For years the brand Volvo has been synonymous with "Safety". So when it was announced that Volvo was sold to Geely Holding Group in China my first thought was, it may be time to find a new position.How credible is it that the safest car in the world now comes to us from a country whose corrupt regulatory system allowed toys to go to market covered with lead-based paint; milk laced with melamine to cause over 300,000 illnesses killing 6 children; and over 68,000 of its citizens to perish in an earthquake two years ago because schools and office buildings weren't built to established codes?
I know that the Chinese company is purchasing designs and technology from Ford, and the Swedish deputy prime minister, said on Sunday. “Regardless of who owns Volvo Cars, its brand will still be Swedish.” But what happens when a new model they're introducing starts to run behind schedule?
Does the culture of corruption in China encourage someone to take a shortcut?
If I had to slam on my breaks to avoid a collision, I'm not sure I'd have 100% confidence in a Chinese designed and built anti-lock braking system. And even a flash of doubt undermines Volvo's brand position completely.
I'm probably wrong about this since millions of people blithely buy Chinese products at WalMart everyday. But if Volvo has a safety issue after this sale, it won't be able to recover the way Toyota has.
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It seems to me that this is an "opportunity" for Volvo. I think the brand has become so muddied over that 15-20 years that its once iron fisted hold on safety is suspect. The question is what will the Chinese version of the company do? If I were them I would commit to re-building Volvo's reputation for safety and do what ever i had to do to live up to it. On the other hand the Geely CEO was quoted in the WSJ as saying he wanted to take advantage of China's lower cost base...uh oh!
ReplyDeleteThanks Cam. I agree that they've wandered through the desert for many years, thus the need to be sold. I fear this will become just what the world doesn't need: another luxury-for-less brand.
ReplyDeleteI don`t know much about cars ,but I think that this "move" will grow up the sales.The Chineses are made to sell !They produce and sell everything,and,in spite of the opinion of the majority-that the chinese products are cheap crap-almost anyone buys their products.
ReplyDeleteI refuse to eat everything is "made in China" and ,before I buy a non-food product "made in China" I think twice.And,if I finally buy that product,I know from the begining that has at most "half life".
P.S. :It`s just a subjective opinion.
I can`t express myself very well,but I hope you understand what I meant to say,and I hope I didn`t made much mistakes.:)
Your blog is one of my (good) "books" for learning english.:) Andreea,Romania
I was with you up until the Wal-Mart comment. The stuff you buy at Wal-Mart isn't made to last, and it's not meant to keep you as safe as possible when you're staring broadside at a guardrail. We've got to do a better job educating consumers, and finding a middle ground between economy and safety.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Andreea,China sells lots of cheap crap worldwide and I doubt there are any Chinese companies that don't make plastic crap.
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