Another product line would be established alongside the new battery factory!
Right now, production of the Jiuzhou Mini stood at around sixty-three vehicles a day, after accounting for taxes, employee salaries, and other expenses.
With an average profit of 2,000 yuan per vehicle, that came to roughly 120,000 yuan a day, or around 3.8 million yuan a month.
As for why he wanted to build a factory to produce another product, his heart-to-heart talk with his father had made Xu Yifan realize that the Jiuzhou Automobile Factory had a fatal weakness.
"I've never run a factory before, so I made everything seem a little too simple."
"For big capital groups, that might not matter. Their ownership structures are complex, and their ability to withstand risk is on a completely different level.
"But for a small factory like mine, which I own outright, having only one product just isn't enough. The risk is far too great."
"Besides, I should do my best to build good relations with the local authorities and provide more jobs and tax revenue. Once the business reaches a certain scale, the local authorities might even help keep the factory afloat. It'd be hard to go out of business even if I wanted to!"
At the Jiuzhou Automobile Factory, the Jiuzhou Mini might have seemed to be selling like hotcakes, but the company was already on the brink of danger.
According to Xu Yifan's calculations, a competitor with a vehicle similar to the Jiuzhou Mini would emerge within three months at the earliest, or around half a year at the latest.
As the Jiuzhou Mini continued to grow in popularity, it was bound to attract the attention of nearby automakers and even other companies across the country. Some fairly well-known automakers would enter the market.
That would be when the real knife fight began!
By then, the Jiuzhou Mini would have its own battery technology, but that still wouldn't guarantee victory over every competitor or ensure that the company would become the only automaker to dominate the entire Old Man Happy market. It might even be defeated!
A product's sales didn't always depend solely on its technology or quality. Marketing, pricing, reputation, government policy, and countless other factors could all affect sales figures.
Having technology gave a company an advantage, but only to a certain extent.
There were plenty of technologically advanced products that still didn't sell well.
It was easy to make assumptions and get blindsided by the market.
That was why Jiuzhou Automobile needed a second product. Even if the Jiuzhou Mini's sales later faltered and all the company's investments went down the drain,
it would still be able to pay employee salaries and cover the costs of materials and equipment, and even have the funds to make a comeback!
You couldn't put all your eggs in one basket. A two-pronged approach was steadier and more sustainable; relying on a single product model was too risky.
"Manufacturing another product is essential. Ideally, it shouldn't be a car—not a low-speed vehicle like the Jiuzhou Mini, at any rate."
Taking into account the strengths of the new Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Technology that the Jiuzhou Automobile Factory was about to acquire, the goal was practically decided: two-wheeled electric vehicles!
Rather than venture into a completely unfamiliar field, he should make full use of the strengths of his own technology.
And the two-wheeled electric vehicle market had excellent prospects right now.
After 2008, China's economy entered a period of rapid growth, and sales of two-wheeled electric vehicles would be booming over the next few years.
Even before Xu Yifan had traveled through time, there were already plenty of two-wheeled electric vehicles on the roads.
Two-wheeled electric vehicles were a necessity for most urban households. They were incredibly convenient for grocery runs, commuting to work, and all sorts of other trips!
They were inexpensive and could zip through city streets with ease, making it much more convenient for people to get around.
Even many households with cars preferred to ride electric scooters because they were easier to park!
"Yadea, Aima, Xinri, Luyuan, and the rest haven't yet secured the stable market positions they'll have in the future."
"The two-wheeled electric vehicle market is a bloodbath right now, with all kinds of products for sale, both good and bad."
"There's no reason Jiuzhou Electric Vehicle can't join the fray. Maybe one day, it'll lead the market, and the first brand people think of when they want to buy a two-wheeled electric vehicle will be Jiuzhou Electric Vehicle!"
"Unlike cars, electric scooters don't have that many components: a frame, motor, battery, and controller. We could also produce far more of them than cars."
"With new Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Technology from our own battery factory, our vehicles could go farther than those with Lead-Acid Batteries and last longer. That would give us an edge against other brands."
"And if we manufacture the lithium iron phosphate batteries ourselves, we can slash battery costs. They should cost about the same as buying Lead-Acid Batteries, which would give us a lower production cost than other electric vehicle brands."
"We'll take a two-pronged approach and make both products the best they can be!"
On top of that, making two-wheeled electric vehicles required far less investment than making cars.
A few tens of millions of yuan would be enough to build a fairly decent electric vehicle factory by the standards of the time!
It wouldn't have to match the quality of the big manufacturers. Even if there was a gap, the advantage of its batteries would close it—or even make it the better option for some people!
Xu Yifan spent several hours carefully organizing his plans, then drew up a breakdown of how to allocate the investments on his computer.
After a long while, he put down the fountain pen in his hand and sighed in frustration.
"Too bad I still don't have enough money. If I had an endless supply, I could make both the battery factory and the two-wheeled electric vehicle factory even better, and go straight for the best equipment available."
"I could also build them on a larger scale, produce more, and capture the entire market—becoming a giant in the low-speed vehicle sector, or quickly selling electric scooters across the country and making a fortune."
"Then there's investment in research and development. I could work on motors and controllers at the same time, build truly powerful new-energy vehicles, take back the market currently overrun by joint-venture brands, and expand into more fields: phones, chips, aviation, aerospace, the military, and so on..."
"If I had the money, I could build supporting factories of my own and cut costs even further. With a huge advantage in both price and technology, I could offer products that were cheap and reliable. As long as nothing went wrong, I could build a business empire within a few years."
After indulging in his daydream for a while, Xu Yifan sighed again.
Just then,
Knock, knock, knock—
A series of knocks sounded at the door.
He put his thoughts aside, composed himself, and said coolly, "Come in!"
The door opened, and a tall, pretty young woman in a uniform walked in. It was his secretary, Lin Wanxia.
"Boss, someone from the city just called to let us know that the Deputy Secretary is coming to inspect our factory tomorrow!"
As she gave her report, Lin Wanxia gazed at her boss with wide eyes, sneaking a look at him. Her boss was still so handsome today!
"Inspect us? What for?" Xu Yifan wondered, puzzled. But then he thought of a possibility.
Perhaps this would turn out to be a good thing!
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