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Chapter 2639 A Heroic Deed

On New Year's Day 2000, Beijing experienced a light snowfall.

The Shunyi factory area was filled with red banners and colorful flags, stretching from the factory gate all the way to the final assembly workshop, each banner bearing the same message...

"Celebration of the Millionth Automobile Rolling Off the Production Line in China".

A temporary stage was set up in the open space outside the final assembly workshop. The stage backdrop was a huge LED screen, which displayed real-time aggregated figures of China's global automobile sales data...

Domestic sales, overseas sales, sales of each model, sales of each region—the numbers jump up one by one.

The stage was lined with flower baskets, each tied with a red ribbon bearing the names of the organizations that sent the flowers…

There were suppliers, distributors, industry associations, and several banks also gave gifts.

The audience was packed.

The employee representatives of Tianchao Auto wore uniform work clothes, with the group's imperial seal logo on their chests being very eye-catching. They sat in squares according to their workshops and departments.

Distributor representatives came from all over the country. Some took trains for more than ten hours and arrived in Beijing a day in advance, staying in guesthouses near the factory. They came over early this morning.

Hundreds of supplier representatives attended, representing everything from engine parts to seat fabrics to headlight assemblies. Behind each component is a supporting company that has grown alongside China's automotive industry.

Media reporters set up their cameras and microphones, all pointing them at the stage.

Each person held a small flag with the logo of the Tianchao Group printed on it, which rustled loudly in the wind.

Suning walked up from the side of the stage, wearing a dark jacket with the collar open and no tie.

He walked to the center of the stage and stood there, holding a microphone in his hand.

The screen behind me was frozen on a number—1000000.

Six zeros, lined up in a row, stood out against the gray-white sky of the snowy day.

Looking at the sea of ​​people below the stage, Su Ning remained silent for a few seconds before speaking, "Three years ago today, Tianchao Auto held a mass production launch ceremony at its Shunyi factory. At that time, this place was still a construction site, the factory buildings had just been topped out, and the equipment was still being debugged. Many people had never even heard of Tianchao Auto."

"Back then, some people said that our Chinese automakers were committing loan fraud, some said that we were acquiring land, and some said that we would never be able to build a single car that could be driven on the road. Many of you here have heard these kinds of comments."

"Three years later, the cumulative sales of all Tianchao Auto models have exceeded one million vehicles. What does one million vehicles mean? It's not just a number representing excess inventory in the factory; it means one million customers have bought our cars, and one million families have parked Tianchao vehicles in their own backyards. In these three years, the Shunyi factory's production line has operated 24/7 in three shifts, and the Qingdao base has been transformed from a barren land into a commercial vehicle export base. The Pudong base is nearing completion and will soon have its production lines installed. Our cars are running on the rainforest roads of Southeast Asia, on the Gobi Desert of Africa, and on the winding mountain roads of South America. Every Tianchao vehicle on the road is our most powerful response. A response to those who once said we couldn't do it—Tianchao Auto, we can!"

"Clap clap clap..." The crowd below the stage clapped excitedly.

Su Ning paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping over each row of people below the stage. "But what I want to say today is that one million vehicles is not the end, but the beginning."

The audience erupted immediately.

The applause erupted like a muffled thunderclap, then rumbled throughout the entire factory area.

Cheers and horn blared together, and someone threw their hat into the air.

A young technician standing nearby saw his master crying and his own eyes reddened.

In the dealer contingent, a dealer from Guangdong stood up and applauded, and his colleague next to him also stood up, one after another, until the entire dealer contingent stood up.

……

The message traveled faster than ever before.

Xinhua News Agency issued a press release with a concise and powerful title: "China's cumulative automobile production and sales volume exceeds one million vehicles."

The People's Daily published a brief news item on its front page: "my country's private automobile enterprise, Tianchao Automobile, has achieved a cumulative production and sales volume of over one million vehicles, marking a historic breakthrough for my country's private automobile industry."

CCTV devoted nearly a minute to broadcasting this news during its evening news program, "Xinwen Lianbo."

The production line at the Shunyi factory is running at full capacity. Industrial robots are swinging their mechanical arms, and welding sparks are cascading down like a waterfall. The automatic spraying system in the painting workshop is spreading paint evenly on the car body. A Zhuque SUV slowly drives out from the end of the final assembly line, and the Zhuque relief logo on the front of the car is shining brightly under the lights.

The narrator's voice-over, delivered in a rare, warm tone, said: "From the start of mass production on New Year's Day in 1997 to today, Tianchao Auto has taken three years to achieve a leap from zero to one million vehicles. This is a 100% Chinese private car company that has written a Chinese name in the history of the world's automotive industry with its self-developed core technologies, self-built production bases, and self-expanded global sales network."

At the same time, Tianchao Group launched celebrations across the country.

Tianchao Auto's flagship stores in seven cities—Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Wuhan, and Qingdao—simultaneously held celebrations for 100 vehicles.

The store entrance was decorated with flowers and balloons, and a red archway was printed with the words "A Thank You for One Million Vehicles".

Each customer who enters the store will receive a commemorative gift package containing a gold commemorative badge, a free trial voucher for Tianchao Internet Cafe, and a commemorative catalog of all Tianchao car models.

Someone flipped to the last page of the catalog and saw a family photo of Tianchao Auto, from the prototype of the Qinglongyi to the latest Zhuque SUV. They exclaimed, "Three years, from one car to one million cars, that's fast."

Mingju Real Estate has hung celebratory banners at the entrances of all its residential communities across the country, with red backgrounds and white lettering that read "Warmly celebrate China's automobile production and sales exceeding one million vehicles."

The sales office prepared cakes and champagne, so that customers who came to see the property could cut a piece of cake and have a glass of champagne, regardless of whether they bought a house or not.

A client who came to view a property asked the salesperson while holding a champagne glass, "What is the relationship between Mingju Real Estate and Tianchao Auto?"

The salesperson smiled and said, "We are a wholly-owned subsidiary of the same group."

The customer paused for a moment, "You mean that Tianchao Group?"

The salesperson said, "Yes, it's Tianchao Group."

……

The stars of Huayu Film and Television all changed their QQ signatures to celebratory messages.

Shen Ranran specially invited several friends from the industry to the nearest Tianchao Internet Cafe and booked a "100-vehicle celebration room".

The private room was filled with Tianchao Internet Cafe's signature milk tea and snacks, and a promotional video for Tianchao Automobile was playing on the projection screen on the wall, with industrial robots swinging their mechanical arms in unison on the screen.

Shen Ranran held up a small flag from Tianchao Group and made a V-sign at the camera. The next day, the entertainment section used an entire page for this photo, with the headline: "Ranran endorses Tianchao Auto's millionth vehicle, netizens exclaim: This is the most dedicated group employee."

Tencent designed a special celebratory skin for QQ's login page.

When a user opens QQ, the background image of the login box changes to a red-themed scene celebrating the one millionth vehicle sold by China's automakers. A white Tiger SUV rushes from the left side of the screen to the right, with a line of golden words trailing behind it: "One Million Vehicles Sold by China - Thank You for Your Support".

Below is the QQ login box.

Alibaba displayed a banner on the Taobao homepage that read, "Warmly celebrate the cumulative sales of Chinese automobiles exceeding one million vehicles." Clicking on it leads to a dedicated section for Chinese automobile brands, featuring images and specifications of all models.

Tianchao Internet Cafe launched a celebration event simultaneously in all its directly operated and franchised stores nationwide—giving each customer who visited the store on that day one hour of free internet access.

When a user swipes their card to log in, the system automatically pops up a message: "Congratulations on receiving free time for the 100-vehicle celebration."

Many people were unaware of Tianchao Auto before, but they specifically searched for what Tianchao Auto was because of this free time offer.

After searching, I discussed it with my friends in a QQ group. "This Tianchao Group is amazing. They have everything: cars, real estate, internet cafes, software."

"This is just the tip of the iceberg of the Tianchao Group."

"Great!"

At the same time, Kunyu Shipping's third roll-on/roll-off ship was officially delivered at the Jiangnan Shipyard dock.

The four large characters "Tianchao Group" on the hull and the group's logo on the bow were polished to a shine by the shipyard workers, reflecting the sunlight.

The cargo manifest for the ship's maiden voyage was densely packed with export models—1,200 Suzaku SUVs, 800 Baihu off-road vehicles, 600 Qinglong sedans, 300 Baize buses, and 200 Chongming Bird trucks.

Departing from Tianjin Port, the destinations are more than a dozen ports in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and South America.

Meanwhile, at the Huangdao Port in Qingdao, Baize buses and Chongmingniao trucks produced at the commercial vehicle base were being loaded onto ships. Huge gantry cranes lifted one truck after another into the cargo hold, and the dock was piled high with export wooden crates bearing the logo of Tianchao Group.

After the celebration event, Suning also attended a celebratory banquet.

I spoke briefly with the heads of several core teams and thanked them for their contributions.

After the celebration banquet ended, Su Ning returned to his office alone.

Walk to the window and draw back the curtains.

A thin layer of snow had already accumulated on the roof of the Shunyi factory in the distance. The workshop was brightly lit, and through the windows, you could see the shadows of the production line still running. The mechanical arms of industrial robots drew blue and white arcs behind the glass.

Zhuangzhuang gently pushed open the door and came in, carrying a cup of freshly brewed hot tea. She placed the tea on Su Ning's table without making a sound to disturb her, then turned and left.

The snow outside the window fell lightly, covering the roof of the Shunyi factory.

His business empire was beginning to take shape, but it was far from enough.

The Pudong Super Factory is nearing completion, and the new stamping workshop, welding workshop, painting workshop, and final assembly workshop will soon be put into operation.

The second phase expansion plan for the Qingdao commercial vehicle base is still on his desk. He has already signed the approval section on the last page of the plan, and construction will begin next week.

Kunyu Shipping's fourth roll-on/roll-off ship has begun to have its keel laid on the slipway at Jiangnan Shipyard.

Yesterday, the shipyard sent us progress photos. The photos showed the huge keel structure being welded, with welding sparks flashing in the darkness.

One million vehicles is indeed just the beginning.

……

The sales growth curve of Galaxy Computers is quite magical; it would seem like a statistical error in any market research company's report.

It's too steep, so steep it's unreal.

It took less than a year to go from zero to monthly sales of 100,000 units.

It only took three months to go from monthly sales of 100,000 units to monthly sales of 200,000 units.

When market research firm personnel received the publicly released quarterly sales data from Tianchao Group, their first reaction was to call and verify whether there was a printing error.

This is not a statistical error, but a direct consequence of the rampant expansion of internet cafes across the country.

Every time Tianchao Group opens a Tianchao Internet Cafe, it means that dozens or even hundreds of Galaxy computers are placed on the desktop.

These computers are not samples displayed in shop windows for people to glance at from afar, nor are they high-end exhibits with "Do Not Touch" signs in shopping malls. Instead, they are used by every young person who enters an internet cafe as a productivity tool and an entertainment terminal.

Each computer is used by a dozen or even dozens of users every day, with almost no downtime from morning to night.

These users type on the Galaxy Computer keyboard in the internet cafe. What is the tactile feedback of the keyboard like? Is the typing crisp or dull? Do their fingers get tired after typing thousands of words a day?

They experienced these details clearly during several hours of continuous use.

They used a mouse from a galaxy-sized computer to open QQ. Whether the mouse movement was responsive, whether the key rebound was crisp, and whether their hand would get tired after holding it for a long time—these sensory experiences couldn't be obtained by watching ads.

They played Tencent games on the screen of the Galaxy Computer. The screen's color saturation, brightness comfort, and eye fatigue after staring at the screen for a long time—every parameter left a real impression on their body memory.

The longer they spend in the internet cafe, the more familiar they become with every detail of the computer. This familiarity is at the level of muscle memory, which cannot be faked or fooled.

When these young people have saved enough money to buy a computer for their families...

They would walk straight into the computer mall and wander around in front of rows of brand-name computers.

The counter displayed Lenovo, Founder, Dell, and HP laptops, each one gleaming with a configuration sheet and price tag next to it.

They looked at each keyboard one by one, occasionally sitting down to try out the keyboard feel, but in their minds they were always comparing it to another standard.

That was the Galaxy computer that I used for an entire summer at the Tianchao Internet Cafe in Zhongguancun.

In the end, nine times out of ten, they'll walk up to the Galaxy Computer counter, point to the computer case that's exactly the same as the one in the internet cafe, and say, "Take this one! I've used it, it works well."

Salespeople don't need to waste words, memorize configuration parameters, or explain after-sales policies to customers, because the internet cafes have already placed their advertisements in the minds of every user.

As a result, Galaxy computers saw a surge in sales in the home market after they were first introduced to internet cafes in China.

The initial growth was relatively moderate because there weren't many internet cafes at that time, and the user base was mainly concentrated in six first-tier cities.

However, as Tianchao Internet Cafe franchise stores have sprung up in third-tier and above cities across the country, the sales curve of home computers has begun to climb at an extremely rapid pace.

In every city where a new Tianchao Internet Cafe opens, Galaxy Computer's local retail shipments will experience a significant peak within the next one to two months.

When the marketing department compared the national sales map and the internet cafe store distribution map, the two maps almost completely overlapped.

Wherever internet cafes open, Galaxy Computers will be sold there.

International brands simply cannot withstand this kind of strategy in the low-end and mid-range markets.

At the time, Dell's main home models in China were almost half the price of the Galaxy series with the same configuration.

Dell's sales channels in the Chinese market have always been primarily online direct sales, and its offline service network is far less dense than that of domestic manufacturers.

Many users in second- and third-tier cities who bought Dell machines found themselves unable to find a nearby repair center when problems arose, and could only call customer service and wait for them to send an engineer from the provincial capital to their door.

Galaxy Computers, on the other hand, leverages the nationwide terminal network of China's automobile and internet cafe industries, making its after-sales service response speed far superior to Dell's.

HP was squeezed into a corner of the enterprise procurement market and almost lost its presence in the home market, barely maintaining its shipment volume with the help of a few long-term government and enterprise clients.

Compaq fared the worst. The distribution channels that it had spent several years building in the mid-range home appliance market in China were completely destroyed by Galaxy within a year.

Compaq's distributors found their stores becoming increasingly deserted, while the newly opened Tianchao Internet Cafe next door had long queues every day.

Some quick-thinking Compaq distributors simply withdrew their Compaq agency rights and instead applied for Tianchao Internet Cafe franchise qualifications, converting their original stores into internet cafes.

Only users who truly need high-end configurations will continue to choose flagship models from international brands.

However, these types of users account for a pitifully small percentage of the entire market and cannot support a brand's large-scale shipments.

As for Lenovo, the situation can only be described as dismal.

Galaxy PCs' product positioning almost completely overlaps with Lenovo's...

They are all domestic brands that focus on cost-effectiveness, target ordinary families and small and medium-sized enterprises, and rely on high sales volume to succeed.

The price ranges of the two brands' main models overlap significantly, and their configurations are also very similar. However, Galaxy's user acquisition cost is more than an order of magnitude lower than Lenovo's.

Lenovo spends a large amount of money on advertising every year in newspapers, television, outdoor billboards, and channel rebates to attract new customers.

The Milky Way hardly needs to spend this money, since internet cafes in China are essentially advertisements, and each internet cafe is a long-term, free experiential marketing terminal.

Mr. Liu has been working in the computer industry for many years, from acting as an agent for foreign brands to developing his own brand. He has fought many tough battles along the way and believes that he knows every corner of the domestic computer market like the back of his hand.

But Suning's playing style was beyond his experience.

Others sell computers by establishing distribution channels one store at a time, negotiating rebates with each distributor individually, and vying for booths in major computer malls across the country.

Suning, however, simply abandoned its focus on traditional channels and instead built a completely new consumption scenario:

Using internet cafes to sell computers allows users to pay for and experience the products themselves, and then willingly pay to buy them after experiencing them.

This is an absolute dimensional reduction attack.

Mr. Liu and his advisors were completely helpless in this matter.

This isn't a price war. You can lower prices, offer promotions, or give away printers with computer purchases, but you can't create a scenario that can keep millions of young people spending dozens of hours a week there.

This isn't a channel war, because you can subsidize distributors and offer higher rebates, but no matter how much you subsidize them, the gross profit margin of your distributors selling computers can't compare to the profitability of a commercial complex that integrates internet access, catering, leisure, and accommodation.

This is a generational gap in paradigms, not a difference in tactics.

Mr. Liu could only watch helplessly as the market share he had painstakingly built up over many years was swallowed up piece by piece by the Milky Way.

On Lenovo's monthly sales reports, every curve after the Galaxy PC was launched has been trending downwards.

Distributors have also begun to defect. Former core Lenovo dealers are now proactively contacting the Tianchao Internet Cafe headquarters to request franchise opportunities.

In fact, every dealer knows the math: they make an 8% profit margin on every Lenovo computer sold, and then they have to haggle with customers for ages.

Opening a Tianchao Internet Cafe not only earns money from internet access fees, but also from food and beverage fees, accommodation fees, and foot massage fees. Even a fool would know which one to choose.

...(End of this chapter)