"We are currently relocating Nanjing Automobile's production base. Almost two-thirds of the work has been completed. We expect to complete the relocation by February. In the new production base in Kunshan, it will take three to four months to complete the transformation of the production lines for the assembly of complete vehicles for the two brands of Jaguar and Land Rover, and then we can start production."
Li Lu, CEO of Tianhe Capital, told Barron's about the production preparations of Nanjing British Automobile, a joint venture between Nanjing Automobile and British Motor Group. According to this estimate, it will take until the second half of this year to officially launch the Jaguar and Land Rover brand models manufactured in China.
Originally, Nanjing Automobile Group's production base was located on Central Road in Jinling. However, after being acquired by Tianhe Capital, it began to relocate and moved its production base to Kunshan.
The land originally located in Jinling was developed commercially by a local real estate company acquired by Tianhe Capital.
The company, renamed Tianhe Real Estate, plans to build a commercial center and surrounding high-end residential areas on the land of Nanjing Automobile Group's former production base located in the main urban area of Jinling.
In addition to the production base that Nanjing Automobile Group will relocate to Kunshan, they will also build a larger automobile production base within five years, depending on the production and sales situation. This will be a project with an investment of more than 10 billion Chinese yuan.
As for the models produced by Nanjing Yingqi in China, in addition to the current main models of Jaguar and Land Rover (the main parts are imported, and more than 60% of the production is exported to overseas markets), the two brands will each launch an exclusive model for the Chinese market.
This approach is not unique. Currently, many joint ventures in China use this approach - they select one of their models, modify it according to the preferences of users in the Chinese market, and launch a new model for the Chinese market.
According to the current positioning of the British Motor Group, Jaguar will mainly launch sedans and sports cars, while Land Rover will focus on SUVs...
Therefore, in the Chinese market, Jaguar will first launch a modified sedan, and Land Rover will launch an SUV to compete with brands such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi.
It is also worth mentioning that more than 100 technicians of British Auto Group in Germany and Britain were sent to China to help Nanjing British Auto to transform its old vehicle assembly production line.
It can be said that people are being put to good use.
After Nanjing Yingqi was established, the company's movements have not only attracted the attention of other joint ventures, but also domestic car users in China, especially mid- to high-end customers. What they are curious about now is what kind of products this joint venture luxury brand, which has just entered the Chinese market, will launch in the future.
However, the models that Nanjing Yingqi is preparing to launch are all kept strictly confidential, and they plan to make their debut at an auto show in the second half of this year.
…
This time, Barron came to Jinling directly from Australia, and Bonnie also came with him.
Although Barron came to Jinling in a low-key manner and did not bring many bodyguards, Jinling still attached great importance to his coming and provided him with a lot of protection, both overt and covert.
"These silk embroideries are so beautiful, dear."
"It has a special name in China, called Yunjin, which means it is as beautiful as the colorful clouds in the sky."
After hearing Barron's explanation, Bonnie smiled and responded,
"The name is quite fitting. It is said to have an ancient history, right?"
In addition to visiting some scenic spots and historical sites in Jinling City, Barron and Bonnie are now at the very famous Yunjin Museum in Jinling.
This museum is divided into four floors, with displays of brocade looms and many fine products made using brocade craftsmanship.
Seeing this, Barron couldn't help but recall the time in his previous life when Fan Bingbing wore a "dragon robe" on the red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival.
Her look at the time caused a lot of discussion, and the "dragon robe" she wore was made of brocade craftsmanship.
Although many people called her a "carpet star" at that time, no matter what, she did promote the traditional silk weaving craft of Yunjin to some extent.
"Since you like it so much, let's order a set of clothes made of this fabric here."
Barron's suggestion made Bonnie's eyes light up, and she immediately asked the staff accompanying her on the tour about the production of Yunjin.
As early as the 1950s, Jinling established the Yunjin Research Institute, the only professional research institution for Yunjin in the country, shouldering the historical responsibility of inheriting and protecting Yunjin.
In fact, until now, the unique weaving technique of Yunjin cannot be replaced by modern machines. Its daily output is only a few centimeters, so the cost is very expensive.
In the earliest times, Yunjin was exclusively used by the imperial court. During the manufacturing process, even materials such as gold thread and peacock feathers were used. Its patterns were not embroidered, but were completed during the weaving process using silk threads of various materials and colors.
Barron is going to have a Gucci designer design a traditional British-style aristocratic outfit for himself and Bonnie, made entirely of brocade craftsmanship. According to estimates, the cost of each of their two outfits will be more than $100,000! Every
inch of brocade is worth its weight in gold.
In addition to the high price, the production of Yunjin itself is very low, so they have to wait a long time for their customized clothing to be completed.
…
In Jinling, Barron also met with Alibaba CEO Ma.
What Mr. Ma talked about with Barron was the preparations for listing in Hong Kong this year.
In this IPO, Alibaba is preparing to list its B2B business, mainly Alibaba, and does not include Taobao, Alipay and other businesses.
Although in his previous life, Alibaba was listed in Hong Kong in 2007, delisted in 2012, and then listed in the United States.
However, Baron did not oppose Alibaba's listing in HK and expressed his support.
Because he knew that the original Alibaba company delisted from HK in 2012, mainly because they wanted to expand the scale of listing and planned to list Taobao and other businesses as well. However, HK could not accept the "same shares, different rights" model. As a last resort, they chose to delist and went public in the United States two years later.
Although they knew this would be the result, Alibaba received $1.5 billion in financing when it went public in Hong Kong in 2007. However, when they decided to delist in 2012, Alibaba's stock price almost returned to the level when it went public. This is equivalent to Alibaba obtaining $1.5 billion in funds through its listing in 2007, and then spending almost the same amount to complete the company's delisting in 2012. Well, these funds were wasted for five years…
This is also a very good deal.