Chapter 262 Conspiracy
Gopal Dutt has been in a bad mood recently. Another safety accident occurred in the factory in Aurangabad, in front of the Japanese who came to inspect.
Videocon is in talks with Toshiba for deeper cooperation. The ambitious Dutt wants to introduce Toshiba's complete production line, including all processes such as cathode ray tubes, circuit boards, and assembly lines.
His company was founded eight or nine years ago and initially made electronic resonators, a component used in radios.
As the factory gradually expanded, it began to produce its own brand of radios.
That was the first time Dutt tasted the sweetness of profits from the terminal of consumer electronic products. His ambitions became bigger and he began to target the promising electrical appliance market.
He traveled to Japan to discuss technology imports and persuade them to invest in India, but Japanese manufacturers did not trust the Indian government and were skeptical about whether Indians could master the real technology.
At that time, India's policies were still continuing the guidelines of the Henunu era, mainly import substitution and state-owned capital.
Coca-Cola's experience has made most technology companies extremely cautious about the Indian market.
There was no other choice, so Dutt had to settle for the second best and produce Toshiba-branded TVs.
Most of the parts are imported, and Videocon has control over only unimportant parts such as the casing and knobs.
This deformed production method is bound to lead to Toshiba having great say in the entire market cycle.
The profit Videocon could earn from each television set it produced was pitifully small, only a few dozen rupees at the beginning. It only exceeded 300 rupees in the past two years after the localization ratio increased.
However, Dutt was still not satisfied. He wanted to control every aspect of the television production process in his own hands.
Dutt was very jealous of the publicity when Sur Electric and NEC signed the contract last year.
At that time, the media were saying that this was a complete set of technology introduction, and soon Sur Electric would have the ability to independently produce televisions.
As a supporting industrial park, the Sur Industrial Park is responsible for revitalizing Mumbai's industry.
Dutt is also jealous of those halos.
Inspired by Sur Electric, Dutt decided to go back to the path of introducing technology.
Now that the time is ripe, the Indian government has greatly relaxed the review conditions for introducing foreign investment.
Thanks to his hard work for Toshiba in recent years, Dutt is confident that Videocon can get the contract to introduce a complete production line.
He plans to achieve the goal of 100% localization of Videocon televisions next year, with an annual output of no less than 100,000 units.
Dutt was ambitious and invited Toshiba to visit the Aurangabad factory.
The result is just as mentioned above, it is a complete embarrassment.
The magical third brother always shows his imagination at critical moments.
A worker connected the power supply of a TV incorrectly during assembly. When testing it later, it exploded as soon as it was connected to the power supply.
The wooden casing of the TV set caught fire, and the panicked workers poured a basin of water on it to put out the fire.
Then the factory's circuits started crackling like firecrackers, and finally the transformer broke down in a puff of smoke.
Toshiba people witnessed the entire accident. While explaining that it was an accident, Dutt scolded the workers and finally fired all 60 employees on the entire production line on the spot.
Things are not going smoothly. The Toshiba people have not given Dutt a clear response since they returned.
There was more bad news. The emerging Sur Electric suddenly announced in the newspaper that its 14-inch black and white TVs had sold more than 50,000 units and that it would launch an 18-inch large-screen black and white TV in two months.
Damn, 50,000 units! When Dutt saw this news, his face turned as sour as a lemon.
His biggest ambition and plan is to increase the production of televisions to 100,000 units next year.
Now I look back and find that others have completed half of the work in less than two months. That’s nothing!
Videocon does have a wide range of TV models, including color TVs in several sizes.
But this is nothing compared to the huge sales of 200,000 or 300,000 units.
If the current rate of expansion continues, Soul will dominate the Indian television market within two years.
The most important thing is that the other party is actively expanding its product models, and these measures will further accelerate their pace of eroding the market.
But Dutt had no confidence in defeating the opponent, because Sur TV was doing too well.
The advertisement that made a sensation in the city two months ago is still fresh in people's minds. As a colleague, how could Dutt not pay attention to it?
Almost immediately, he asked the company to get a Sur TV.
The moment he opened the box, Dutt knew Videocon couldn't compete.
Whether in terms of workmanship, quality or price, their TVs are a complete failure.
It was for this reason that he accelerated his cooperation with Toshiba.
Dutt had already inquired and found out that the core components of Sur TV were also imported, not the full set of technology introduced as stated in the newspaper.
He was very curious about how the other party managed to get the price so low. Could it be that those cunning Japanese were being merciful?
Dutt is more inclined to believe that Sur Electric is engaging in a price war, using extremely low prices to grab market share first, and then slowly reap the benefits after its competitors have collapsed.
To put it bluntly, it means spending money to cultivate the market first. In the face of low prices, OEMs such as Onida and Videocon have no advantage.
Dutt didn't take it seriously at first, and even treated Sur Electric's troubles with a mocking attitude.
Without a full grasp of production costs, engaging in price wars is tantamount to seeking death.
If the prices of imported core components fluctuate slightly, Sur Electric may not be able to survive.
But the good news from Sur Electric shattered Dutt's fantasy.
This is not how you spend money. Fifty thousand units, how many rupees would it take to invest?
Dutt's determination to introduce Toshiba's full set of technology became stronger. Only by mastering all the core links could Videocon be qualified to participate in this competition.
However, there is a prerequisite, that is, Sur Electric Appliances cannot be allowed to continue expanding.
Videocon needs time to cooperate with Toshiba. In the most optimistic scenario, it will take until next year for the company to be able to produce its own core components.
Thinking of this, Dutt picked up the phone and dialed a number.
"How's it going, Chandani?"
"Dute?"
"Don't be surprised. Although Onida and Videocon are competitors, this does not hinder our friendship."
"Well, what do you want?" Chandani is Onida's boss.
"Did you see that report? I mean the Sur TV."
"yaar~" Chandani remained calm.
"This is a tough opponent and it comes with great momentum."
"What do you want to say?"
"I mean we can't just sit back and wait. No one can do 4,000 rupees. No one can do that in this market."
"What suggestions do you have?" Chandani was not actually in a hurry.
Because Onida has reached a cooperation agreement with Japan's JVC, they will also introduce the other party's complete production line.
Even the independent production that Dutt had always dreamed of, Chandani had already taken the lead in secret, and even the cargo ship from Japan to India had set sail.
In three months at most, Onida will have its own production line, by which time Chandani is confident that he can cut current production costs by more than 30%.
Onida can definitely afford to wait a few months, as its market share is already larger than Videocon's, and it occupies the high-end market.
Yes, Onida is about to introduce a color TV production line, and black and white TVs do not account for a large proportion of the company's profits.
Although Sur TV may seem like a formidable competitor, it actually has limited impact on Onida, which offers a wide range of products, including televisions, washing machines, and air conditioners.
Dutt was somewhat dissatisfied with Chandani's perfunctory attitude, but he still patiently persuaded him.
"Sol's products are too cheap and they are developing too fast. Sooner or later they will enter the high-end market."
"I know, so what do you want to say?"
"We can't let them go too easily. It's best if we meet and talk slowly."
"Okay." Chandani agreed.
"How about Sapphire? It's nice there, you'll like it."
"Oh," Chandani raised an eyebrow, "I've heard of that place."
"That's settled then. See you tonight." Dutt hung up the phone.
Mumbai is a hot city. No matter what class you are in, you cannot do without the company of joy.
Places like bars, dance halls, and nightclubs are always frequented by important figures.
People are used to concluding deals in a few words amidst the vibrant lights and revelry. The carnival-like, restless atmosphere helps to bring two parties closer together.
Sapphire has now become the most popular entertainment venue in South Mumbai. The quality of the dancers there is extremely high, and almost no Indian man can resist them.
But Sapphire doesn't act as a pimp, so whether the dancers are willing to accompany customers is entirely up to them.
Therefore, many important figures would resort to all kinds of flattering tactics just to win the favor of a dancer in order to get close to her.
It and the Palace are two extremes, one provides the ultimate service, and the other, on the contrary, makes the guests revolve around the girls.
Each has its own emotional value, it all depends on which one you like.
Dutt is already in his forties and has visited Mumbai's red-light district countless times.
The girls in Andhra Pradesh are gentle and lovely, the girls from Russia are unexpectedly considerate, and the call girls from the Gulf countries are also good.
And those short people, where are they from? Oh, right, Feihou.
The call girls in Feihou are the best and will agree to any request. Unlike in Saudi Arabia, it is extremely difficult to find a girl.
Black girls are also caring. You have to be very gentlemanly to be with them, at least for three or four months, and then they will be at your disposal.
There are eight million call girls in Mumbai, of all nationalities and skin colors.
Migrant workers, rickshaw drivers, young people who aspire to enter Bollywood, advertising models, and sailors from all over the world come to Mumbai in search of excitement and tenderness, and don't mind venting their desires in any hidden corner.
They work in train cars, stations, the backs of taxis, parks and even public toilets, with seaside reefs being the most popular location.
On Carter Avenue or Bay Boulevard, you can often see groups of men and women entwined, their backs against boulders, their faces facing the sea. The thousands of passers-by behind them can't interfere with their intimacy because no one can see their fronts, not to mention that the couples on either side are too busy caressing to pay attention.
The stranger they are, the more sexually arousing they are: Look, there's a woman hanging laundry on the balcony, she's just showered, her long, wet hair draped over her shoulders. Look, there's a group of female students outside a church school, they're wearing short skirts, revealing a bit of their calves.
"Mumbai is just a big bedroom," Dutt summed up this truth after experiencing countless romantic encounters.
However, decades of experience in tea tasting have made Dutt's taste very picky.
He was tired of the gentle and submissive call girls, and was instead extremely obsessed with those dancers with a bit of temper.
There is nothing to say about the girl from Sapphire. She is not only beautiful but also knowledgeable.
Many of them are foreigners, and it is prestigious to take them abroad.
Dutt has recently fallen in love with one of them and he couldn't wait to even choose the place where he would talk business.
As soon as the sun set, Dutt arrived early at Haines Road, which was full of well-dressed social elites.
You see, no matter which class you are from, there is a strong demand for desires.
He went in first and Chandani came in about half an hour later.
(End of this chapter)
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