On the evening of February 23, Euler Automobile CEO Dong Yudong issued a statement on the official APP of ORA, saying that Euler Black Cat White Cat stopped taking orders, not stopped production, and was actively seeking solutions. And all after-sales service will continue to be maintained, will not be affected by the cessation of orders, we will be responsible for the user to the end!
"Euler is in a critical stage of strategic transformation and brand advancement, we only have a backwater battle, there is no way back!"
At the communication meeting with the Beijing media on the 23rd, Dong Yudong, CEO of Euler Automobile, finally officially said this sentence. On February 15, the news that a black cat and a white cat had stopped taking orders spread throughout the automotive industry. In Dong Yudong's words: a small stone stirs up a large ripple. Maybe there is no big news in the New Year, and this little thing has also pushed Euler to the cusp.
A pass of ten to ten hundred, the circle of car friends soon came out of the news that Euler black and white cats stopped production, you know, there were also cases of picking and picking after the suspension of production, so that the owner of the complaint is no door. Dong Yudong stressed: The black cat and the white cat did not stop production, but stopped accepting orders, including after-sales service and other user business will never stop!
In fact, Euler Automobile sold a lot of sales in 2021, reaching 135,000 units. Year-over-year growth of up to 140%. Of the 135,000 sales, black cats and white cats contributed more than 60% of sales. According to statistics, the cumulative sales of black cats and white cats exceeded 88,000 vehicles in the whole year, accounting for 65% of the brand's total sales.
But why stop the black cat and the white cat? Dong Yudong also gave three clear replies:
1, why the black and white cat stopped taking orders - first because of losses, followed by chips
Yes, it is indeed because of the loss. The price of Euler black cat is 6-8 million, and the price of white cat is 7-10 million. In today's environment of rapidly increasing raw material prices, it is really unfriendly to the two cars of Euler, even if Great Wall Motors has a completely excellent supply chain foundation closed loop. The data shows that from January 2020 to January 2022, the prices of battery-grade cobalt, nickel sulfate and lithium carbonate rose by 119%, 55% and 569% respectively. This makes the three-electric system, which accounts for up to 60% of small cars, a major factor in the loss. Dong Yudong said that we have now achieved the ultimate cost sharing.
But this is still far from enough, and the 30% reduction in the state subsidy policy has also put black cats and white cats in an extremely difficult situation. He said: If based on the current state subsidy policy, coupled with the current upward trend in raw material prices, by 2023, Euler black and white cat will lose nearly 17,000 yuan per car sold.
It's hard for a car company to afford!
The second is actually the common problem that everyone faces - the shortage of chips. The global chip shortage is still intensifying, and the delivery cycle of domestic chip orders in February 2022 has been extended by 5 to 15 weeks compared with October last year, and chip prices have also risen. Affected by the shortage of chips, Euler has experienced different degrees of decline in delivery and sales. At present, there is too much backlog of orders, which makes the customer's car pick-up cycle too long, affecting the consumer's car purchase experience. Therefore, after considering all factors, Euler decided to stop accepting new orders from black and white cats, but mobilized internal resources to speed up the scheduling plan of existing orders.
2, Euler's strategy is to grow upwards and enter the waist market, rather than entangled in the bottom market
As previously thought, Euler wants nothing more than to continue to dwell on the bottom market. Euler Automobile's overall strategy is to grow upwards and enter the waist market. This can also be seen in several new cars that will be released this year. The pricing of new members of the cat family such as lightning cats and ballet cats is 150,000-200,000 or even more than 200,000.
"In fact, stopping the black cat and the white cat is something I have been thinking about for a long time," Dong Yudong said.
The explosive rise in raw material prices has accelerated with various reasons such as chips. The surprise that a good cat brings to us is also a big reason why we do this, and selling more than 10,000 units a month has further strengthened our idea of impacting the waist market.
When asked what euler's current positioning is, Dong said: What we should do when the waist market rises, there are currently three types of companies in the A-class B-level BEV market: one is technology companies, Tesla, Weilai Xiaopeng, etc.; the second is the company that mainly focuses on three-electric system technology, BYD, etc.; and then there are companies that innovate categories and meet the personalized needs of users.
Euler is the last one, after subdividing users into a certain field, you will find that in this range it is all yours, no one else. This is also fully reflected in Euler's several cats: good cat - Kochi to send children; lightning cat - the pursuit of the ultimate big woman; ballet cat - princess style and so on. Great Wall Motors is also convinced of this, and the Salon Mech Dragon is not it.
Therefore, cutting down the black and white cats with lower prices can guarantee profits on the one hand, and on the other hand, it also provides the possibility for the new year to impact the high-end market.
3, A00 level market is not healthy, generally loss-
When it comes to the entire A00-level test market, Dong Yudong seems a little helpless. "Which one is not losing money now?" It's all hard to do! “
This is a common phenomenon in the automobile market, under the triple pressure of rapid decline in integral prices, subsidies and rapid rise in raw material prices, not only Euler, the entire A00-level market has appeared unhealthy development phenomenon, general losses, it is difficult to sustain.
Dong Yudong frankly said that the two cars of Euler black cat white cat have not been profitable since their birth, but have always been in the stage of loss, and at that time, in order to let Euler undertake the task of taking the market, the Great Wall can only remain silent. But the losses borne by euphemism are getting bigger and bigger, and they last too long, so that Euler finally can't hold on.
Then there are the characteristics of low price, ground endurance, low performance and low security in the A00-level market. So that the user's cognition is actually not in place, it feels that this level of car should be cheap, expensive do not buy it. This is also the main reason for the loss. So Euler simply stopped the black cat, the white cat.
At the end of the communication meeting, Dong Yudong told the media present: The 173,000 users of black cats and white cats are our capital. We will coordinate internal resources to meet the existing order scheduling plan faster, and ensure the speed of pick-up and the benefits of car purchase for customers who have ordered cars.
Next, Euler of the pure electric BEV architecture, Wei Pai, the main PHEV, and the upcoming salon form the three major brands of new energy of Great Wall Motors, enhance the competitiveness of Great Wall Motors in the new energy market, and help Great Wall Motors achieve 4 million sales in 2025, with new energy accounting for 80%.