Chapter 449: Which is Better?
At dusk, the lights in the CCTV headquarters building gradually lit up.
In the VIP lounge after the "Economic Person of the Year" awards ceremony, Song Ci was standing with his hands folded.
He bowed to a white-haired old man, his voice filled with unconcealed respect: "Teacher!"
Jiang Tao, who was standing beside him, was slightly startled, with a flash of surprise in his eyes: "Does Director Song know Dean Li?"
This old man is Li Yining, a famous economist and dean of Peking University Guanghua School of Management.
Song Ci nodded, and with a hint of nostalgia in his words, he introduced their relationship: "Teacher was my economics tutor in college."
"Song Ci, it's been a long time since we last met." Li Yining looked at the young, handsome and high-spirited business leader in front of him, his eyes full of emotion.
"Seeing you come this far step by step, we old guys are so happy for you."
He admired Song Ci's spirit and insights very much at that time, and had hoped that Song Ci would stay in school so that they could delve into academic research together.
Unexpectedly, after graduation, this student plunged into the Internet wave and created a world-class business giant with his own hands in just a few years.
Although I failed to retain this good seedling in the academic circle, I did confirm my vision from another dimension. Song Ci is indeed a piece of unpolished jade that can shine no matter where it is.
"I truly failed to live up to my teacher's high expectations back then." A trace of apology crossed Song Ci's face. "After all, I prefer the practical experience and adventure of the business world to pure academic research."
After a pause, he changed the subject, "Why are you here at CCTV today?"
Jiang Tao explained at the right moment: "The 'non-equilibrium theory' proposed by Mr. Li is of great significance in promoting the shareholding reform of state-owned enterprises and promoting the development of the private economy. It has also profoundly influenced the country's economic transformation.
This time, he came to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the annual economic ceremony."
Song Ci immediately bowed and congratulated him: "Congratulations, teacher! You have won this award, it is truly well-deserved."
"It's just the organization's recognition of the small contributions I've made in the economic field over the years."
Li Yining waved his hand, his tone indifferent. He was already eighty-three years old and had long since become indifferent to these empty fame and profit.
Song Ci asked a few more questions about the teacher's health with concern before turning and walking towards the lounge next door.
Those sitting in the room were all candidates for this award and award presenters, all of them were well-known business tycoons.
As soon as Song Ci stepped in, she saw Lei Jun sitting next to Dong Mingzhu, the chairman of Gree Group, and said excitedly: "Sister Dong, in five years, Xiaomi's revenue scale will definitely surpass Gree."
Dong Mingzhu, a business woman known for her pragmatism and strength, glanced at Lei Jun and thought that his words were a bit far-fetched, so she did not respond, with a look of disapproval on her face.
Several bosses on the side watched the "confrontation" between the two with great interest, with lively smiles on their faces.
Wanda Group CEO Wang Jianlin inadvertently saw Song Ci walk in from the corner of his eye and quickly stood up to greet him, "Mr. Song is here."
Upon hearing this, everyone did not dare to be negligent and stood up to greet him.
Although everyone here is older than Song Ci, he is the richest man in Asia and a person who can directly hear the ears of the emperor. He can be called the leader of the current business world. This weight is enough for everyone to treat him seriously.
"Mr. Song!" "Mr. Song!"
Seeing this, Song Ci quickly stepped forward and shook hands with Wang Jianlin first: "Mr. Wang!"
Wang Jianlin smiled and introduced: "Mr. Song, let me introduce you:
They are Ms. Dong Mingzhu, Chairman of Gree Group, Mr. Lin Zuoming, Chairman of China Aviation Industry Group, and Mr. Lu Yimin, General Manager of China Unicom. Xiaomi CEO Lei and you are old friends.”
"Mr. Dong, Mr. Lin." Song Ci shook hands with Dong Mingzhu and Lin Zuoming. It was the first time these two met, and their expressions were polite and solemn.
He then looked at Unicom CEO Lu Yimin and said jokingly, "Mr. Lu is beaming today. It looks like he'll definitely be able to take home a gold cup."
Lu Yimin laughed out loud, his spirits high: "Thank you, Mr. Song, for your kind words! It's only been a few days since we last met, and Mr. Song looks handsome again. It really is true that when good things happen, people are in high spirits."
A few days ago, Tenda Technology Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement with China Unicom to open a call fee payment channel on WeChat. The two parties can be considered "acquaintances" who have just dealt with each other.
After joking with each other for a few words, Song Ci shook hands with Lei Jun again.
The two have been friends for many years and just met last night. Everything is self-explanatory.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, everyone sat down again. Song Ci asked with a smile, "Just now, I seemed to see President Lei and President Dong debating something. Are they getting excited?"
Lu Yimin explained, "Just now, Mr. Lei and Mr. Dong were arguing about which business model was superior, Xiaomi or Gree."
Wang Jianlin interjected, "We were just waiting to hear your insights when Mr. Song arrived. You're a leading figure in the internet industry, so it's a good opportunity for you to offer your comments and insights."
Song Ci smiled faintly, "No rush. Discussing this now would be a bit less interesting. Xiaomi and Gree's business models will definitely be mentioned on stage later. It's not too late to talk about it then."
According to the new rules after the reform of the "Annual Economic Figure" selection, Lei Jun and Dong Mingzhu have both been selected.
The two companies happen to represent completely different business paths. When receiving the awards, the host will most likely ask which one is better.
"Yes, it's not too late to debate on stage later." "Mr. Song is absolutely right."
Everyone was chatting and laughing when Song Ci suddenly remembered something. He turned slightly and whispered to Wang Jianlin, "Boss Wang, I have something to discuss with you."
"Mr. Song, please speak."
"Mr. Wang, I'm looking to buy some shops in Wanda Plaza. I need shops on the first floor of a shopping mall, preferably in a mid-range or higher location, with an area of 60 to 80 square meters."
"Buy a shop?" Wang Jianlin was stunned, puzzled. If Song Ci was saying that he was looking for investment, he didn't believe it.
The large-scale purchase of shops on the first floor of a shopping mall is obviously due to some kind of business plan, but Tengda Group is an Internet company. Why would it buy shops?
"Mr. Wang, can you give it up?" Song Ci's move is actually paving the way for Dewen to manufacture and sell new energy vehicles in the future.
Shopping malls are one of the most crowded places in the city, especially the first floor of high-end shopping malls like Wanda, which have a huge average daily customer flow.
Displaying and selling new energy vehicles here can naturally provide high-quality "advertising space" for the brand.
When consumers are shopping in the mall, they can look at cars and test drive them on the way without having to go to a 4S store specifically. It is quick and worry-free.
Furthermore, the first floor of a shopping mall is usually a gathering place for luxury, technology or fashion brands. After Dewen New Energy Vehicles moves in, it can use this high-end area to convey its high-end and technological brand tone.
"Mr. Song, you're too kind." Wang Jianlin responded politely, "It's just a few shops. I'll give Mr. Song a discount later."
The plan was successfully accomplished, and Song Ci's smile grew wider: "Thank you, Mr. Wang."
After a few more small talk, the "Economic Person of the Year" award ceremony was approaching and everyone headed for the studio.
In the venue hall, crystal chandeliers cast warm golden beams of light onto the red carpet, and the atmosphere was extremely warm.
At this moment, eight of the top ten "Economic Figures of the Year" have been announced.
The host, Chen Weihong, stood at the center of the stage and announced in a clear voice, "Please welcome the final group of award presenters: Mr. Wang Jianlin, Chairman of Wanda Group, and Mr. Song Ci, Chairman of Tenda Technology Group."
Song Ci performed calmly and with ease, appearing on stage with Wang Jianlin.
After a brief interaction guided by the host, the two drew the list of winners from an envelope and read aloud: "The winners of 'Economic Figure of the Year' are Lei Jun and Dong Mingzhu. Congratulations to both of you."
The two walked towards the stage with smiles on their faces and high spirits, and the electronic screen in the venue played the reasons for their awards in a timely manner.
Lei Jun: Chairman and CEO of Xiaomi Corporation, pioneered an innovative model for Internet hardware and increased Xiaomi mobile phone monthly sales from 10,000 to 3 million units.
Dong Mingzhu: Chairman of Gree Group, led Gree to become a global leader in air-conditioning technology.
After the award ceremony, Song Ci and Wang Jianlin stepped aside slightly, giving the spotlight to the two winners.
Lei Jun wore a dark grey suit and bright red bow tie, his face beaming with joy. Dong Mingzhu wore a crimson suit, looking radiant and cheerful.
The host, Chen Weihong, smiled and asked, "Mr. Song, Mr. Wang, if you were to use one word to describe Ms. Dong Mingzhu's business model, which one would you choose?"
After several rounds of humility, Wang Jianlin spoke first: "Entity."
"Entity and industry." Chen Weihong nodded in agreement and turned to look at Song Ci. "Then how would you describe Mr. Xing Leijun's model?"
Song Ci is unhurried: “Asset-light”.
Wang Jianlin, who was standing by, felt suddenly enlightened when he heard this and firmly remembered the three words "light assets" in his heart.
As if to add to the excitement, Chen Weihong continued, “The differences between Xiaomi and Gree are actually quite stark: in terms of the number of factories, Xiaomi has 0 and Gree has 9;
Xiaomi has 0 employees, while Gree has over 70,000. They also have 0 stores, while Gree has over 30,000. Their total operating revenue is 30 billion yuan, while Gree's is 100 billion yuan.
This comparison left everyone stunned: Xiaomi is a "three-no" company with no factories, no stores, and even very few employees.
Relying on the Internet model pioneered by Lei Jun, the company achieved one-third of the revenue of old-fashioned home appliance companies like Gree in a short period of time, which is truly astonishing.
The host raised his lips slightly and looked at Song Ci: "Mr. Song, Mr. Lei has achieved a revenue of 30 billion from zero. In my opinion, this is like an innovation of "virtual plus virtual".
As the head of a world-class Internet company, do you agree with this statement?
"Don't jump to conclusions if you don't understand." Song Ci's face was calm and his tone was indifferent.
He had already noticed the subtle difference between the host's addressing of "Dong Zong" and "Lei Jun", and thought to himself: Ten years from now, let's see if you still dare to speak to Lei Jun in this way.
As soon as these words were spoken, the host paused for a moment, and a trace of unnaturalness flashed across his face.
Song Ci held the microphone and spoke eloquently: "The Xiaomi model focuses on the light-asset ecosystem of the Internet. Although it has no factories or channels, it relies on the world's top supply chain and e-commerce direct sales model.
By significantly reducing intermediary costs, we were able to expand rapidly and achieve explosive revenue growth. Furthermore, Xiaomi doesn't rely solely on virtual operations; its technical team and R&D achievements are obvious to all."
The host seized the opportunity and quickly asked, "So, you are more optimistic about the Xiaomi model?"
Song Ci didn't respond, but changed the subject: "Gree's model is a model of technology-driven heavy asset manufacturing.
Gree controls the entire industry chain and, leveraging its technological advantages, has taken a leading position globally in high-end markets such as central air conditioning. Coupled with its extensive channel layout, its profitability and brand trust are both excellent."
"Mr. Song hit the nail on the head!" Dong Mingzhu couldn't help but admire.
She originally thought that Song Ci, as an Internet giant, would favor Lei Jun, but she didn't expect that the other party could so accurately extract Gree's core advantages.
The host didn't dare to challenge Song Ci, and instead directed the topic to Lei Jun: "Lei Jun, do you have confidence?
Years later, all the previous projects will still be 000, but the revenue from the last one will double.”
Lei Jun calmly replied, "I think it's entirely possible. As Mr. Song said, the core advantage of the Xiaomi model lies in its explosive revenue growth."
The host pressed on: "Where does this confidence come from?"
Facing hidden doubts and challenges, Lei Jun remained undaunted and responded positively, "Xiaomi doesn't have its own factories, but it can integrate top global manufacturing resources.
Although there are no physical channels and retail stores, direct sales through e-commerce can save channel, store and sales costs and achieve higher operating efficiency.
We focus on product development and user communication. By the way, Xiaomi is not a "virtual existence". We have 2,500 employees dedicated to user services and a 1,400-person R&D team dedicated to technology.
"Mr. Lei has just elaborated in detail on his confidence in his own model..." The host was about to interrupt but was interrupted by Dong Mingzhu.
"How many people here use Xiaomi phones?" Dong Mingzhu glanced at the audience, attempting to dispel the Xiaomi myth with facts. "Two? Three? Any more?"
Three sparse fingers were raised alone at the table.
Lei Jun smiled and countered: "This just shows that our market space is huge, and there are still 99% of users waiting for us to serve."
Song Ci secretly admired: He is worthy of being called "Leibs", he cleverly turned the situation around with just one sentence, and the offensive and defensive momentum changed instantly.
Dong Mingzhu snorted softly: "Who is the real boss in the mobile phone industry?"
The host quickly responded, "Your subtext is that Xiaomi certainly can't be called the industry leader?"
"At least not now." Dong Mingzhu said firmly, taking a half step forward, "Let me ask you, Mr. Lei, if all the factories in the world were shut down, where would your cell phone come from?
Without physical manufacturing, the Internet model is nothing but a castle in the air! So when we talk about our achievements, we must not forget the supporters behind them. "
Lei Jun responded passionately: "I think Mr. Dong's view is slightly biased. As I just said, Xiaomi is able to integrate the world's best factories and supply chain resources."
"What if the factory refuses to produce for you?" Dong Mingzhu asked.
"Then I'll look for other factories," Lei Jun said calmly. "Xiaomi's current partners are Foxconn and Inventec..."
"I mean, what will you do if all the factories refuse to work for you?" Dong Mingzhu pressed on.
Lei Jun continued to explain: "Commercial manufacturing has developed to this day, emphasizing specialization and division of labor..."
Song Ci shook his head and sighed softly. Dong Mingzhu became anxious!
Business competition isn't child's play. Even without Foxconn, there's Inventec. Without Inventec, there's Asus. As long as there's market demand, there will always be contract manufacturers willing to cooperate.
(End of this chapter)
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