2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 293 Strategic Cooperation
Tan Jincheng prefers to travel by high-speed rail, but unfortunately, he doesn't have one yet.

Before the cross-sea bridge was built, the journey to Suzhou was much longer, taking several hours by car, and driving was quite physically demanding.

“Boss, why don’t we buy a minivan?” Li Yaohui chatted with Tan Jincheng on the way.

Are you referring to an MPV like the GL8?

"Yes, that's right. With more people traveling in the future, I think those minivans are more comfortable."

“You’re right. Zeng, please write this down and make arrangements when you get back. Also, please investigate the vehicle usage situation of each branch company and hire drivers if needed. In addition, organize the existing drivers into a driver team for easier unified management. Brother Li, please take on the task of appointing the team leader for this driver team.”

“Okay, I understand,” Zeng Jixiang replied.

It was Zeng Jixiang's first business trip with his boss. He was sitting next to Tan Jincheng and was a little nervous, unlike Zhao Xinyi in the front row, who was already used to lowering her chair.

"Uh, am I capable of this, boss?" Li Yaohui was taken aback. He just wanted to get a big-displacement car to drive, and he never thought he would become a team leader.

"Why not? Just think of it as if you were in the army. If you need more people, you can ask your retired or soon-to-be retired comrades who are having trouble finding jobs. That way, you'll all be more familiar with each other."

In addition, if any of your family members want to work at Flashpoint Technology, we can give you priority in hiring, if conditions permit. You can talk to Xiao Zhao and Xiao Zeng about this directly.

There's nothing to worry about; as long as you're doing your job well, there's nothing to be embarrassed about.

Lai Yiu-fai glanced somewhat embarrassedly at Zhao Xin-yi in the passenger seat. He had mentioned to Zhao Xin-yi once before that his wife wanted to work here, but it seemed she couldn't find a good job. He didn't expect Zhao Xin-yi to remember it and even tell the boss.

Lai Yiu-fai was somewhat touched; the boss was quite humane.

"thank you boss."

"No need to thank me. The company needs a lot of employees during its development. In the second half of the year, our new factory will be put into production, and we will need a large number of grassroots employees. As long as you are willing to come and meet the requirements, the company can accept you."

Tan Jincheng can't achieve the same level of success as everyone else, but he can still help those around him who have drivers, assistants, or close staff if needed.

Every company has some relatively easy jobs that don't involve efficiency, and these are the positions used to accommodate these personnel.

It's not just the relatives of those around them; companies like Flash Technology, with their comprehensive welfare systems, also attract the attention of relevant personnel, such as those from neighborhood committees, since everyone has a few poor relatives.

In an era when job opportunities were scarce, working in a factory was a good option. Under normal circumstances, Tan Jincheng wouldn't refuse such a situation without thinking. He would arrange suitable jobs based on the circumstances, which wouldn't affect his work efficiency.

Those who could be assigned to the factory were generally honest people, but Tan Jincheng did not allow these people to get involved in core positions.

Of course, those with ability and connections will be treated differently. Tan Jincheng is not a rigid person. What's wrong with using connections to help the company's development?
Tan Jincheng and his group chatted and laughed on the way, while Bafang Electric was a little nervous. The company's largest customer had come to visit and was already interested in developing their own technology, which would have a significant impact on the company's future.

It's not a matter of life or death, but once we lose a major client, Bafang Electric's three years of hard work will be for naught. We'll have to deal with all sorts of small factories again, trying to collect debts at the end of the year, and we might not even get them. We'll be back to the small factory operating model.

Wang Qinghua was eager to retain FlashTech as a major client. In his analysis, this company, which was virtually unknown just a year ago, had transformed itself significantly thanks to its status as an Olympic sponsor and its comprehensive product line.

With careful management, barring unforeseen circumstances, this company is bound to become a top-tier brand, sharing the leading market share with established electric vehicle manufacturers such as Xinri, Yadi, and Luyuan.

To some extent, Wang Qinghua is more optimistic about Flashpoint than Green Source. Green Source's boss is admirable, but he doesn't put all his mind on the company. Otherwise, with Green Source's solid foundation, it would never have been surpassed by ChipSun.

The young and ambitious Tan Jincheng of Flash Motion spoke at the press conference, showing his boundless enthusiasm. At the same time, he also demonstrated a wealth of skills, knowing how to grasp the market and employing superb marketing techniques at such a young age.

In addition, Tan Jincheng is very clear-headed in business management. While doing a good job in marketing, he also pays great attention to improving his self-developed capabilities. His company's self-developed capabilities for exterior parts can be said to be among the best in the industry.

Especially in terms of aesthetic design, it is really several steps ahead of its peers. The self-developed battery has been launched, and the self-developed motor and controller will also be carried out.

From a business perspective, if Wang Qinghua and Tan Jincheng were in each other's shoes, Wang Qinghua would also be committed to developing core components such as motors and controllers in-house. Holding core technologies in one's own hands is the foundation of a company's development.

However, when it came to his own interests, Wang Qinghua was quite conflicted.

The promise that FlashTech would abandon its self-developed technology and entrust the orders to Bafang, with the assurance that they would not hold it hostage, is clearly not enough to reassure FlashTech, even if it is made through a signed contract.

Bafang Electric has no ambition to manufacture complete vehicles. While retaining Flash Technology as a major customer, it also hopes to have more customers. Therefore, Wang Qinghua himself may not believe such a promise at critical moments.

Therefore, the only thing Bafang Electric can do to avoid losing orders is to sign a strategic cooperation agreement with FlashTech. The foundation of this strategic cooperation is bringing FlashTech into the fold as a shareholder!

After figuring this out, Wang Qinghua probably understood why Tan Jincheng came to Suzhou for a visit. While it was feasible for FlashTech to develop its own motors and controllers and build a factory, it would take time.

It takes at least a year, and most often two or three years, to have a mature product ready for mass production. Judging from the way Tan Jincheng and Flash Technology work, they clearly don't want to waste that time.

"So, Mr. Wang intends to reach a strategic cooperation agreement with Flashpoint Technology?"

In the conference room, Tan Jincheng smiled and said to Wang Qinghua, "Being able to guess why I came, instead of blindly asking me to temporarily abandon my self-developed project, shows that this middle-aged man is a smart person."

Chatting with smart people is quite easy.

“Yes, I think President Tan must have intended it this way, otherwise I’d guess he’d be choosing a location for the motor factory right now.” Wang Qinghua smiled as he looked at the excessively young President Tan in front of him.

Tan Jincheng nodded and said, "That's right. Technology is important, but it can be improved. Time, however, waits for no one. We at FlashTech have always focused on high efficiency. Time waits for no one, so we must make full use of our advantage."

"Technological breakthroughs can be achieved, but time waits for no one." Wang Qinghua pondered Tan Jincheng's words.

After a long while, Wang Qinghua finally came to his senses and said, "President Tan is right. Today's technology may be thrown into the trash tomorrow."

"Since Mr. Wang agrees, then I won't hide it anymore; that's right, I came here this time to seek strategic cooperation opportunities with Mr. Wang. During the time we cooperated with Bafang Electric, we have been very satisfied with your motors and controllers, and your technical research and development capabilities are also quite good."

"Thank you for your recognition, Mr. Tan. We at Bafang Electric are very honored to have FlashTech as a customer, and we hope to achieve a deeper level of cooperation with FlashTech."

"Before we discuss formal cooperation, I'd like to tell Mr. Wang a story. I wonder if he'd be willing to hear it?" Tan Jincheng said with a smile.

Wang Qinghua was somewhat surprised. They were almost getting to the point, so why did this President Tan still want to tell a story? What kind of story could a 20-year-old have to tell?
However, Wang Qinghua still patiently replied, "Please speak, Mr. Tan."

"I have a good friend named Zhang Xupeng. We grew up together. From kindergarten until I was 19, we were apart for less than half an hour during the day, except when we went home to sleep at night.

The year we graduated from high school, we went to Shanghai for a trip. We heard that a luxury cruise ship was docked at the port, so out of curiosity, we went aboard to take a look.

Wang Qinghua chimed in, "I have a vague recollection. It should have been the first luxury cruise ship to dock in China, around 2003, when I was preparing for the establishment of Bafang Electric."

"Yes, that was the year. We went up there under the guise of working, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, we couldn't get back down. Otherwise, I would be a junior at a university in Anhui Province right now, facing the troubles of graduating and finding a job."

"It's all about timing and fate. Who would have thought that an accident would lead to the success of President Tan today?" Wang Qinghua couldn't help but sigh as he heard about this for the first time.

"I wouldn't call it an achievement. If I could turn back time, I would rather not have gotten on that ship. But the fact can't be changed, and we can only look forward. More than a year later, we got off the ship and came back. We settled in Beicang, and then we decided to do business in Beicang."

"Later, we started a trading company together. After making some money, I chose to go it alone and founded FlashTech. Mr. Wang probably already knows what happened next, so I won't go into details."

Wang Qinghua never expected that Tan Jincheng's entrepreneurial journey involved these events, and the timeline unexpectedly coincided remarkably with the timeline of his own founding of Bafang Electric.

He couldn't help but smile wryly. Both of them were starting businesses, but the young Tan Jincheng had spent more than a year at sea and came back to be doing better than him.

"And then?" Wang Qinghua asked after a wry smile.

Clearly, when Tan Jincheng talks about his past, he can't simply be talking about the past.

"Then, after we separated, I transferred my position as the major shareholder of the trading company to my good friend. He did a good job. However, with the restructuring of our company this time, he took this opportunity to stand with me again."

"What does 'standing together' mean?"

"He transferred 21% of his shares to FlashTech, reducing his own shareholding to 49%, in exchange for 3% of the shares in the restructured FlashTech parent company. In his words, brothers united can break gold."

Another saying is, "It's good to have a big tree to lean on for shade."

Wang Qinghua understood that Tan Jincheng meant that strategic cooperation was possible, but FlashTech needed to acquire control of Bafang Electric.

What an assertive young man!
(End of this chapter)