Chinese tires: first-rate equipment, second-rate market, third-rate products, fourth-rate brands, and low prices
In the tire industry, the current situation of some domestic tire companies is often summarized by a slightly teasing but thought-provoking sentence: "First-rate equipment, second-rate market, third-rate products, fourth-rate brands, and fifth-rate prices." At first glance, this is like a not-so-gentle slap in the face, which makes people feel a little painful. But if you calm down and think about it carefully, you have to admit that there are indeed some heartbreaking facts hidden in it.
First-rate equipment: a feast of equipment that costs a lot of money
Nowadays, walking in some newly built tire factories in China, the scene can simply make you drop your jaw. The manufacturing equipment is all "international big brands", and they choose whichever is more expensive and advanced, as if they are in a competition of equipment that costs a lot of money. When the bigwigs of foreign-funded tire companies came, they all had to stare wide-eyed, and kept muttering in their hearts: "What's wrong with domestic tire companies? Why are they willing to spend so much money on equipment!"
Look at the automated assembly line, like a tireless steel dragon, methodically swallowing and spitting out semi-finished tires; the intelligent warehouse is more like a mysterious technological Rubik's Cube, accurately storing and allocating various materials. The tire forming machine must be VMI, which is the "star product" in the industry. The cutting equipment must be Fisher, the rubber refining must be Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the vulcanization Kobe Steel is the most reliable, the testing equipment is from the United States, and the calendering equipment is from Germany. In the eyes of domestic tire companies, investing tens of millions of equipment is as easy as sprinkling water.
Not only the equipment is exquisite, but also the raw materials are not ambiguous. The steel wire is from Bekaert, the carbon black is from Cabot, the nylon is from DuPont, and the rubber is high-quality rubber imported from Thailand. The names of these raw materials are like a string of shining halos, which are often mentioned by domestic tire factories as a symbol of quality. Therefore, in terms of equipment and raw materials, domestic tire companies are indeed "first-class", which is beyond doubt.
Second-rate market: the high-end door that cannot be opened
Every Chinese tire company has a dream about the high-end market in their hearts. With the determination to build high-end brands, control high-end quality, and convey high-end beliefs, they bravely move forward towards the high-end market that seems to be close at hand but out of reach. However, reality always cruelly pours cold water on them.
No matter how they struggle, these companies always linger in the second-rate market, and the door to the high-end market is like being locked tightly by a mysterious big lock, and they can't be knocked open no matter how hard they knock. Is it locked by foreign big brands such as Michelin, Bridgestone, and Pirelli? Maybe there are reasons in this regard, but more likely, it is the lack of their own strength. It's like a loser from an ordinary family. Even if he has made some changes through hard work, his temperament and background can't be changed overnight. He is eager to squeeze into the upper class, but he finds that the threshold of others is measured by the heavy stepping stone of products and technology, rather than the seemingly omnipotent low-priced "brick" in his hand.
Third-rate products: swinging between quality and sales
It is really unfair to say that domestic tires are all third-rate products for some companies that make products with heart. But it is undeniable that for most domestic tire companies, this evaluation may be considered high, and some products can only be described as inferior.
The domestic tire industry once had a "shocking" invention-non-three-guarantee tires. This operation made those first-line big brands drop their jaws: "So tires can be played like this?" At the beginning, only some small factories could not make three-guarantee tires, but they didn't expect that it would intensify and almost become a "trend" in the industry. In product manufacturing, many domestic tire companies adhere to the principle: "No matter how low-end the product is, a good product is one that can be sold." If customers want cheap products, then we will try our best to reduce costs. How cheap you want, I can make it as cheap as you want. At this point, those small tire factories seem to be particularly able to grasp the pain points of customers, strike accurately, and achieve sales. In their view, customer demand is the first priority, and no temperament or quality is as real as meeting customers' low-price demands.
Fourth-rate brands: despised brand value
In the world of domestic tires, brands are often ignored. Especially when people divide tire brands into first-tier, second-tier, third-tier, and fourth-tier brands in their minds, many domestic tire brands can't even reach the "line".
For many domestic tire companies, brands are like a dispensable "little transparent". If this brand doesn't work, then change another one. It doesn't cost much money and time to register a brand. It's not a problem to register seven or eight or even ten brands at a time. Whether you want something stylish, rustic, mature or cute, we have everything you need to satisfy you.
In the minds of many business owners, building a brand is simply burning money. With the money for brand marketing, it is better to buy a piece of land or a luxury car, at least these are visible and tangible benefits. In brand marketing, the money invested is like a splash, and often there is no sound. They are like frogs sitting at the bottom of a well, only seeing the world in front of them, but not knowing that only by jumping out of the well can they see the vast sky and understand the value of the brand.
Five-rate price: a double-edged sword of price for volume
Price is like a powerful "double-edged sword" in the market competition of Chinese tire companies. In the commercial vehicle tire market, Chinese tire companies rely on low prices to beat Michelin, Bridgestone, Goodyear and other global leaders in retreat. Without profound martial arts secrets or extraordinary technical strength, relying on this simple and crude low-price strategy, it has been very successful in the market for a while.
However, it is precisely this fifth-rate price that has put domestic tires into an embarrassing vicious circle. Because of the low price, even with first-rate equipment, they can only struggle in the second-rate market, the products are regarded as third-rate, and the brand is degraded to fourth-rate. Take passenger car tires as an example. The average ex-factory price of Pirelli tires is about 1,100 yuan, while the best-selling tire brand in China is only about 350 yuan. What is even more frustrating is that major luxury car models do not look down on domestic brands at all and will not choose them as original tires at all. This is undoubtedly a naked "dimensionality reduction attack".
Domestic tire companies are like a young man who is confused and groping on the road to growth. Although they are full of passion and drive, they have many deficiencies in terms of earning ability, brand influence, and technological content. On the one hand, they envy the "big guys" in the industry, and on the other hand, they are self-contained in their own small circle.
The Chinese tire industry still has a long way to go if it wants to truly rise. Only when the products can truly compete with big brands, the brands have enough influence, and the technological content reaches the international leading level, then Chinese tires can truly straighten their spines and shine on the world tire stage.
