happened that Chen Zhiwen came to the United States, so he made an appointment with him. Now Jobs is not a senior executive of a well-known American computer company, and he has no competitive relationship with him. Now, it doesn’t matter if we meet each other.

"I want to create another company, and I want to completely defeat Apple." Jobs said after taking a sip of water.

"The idea is good, but it is difficult. Although Apple is not as prosperous as it was in previous years, it is still among the top five in the United States, and its reputation is high enough. If you want to start from scratch, it will be more difficult than when you started Apple. It’s hundreds of times more difficult, not to mention that there are still many other giant companies on the market, such as IBM, HP, and Midea, but they are no match for us,” said Chen Zhiwen.

The outlet is very important. Just like online shopping, communication, even group buying, taxi-hailing, etc. in the mainland Internet market in later generations, it is easy to take off at the right time. However, after a few years after others take off, this market basically cannot accommodate newcomers. There is absolutely no chance, but the difficulty is increased a thousand times. When so many companies are focusing on the computer market, it is difficult for newcomers to have a chance, even the former Steve Jobs, unless they have revolutionary ideas. Creativity.

"That's right, but Eric, you missed one company." Jobs said: "I think the company with the most potential in the future is Weisoft. Although their software system ideas, I think they are copied from Apple, but they must not Not to mention, after IBM accepted their system, they began to license other major brands. As far as I know, the same is true for Midea. I also met Bill Gates a few days ago, and his idea shocked me. I have to say that I focused too much on the hardware and neglected the software.”

"The future of Weiruan is indeed unlimited, and I have invested in them." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. At present, Weiruan has not been listed on the market, and outsiders do not know about his investment.

"Have you invested in Weisoft?" Jobs was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said: "Yes, in the computer industry, your achievements are higher in software, and office software is basically the world of Midea. It seems that you also I have long stopped being optimistic about hardware, but software.”

"No, hardware requires too much technical knowledge. It is very difficult to do well, especially when facing competitors like IBM. Others can do it, and it may end up being the same as televisions. "Chen Zhiwen said: "But software is protected by patents, and it is difficult to get around it like hardware. Once it succeeds, it is basically a success."

"Yeah, I wish I had understood this earlier." Jobs nodded and said, "So next, the computer company I want to open will also pay attention to software. This is the only way to succeed." (End of this chapter) )