Panasonic Electronics. That is, the legendary Panasonic.

The Japanese multinational company has more than 230 branches worldwide and employs more than 290,000 people. Among them, there are more than 50,000 regular employees in China. In 2001, the company's annual sales totaled more than $61 billion, ranking 26th among the world's top 500 manufacturing companies.

This company is about the same as Toyota, and for Japan, it is almost synonymous with an era.

Why say almost?

Because Toyota is still strong in the global car market, but Panasonic Electronics has gone downhill in development.

In 1918, Konosuke Matsushita founded this legendary company, and over the decades it has developed brand products in many fields such as home appliances, digital audio-visual electronics, office products, and aviation, thus gaining a global reputation.

This corporate brand once jumped to the top 500 of the world's brands, and at the time of its glory, it became the representative label of Japan by the people in Japan, which is famous for its electronics industry.

But in recent years, this multinational company has been a bit miserable.

First, in order to cooperate with the strategic layout of its battery business, it acquired Sanyo Electromechanical, and then due to problems in the merger and acquisition, the profit and loss collapsed, from the expected profit of 50 billion yen to a loss of more than 700 billion yen.

Due to the heavy losses, the world's major credit rating agencies downgraded Panasonic's rating by two levels to BB. That is, the legendary garbage level, this credit rating adjustment, is quite unfavorable to the development of Panasonic.

After that, there are frequent problems such as quality and misleading consumers, which will drag down the reputation and prestige accumulated by this "quasi-century-old" enterprise step by step.

If it weren't for the support of some of the previous main businesses, coupled with Panasonic's targeting of batteries, which can be said to be a traditional and innovative business sector, I am afraid that the Panasonic brand would have disappeared into the historical occasion.

Panasonic's first heel was planted in the battery motor. The acquisition of an equally ambitious company like Sanyo Electric can give a glimpse of its ambitions.

Although Panasonic's other businesses have been doing decently or ordinarily in recent years, Panasonic has made great achievements in the battery sector that has invested huge resources.

Whether it is a rechargeable battery commonly used in small Japanese electrical appliances, or a UPS battery used in a large server, or a mobile phone battery, or even a car battery that is currently being speculated, Panasonic's products can be said to be firmly in the upper reaches of a number of competing products.

In particular, the automotive battery is the main development direction of Panasonic at present and in the future.

As a newly developed business segment with the highest premium capacity and the most extensive development, automotive batteries and electric vehicle power solutions have become an indispensable link for Panasonic to get out of the predicament and even return to glory.

Throwing an olive branch to Toyota to jointly develop the Chinese market is an important step for Panasonic to return to the top and save the company's decline.

In fact, Toyota is not the first to make inroads into the field of electric vehicles.

The first company in which the Panasonic Group invested was TSL. But now TSL still has the momentum of the building, if you want to find a target in this field that can boost Panasonic's fallen rocket, then Toyota, which has the same origin, has become the best choice.

In fact, the two companies have always had a deep cooperation. However, because Toyota has been stubbornly developing along the direction of hydrogen fuel for the concept of new energy vehicles, Panasonic, which has been working car batteries and charging technology, has not been able to pee in a pot.

However, with TSL's repeated defeats in the Chinese market, the world's largest electric vehicle market, and Toyota's electric department led by Toyota Chixia, it has made frequent moves, so that Panasonic has realized a new way out.

Japan, inside an exquisite annex near Tokyo.

Akio Toyoda, the head of the Toyota Group, and Panasonic Panasonic Electronics Industry Co., Ltd

The largest shareholder, Yuchao Furui, who is also the de facto head of the board of directors, is sitting across from the table, drinking tea and discussing things.

Toyota and Panasonic were actually similar when they were founded, and Kiichiro Toyoda and Konosuke Matsushita founded and developed the company. But as the company gets bigger, the equity becomes more and more dispersed. Toyota is better, and the Toyota family also controls nearly a dozen percent of the total shares of this behemoth in the automotive industry.

However, the Panasonic Group has now completed the control relationship between Konosuke Matsushita's descendants and the group. This change is reflected in the early Panasonic English logo change from "National" to "Panasonic".

"Toyoda-kun, my unsuccessful grandson has told me many times that the Toyota family is a thousand summers in this generation. Chikatsu-chan's ability, as well as the mind shown in business, make that kid from Iken admire it very much. ”

Furui Yuchao put down the tea bowl, smiled, and said.

Akio Toyoda's heavy eyebrows trembled, "Oh? It's no wonder that Qianxia has indeed made good achievements in the Chinese market at present." This is much more conspicuous than her brothers who only know how to work hard. I'm also very capable, right? I heard that he founded his own company in the United States, and it's doing well?"

Furui nodded smugly, "Today's young people are different from us back then. There are a lot of new ideas, and there are also new ways of living and doing business. But in my opinion, that kid from Jing Yan is still a good kid except for being a little too flamboyant. Toyota-kun, you and I are also old acquaintances, I don't think it's better to let the two children get in touch? Iyan is now leading the development of commercial applications of fast charging and battery technology for electric vehicles, and at this point, I think he and Chixia will have a common language. ”

Akio Toyoda smiled, paused slightly, and said, "But that child is difficult for Qianxia to contact, and since she went to college, I haven't heard of any boy she is compatible with." ”

Seeing that Akio Toyoda did not give any opinion on business matters, and instead talked about the private life of Toyoda Chixia, Furui Yuchao smiled secretly, and the smile on his face was even better.

"Hey, Toyoda-kun, young man. As I said earlier, they have their own ideas and lifestyles. Although I am already an old man, I am not the kind of old stubborn person who will not do those things that point to marriage. I mean, it's for them to touch it. If the two children look at each other in the right eye, Panasonic and Toyota, you and I, will go further in our relationship beyond business and personal relationships, wouldn't it be a good thing?"

Akio Toyoda picked up the tea bowl and covered his face with the wide sleeves of his kimono.

His eyes changed dramatically, and he quickly made a measurement, thinking of the cooperation plans and concessions that Furui Yuchao had proposed before, and a smile appeared on his face.

"That's good. Now that Chixia Na is laying out a network of basic charging base stations in the Chinese market, it is estimated that there is no time to return to Japan. Then, let's let Iken go to China to have a look. ”

Furui Xiong was overjoyed and picked up the tea bowl.

The two old foxes looked at each other and smiled.