The news that JLR might move at least some of their production out of “leafy Warwickshire” to some dusty place in China had people worried. I mean, the mere thought that the Tata-owned brand would lose its Britishness to Chinese schlock.
Don’t worry. Be happy.
Land Rover (JLR) said it will not start local production in China for at least two years, Gasgoo reports.
But if you are a longer horizon worrier, then here is something to worry about.
JLR will invest $158m into a new facility in China. It will employ 5,000 Chinese workers. It will start with an annual production capacity of 50,000 units, which can get ramped up to 150,000 units in three years. That’s the plan.
But where and with whom? JLR needs a joint venture partner, without one, no go in China, it’s the law. Those joint venture partners then have to talk to their regional governments which typically advance land and money to bring jobs … you know the drill. Without their nod and big red “chop,” no deal.
JLR hired the German consulting firm Stefan Berger to find a suitor. That can take a while. The Berger boys have to earn their keep, and the good joint venture partners are already taken. Just imagine: A luxury marque like JLR and a Chinese B-list partner from the provinces? Unthinkable. Sales is a different matter. JLR wants to be somebody in a Chinese market that soaks up luxury cars like Sponge Bob after a week in the Sahara. But that’s imports.
So even as a medium horizon worrier, there is nothing to get worked up about. If you are taking the long term view (peak coal?), then worry.
I take somehow the bloke on the command chain’s Swiss account had SFA activity as promised.
So is hard to be the match maker.
What I dont understand is why Tata would not make the JLR in his own Curry country?
Atleast the huge investment can benefit his own compatriots. Not talking about a small factory.
India & Middle Kingdom never really see eye to eye, one can read comments on Businessweek
whenever there are any discussion between the 2 countries.
I dont think Middle Kingdom would have any reason of not wanting JLR, is just the folks in the trough didnt get greased well on their palm.
So where are they going to go now besides staying put in Old Blighty?
A Jag with Chinese provenance will only sell in China.
Those who can afford ‘grace,space,pace’ are fully cognizant of the “quality” that a “Made in ROC” tag engenders.
I live in an upscale suburb and see more Masers than post-India Jags. Simply put, the Plutocracy is hardly interested in a vehicle that is manufactured by owners who are in the Third World.
Right or wrong, the facts on the ground indicate the ‘target market’ wants nothing to do with a car produced by the same ethnicity that runs the local 7-11/Subway.
“I live in an upscale suburb and see more Masers than post-India Jags. Simply put, the Plutocracy is hardly interested in a vehicle that is manufactured by owners who are in the Third World.
Right or wrong, the facts on the ground indicate the ‘target market’ wants nothing to do with a car produced by the same ethnicity that runs the local 7-11/Subway.”
In Los Altos, 2010 Jags are quite thick on the ground. Even saw a few XJ’s downtown – aside from the one in candy-red, the other two looked quite good.
I would be leery of a chinese-made Jag (or a chinese made _anything_) but that is because of several years of bad experience with shoddy and/or toxic chinese consumer products. Other than the vindaloo-and-peter-sellers image, I don’t have much of an impression one way or another of Indian manufacturing, which I think is sort of an advantage to JLR.
Excuse me, Sir, I don’t mean to be a PRC, but “The Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan, is a …” They don’t have any car industry to speak of, but they are trying hard.
Bertel,
Fair enough.RoC is usually used in context of subreferencing Taiwan. I should have used PRC, as it is the mainstream nomenclature.
My bad.
My meta-point was simply that after many widely-known (if you can read) incidents in which Chinese quality killed our dogs with melamine and poisoned our homes with contaminated drywall (just to mention a few drops in the bucket), the informed US consumer knows that the “Made In China” label is a warning sticker.
As to India – let’s talk about their Triumph continuation bikes…
“Made in China” labels on ALL of Apple’s chic products don’t seem to bother many “upscale” people.