2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 222 First Public Appearance (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

February 12th, the Lantern Festival, is a Sunday.

A week has passed since we officially returned to work after the Spring Festival, and this is also the first full weekend of 2006.

After the work schedule adjustment, office workers finally have a chance to relax.

The beautiful coastal city of Beihai in Guangxi Province, with its gentle breezes, warm sunshine, and average temperatures ranging from 13 to 19 degrees Celsius, is at its most comfortable in February.

Nine o'clock in the morning, downtown.

Fans, media, and onlookers surrounded Mr. Li Qiangzhong, a well-known domestic driver, and his assistant, along with a young man, as they walked onto the center of the stage.

The backdrop of the stage featured the large words "Flash V Electric Vehicle 2006 Environmental Quality Coastal Journey," along with photos of the two brand ambassadors and Mr. Li Qiangzhong, the person in charge of the event.

Although 2005 has ended, both Chun Ge and Liu Yifei remain very popular. Even in this city located in the northeast of the Beibu Gulf, there are still many people who recognize these two.

Since the stage was set up, passersby have stopped to watch from time to time, speculating about what the event was about.

"Dear car enthusiasts, media friends, and audience members, first of all, I wish you all a happy Lantern Festival!" The host, dressed in a cheongsam, took to the stage and began her passionate commentary.

"The 2006 Coastal Environmental Protection Journey organized by Flash Technology officially kicked off today in Beihai. As the host and a citizen of Beihai, I feel very honored."

At this moment, some onlookers in the audience recognized the host.

"Hey, isn't that the pretty female host from the city TV station? What's this event she's talking about?"

"I don't know. Judging from the promotional poster, it should be an event related to electric bicycles. I know about Shanchi, which is endorsed by Li Yuchun. I didn't expect that Fengchi, which is endorsed by Liu Yifei, is from the same company."

"The car that Brother Chun endorses is pretty cool and cheap. A store like that opened in the city a while ago. The base model is only 1999 yuan, and it even comes with a helmet and raincoat."

"Not really. I tried it, but it's not as fun as those no-name brands. The no-name brands have more horsepower, and the high-end versions are more expensive. The Fengchi is even more expensive."

"But their quality is guaranteed, and they give away a lot of freebies. No-name brands don't give you anything, and the battery is unusable after three months of riding, and it costs several hundred dollars to replace it."

"That's true. Those no-name brands are just bad. They're really rip-offs, and they're not cheap at all."

"Stop talking for now, let's hear what the host has to say."

"Shanchi Technology is a high-tech electric vehicle company located in Beicang District of Ningbo City. It was established in May 2005 and has two major brands, Shanchi and Fengchi, which have hired well-known domestic actresses as spokespeople."

"Since its launch in August 2005, the company's products have been well received by consumers. Currently, sales have exceeded 8 units, and there are more than 5000 stores nationwide. The products are in short supply."

Sales figures are real, but it's best not to exaggerate them too much. As for stores, feel free to boast. No idiot will actually investigate how many stores you have. Xinfei has only made 1 electric vehicles, yet they claim to have 100 stores. What's there to be afraid of?

"In order to better showcase our products to consumers and to give them a more comprehensive understanding of electric vehicles, FlashTech is organizing this long-distance road trip. Mr. Li Qiangzhong and his assistant will start from Beihai and travel through 11 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, covering 6300 kilometers to demonstrate the advantages and disadvantages of electric vehicles."

"This event starts today and will last for two months, challenging the Flash and Windspeed series electric vehicles to perform under various road conditions, from west to south and from south to north."

"This event will not have any support vehicles or teams throughout. Multiple media outlets will provide simultaneous coverage, and we will also provide real-time coverage on online media such as blogs, QQ Spaces, and Tianya Forums. We welcome everyone's attention and supervision."

After the host's explanation, the audience finally understood what this long journey was all about.

"Isn't this just cycling tour? Cycling tour? What if the battery runs out halfway through?"

"Then it should have a spare battery, right? I've heard of this rider, he's quite famous. He rode 6300 kilometers, that's really 10,000 kilometers, wow, that's really awesome."

"This company must have paid them to come. It's awesome to get paid for a cycling tour. I want to join too."

"No support team the whole way? You must be kidding me. How could there be no support team? What if this guy rode into a ditch? Or crashed and the electric bike broke down? It would need to be repaired, right?"

"Didn't they say there were reporters covering the whole thing? And they were also tracking it online in real time?"

"Just take that with a grain of salt. The reporters must have been paid, and the online reports are probably done by their own people. But traveling by electric bike is pretty cool. This must be the first time in the country, right?" "Probably. I've only ever heard of people riding bicycles, motorcycles, or cars before. I've never heard of anyone riding an electric bike."

"Who is that young man next to me? I didn't quite catch the host's introduction. What does he do?"

"I didn't pay much attention, but I think he's the chairman of Flashpoint Technology? Damn, the chairman is so young?"

"Hey, have you noticed? That young man is quite handsome, kind of like a celebrity, but I can't remember his name." This was a question a young female onlooker asked her companion.

"Just listen and you'll know. The reporter is interviewing that young man, and he is indeed quite handsome, just like you said."

Reporter: "Mr. Tan, as far as I know, this is the first time in China that a riding event has been organized by an electric vehicle manufacturer. What was your company's original intention in going to such lengths to organize this event?"

Tan Jincheng took the microphone from the host, clapped it twice, and smiled as he replied, "Every industry has its first time, and the electric vehicle industry is no exception. As you know, this is the first large-scale riding event organized by a manufacturer in the electric vehicle industry. But I don't know if you know that our Flash Technology is also the first electric vehicle company in China to hire a celebrity as its spokesperson."

"Our company, FlashTech, is a newly established enterprise. I myself am a post-80s generation, or rather, a post-85s generation. Being young means all kinds of possibilities. So, in terms of business strategy, I hope to bring something different to the industry, hence this event."

"As for the original intention of the event, it is of course to promote our company and products. In addition, we also want to take this opportunity to meet more friends from other industries, such as our Mr. Li, our beautiful host, various reporters, and the audience members present."

"We hope to take this opportunity to showcase the strengths and weaknesses of our products. We hope you can help us promote our strengths, and as for the weaknesses, you can provide feedback to our team so that we can correct them in a timely manner."

"Of course, it would be even better if they could give us feedback privately and discreetly. It's understandable that young people care about their image, isn't it?"

The crowd below burst into laughter, finding the young chairman quite interesting and his direct manner of speaking quite different from that of many other entrepreneurs.

"This young man is quite interesting. He told reporters that he had done this before, so it's not surprising that this is his first time doing it again."

"Haha, if it's good, please help me spread the word; if it's bad, just tell me secretly."

"Born in the mid-80s? Then his oldest age is only 21? Is he really that amazing at 21? He sold 50,000 cars in just over half a year. How much money did he make?"

"Wow, even if you only make 200 yuan per electric scooter, that's still ten million yuan, right? Making ten million yuan in half a year, that's amazing. He's already so rich at 21."

Following that, the reporter asked Tan Jincheng a few more personal questions. These days, reporters still have some professional ethics. Although they wouldn't make things too difficult for Tan Jincheng after receiving a bribe, they still dared to ask some questions they wanted to ask.

This was Tan Jincheng's first public appearance and his first close encounter with industry media. The media were very interested in this founder who was unusually young and handsome.

Sales of 50,000 vehicles in just over six months are nothing compared to the millions of vehicles sold annually by giants like Yadi, Xinri, and Aima in later years.

However, if we go back to 2005, the situation is different. In 2005, the industry leader only sold more than 20 vehicles. 5 vehicles sold in half a year is definitely a remarkable achievement. As an industry media reporter, I am very clear about the significance of this number.

If the figures of 5 vehicles and 5000 stores nationwide selling its brand of electric vehicles are true, it means that both consumers and retailers have accepted the Flash brand.

Coupled with Flashpoint's consistently impressive marketing strategies, this means that the Flashpoint and Windspeed brands have already established themselves in the market.

Creating a brand is not as simple as registering a trademark with the trademark office. The most difficult part is getting distributors and consumers to accept the brand. FlashTech has achieved this in just six months, which is remarkable.

As the head of a company, Tan Jincheng received a great deal of attention from the industry media present. However, Tan Jincheng was not keen on showing off. After answering a few questions simply, he handed the microphone to Li Qiangzhong.

He was the main character of this event. Just like Ferrari and others use F1 to test vehicle performance, a professional driver's opinions on vehicle performance are very helpful.

Li Qiangzhong was originally a professional motorcycle rider. The vehicle he used for this ride had not undergone any major modifications by FlashTech, so he was able to provide a lot of advice on the vehicle's characteristics after the event.

In this situation, there's no need to steal the spotlight; the most important thing is for him to feel the goodwill of the organizers.

After nearly an hour of activities, the launch ceremony officially ended. The staff of FlashTech took care of arranging for the reporters, while Tan Jincheng took Li Qiangzhong to the hotel. After lunch, Li Qiangzhong officially set off.

Accompanying Li Qiangzhong were some media reporters and a filming team assembled by Flashpoint Technology.

Following the approach of later Bilibili content creators, the filming team recorded the cycling scenery along the way and uploaded it to the internet, promoting the brand while also adding some fun, otherwise the whole promotion process would be too boring.

(End of this chapter)