Xishan Electric Vehicle Industrial Park.
Opposite the Yadi factory is Xinri's Su Province industrial base, and it's worth mentioning that next to it is Taileng, a well-known enterprise of the future.
Besides these few that Tan Jincheng was familiar with, looking around, dense factory buildings displayed various electric vehicle brands; some left a slight impression, while others Tan Jincheng had never heard of at all.
Whether it was Yadi, which had already been visited, or the Xinri industrial base they were about to enter, the area was very large.
Xinri's strength is truly impressive; the headquarters industrial base is enormous, so much so that not only Shanchi but even Yadi can't compare.
There are over a dozen different workshops, and even a dedicated cargo area with many large trucks parked at its entrance.
This must be their own logistics fleet.
Shanchi doesn't have its own logistics fleet; it merely signed a freight agreement with a large logistics company in Beicang.
On one hand, they don't have their own premises, and on the other, Tan Jincheng temporarily doesn't want to invest that money.
Using the money for expansion and R&D is Shanchi's best choice at present.
During the visit, Tan Jincheng could feel the gap between Shanchi and these industry veterans, but there was one thing Tan Jincheng had to complain about: the factory area's planning was truly poor.
Taking Xinri as an example, its biggest characteristic was the almost complete lack of parking spaces.
The demarcation of the scooter parking areas was also very casual, scattered here and there, making the factory area appear somewhat messy.
"How about it, President Tan? Pretty grand, isn't it?"
Zhang Congxun said proudly.
He had almost lost his hair because of this kid these past few days.
Now that he had come knocking, he could finally show off a bit and then get him drunk tonight to vent his frustration.
Hmph, hmph, everyone who knew him in the industry knew this kid couldn't hold his liquor.
"It is indeed grand. I wish I had a factory like this."
Damn, a rich second-generation starting a business is just different.
It would be a lie to say I'm not envious.
Old Zhang, who graduated from junior high in the early 90s, had a father who dared to give him hundreds of thousands to start a business; what a solid family background he must have had.
No wonder he could immediately approach Zhongke Sanhuan to produce batteries—they were the most formidable battery manufacturer back then—and even arrange for the factory to be in the Imperial Capital.
Doing business in the North wasn't as easy as in the southern coastal regions, not even in the Imperial Capital.
However, it's undeniable that Zhang Congxun's capability is indeed strong.
To build an electric vehicle manufacturing enterprise into the largest in the country, mere financial support isn't enough; extraordinary ability is truly essential.
What's more, Zhang Congxun only has a junior high school education.
Rough management was fine during the early, small-scale startup phase, but with Xinri's current size, he needs to learn a lot just in terms of employee management.
Without strong learning ability, it simply won't work.
In terms of demeanor, Zhang Congxun's is stronger, possibly related to his upbringing.
Zhang Congxun appears a bit more aristocratic, while Dong Jinggui might have had a tough life since childhood and later served in the military, making him tougher overall.
Comparing the visits, Dong Jinggui walked Tan Jincheng from one workshop to another, even if the distance was long.
Zhang Congxun, however, wouldn't do that; he simply arranged for a four-wheeled vehicle within the factory, making it much easier.
This isn't to say Dong Jinggui is stingy or anything; it's determined by their working styles or their upbringing.
"At your age, shouldn't you be wanting luxury cars and beautiful women? Why would you want a factory? That's a bit odd."
Immediately after, Zhang Congxun teased,
"Speaking of which, I saw you in the entertainment section these past two days; haha, someone who sells electric vehicles actually made it onto entertainment news."
Tan Jincheng also gave a wry smile.
These entertainment reporters were truly bastards; they took money but didn't do their job properly.
Still, Shanchi Technology was mentioned many times in the article, which counted as a small public appearance.
Zhang Congxun still wasn't satisfied.
He looked Tan Jincheng up and down and continued,
"Up close, you do look quite handsome, and your skin is good. 'The Hottest Electric Vehicle Boss' is a fitting title."
"Oh, come on, what kind of terrible title is that? President Zhang, please stop teasing me."
Tan Jincheng finally broke down.
This title was really cringey.
Tan Jincheng felt a sense of shame when he saw the headline.
"Fairy Sister VS Hottest Chairman Working On-Site!"
It was clearly meant to stir up trouble, but because Liu Yifei's side had given a heads-up and Shanchi Technology had also made arrangements, it wasn't so direct.
"Hmph hmph, speaking of spokespersons, we also need to find one as soon as possible. These days, not having a spokesperson really won't do; we're almost being beaten by you two companies."
The young man had cracked, and Zhang Congxun's mood improved considerably, his words becoming much more unrestrained.
In fact, he wasn't afraid of competitors finding out and snatching the deal.
Due to his urging, the negotiations with Brother Long's management team, which had been ongoing for a long time, sped up considerably after an increased offer.
Now, both parties were close to officially signing.
At this point, he didn't believe Brother Long's team would disregard their reputation to sign with another company.
Furthermore, other companies might not have the conditions to compete with them.
According to the preliminary agreement, Brother Long's endorsement fee was 12 million yuan per year.
Another condition was that Brother Long wanted to protect his reputation: for every electric vehicle sold under his endorsement, two yuan would be donated to a charity foundation in his name!
Could Brother Long pay this money?
Of course not.
Last year, Xinri's sales were over 100,000 units, but this year's target sales are over 400,000 units!
Given the current development speed of the electric vehicle market, with a high growth rate maintained within the two-year contract period (three calendar years), it must surely reach 1.5 million units, right?
This is already a relatively low estimate.
After the electric vehicle industry entered its boom period, sales expectations are unpredictable.
Even Shanchi, which only sold 38,000 units last year, announced a target of 200,000 units this year, which shows the trend.
In addition to the excessively high endorsement fee, this was also the main point of disagreement before, because sales simply couldn't be accurately and fully estimated, making precise cost predictions impossible.
If it sells explosively, the expenses would be enormous.
A mere prediction of 1.5 million units would incur an additional 3 million yuan in costs, meaning the endorsement fee would start at 13.5 million yuan.
This is definitely an exorbitant price.
It can only be said that it's truly expensive, and the halo around the celebrity has also completely fallen off.
Thinking about it, Xiao Tan is still more cost-effective, less than 3 million a year, while the other spokesperson only cost 500,000 a year, yet both have immense popularity and strong fan purchasing power.
"Who did you invite? Can you say? Don't worry, I won't leak it to the market before you announce it."
Although Tan Jincheng knew, he still asked tentatively.
"The signing is one step away. What if I tell you and you snatch it?"
Zhang Congxun said deliberately.
"I signed one spokesperson for 10 years, and another spokesperson's contract still has over a year left. Why would I snatch someone else? Am I burning money?"
"That's not necessarily true. Your Guanneng series still doesn't have a spokesperson, you never know."
"Then tell me, is it a male or female? If it's a female, don't tell me, I might actually snatch her. I prefer signing female celebrities."
"Hahaha, that's true, all your spokespersons are female, although the first one doesn't seem like it. But I've invited a male, and he's super awesome. I guess even if you wanted to snatch him, you wouldn't be willing to spend so much money.
But I still won't tell you. You'll find out in a few days; I guarantee you'll be surprised. Then, Brother, I'll give you a few of his autographs."
"Oh, a male? Then I'm not interested. I still prefer female celebrities closer to my age. But you're right, Guanneng doesn't have a spokesperson yet, I need to find one."
Zhang Congxun pretended to ponder,
"Female celebrities around your age, huh? I only know a few from 'Princess Pearl,' but they seem a bit older than you. How about I ask our marketing department for you?"
"Forget it, forget it. Those people are too prone to causing trouble. Actually, you see how popular the ones from Taiwan are, but their endorsement effects feel pretty mediocre. Just look at the Yadi ones; they're hot for a while when they release songs, but when they don't, they're nothing."
With that, the two exchanged glances and then burst into laughter.
Nothing made people happier than seeing a common competitor face a setback.
However, Tan Jincheng's words weren't groundless.
The endorsement effects of celebrities from Taiwan were indeed not very good, especially after entering the new century.
Moreover, these people, especially female celebrities, often love to stir up trouble and can easily get into hot water.
Except for Chairman Zhou and the one from Wahaha, which goes to show that political correctness is crucially important.
If you want to make money, you have to follow the rules.
The day's visit concluded with lunch at the Xinri cafeteria.
Lunch yesterday was also at the Yadi cafeteria.
The food was the same as what the employees ate, with no difference other than a slightly larger variety of dishes.
What Tan Jincheng didn't know was that this was specially arranged by Dong Jinggui and Zhang Congxun to observe how this spirited young nouveau riche would behave when faced with such ordinary meals.
Early entrepreneurs liked to use this method to observe juniors around them or those they wished to befriend.
This was nothing much, and besides, Tan Jincheng wasn't particularly concerned about food.
Even if he knew their intentions, he didn't care.
And in the evening, Dong Jinggui and Zhang Congxun, as hosts, entertained the chairman of Shanchi Technology.
Among the guests were also some local officials and other entrepreneurs.
The scale of the dinner showed great respect for Tan Jincheng.
As expected, Tan Jincheng drank too much.
Fortunately, he didn't come alone this time.
Besides his assistant, Tan Jincheng also had a tall and imposing driver with him, so there was no need to worry about anything going wrong.
The next day, Tan Jincheng woke up at noon and called Dong Jinggui and Zhang Congxun separately, stating that he was returning to Yongcheng and inviting both of them to attend the opening ceremony when the Shanchi industrial base goes into operation at the end of the year.
Of course, they were welcome at any other time too.
Yesterday, he extracted some information from Zhang Congxun.
Barring any surprises, Brother Long's signing should be officially announced before the Olympic Games design plan is released.
He also needed to make some preparations on his end.
(End of Chapter)