Haier launches new high end refrigerator at its US plant just as economy hits the skids. But adapting to US business culture has also posed challenges. Yet, Zhang Ruiming, Haier's CEO, intends to persevere. "First the hard, then smooth. That's the way to win," he says.
From today's WSJ:
The new refrigerator, which allows consumers to set specific temperatures for individual compartments, was designed and built at Haier's South Carolina factory, at 10 times what it would cost the company to make in China.
The downturn in the U.S. economy crimped consumer demand just as the company's most-expensive U.S.-made products came on the market.
At the same time, Haier's rigid, top-down management structure fell flat with American workers accustomed to a less-authoritarian style.
For Haier, which had $15 billion in revenue world-wide last year, a delay in getting its new refrigerator to market meant that it arrived just as the U.S. economy was turning south. A series of recalls for China-made products last year, which have heightened quality concerns about Chinese manufacturing, compounded the company's challenges. And the new fridge's design simply hasn't set it apart from models by better-known competitors, appliance buyers say.
Known for sage-like sayings and for idiosyncrasies such as the flying-saucer-shaped tower he had built at one of his plants, Mr. Zhang insisted that Haier press on with its global expansion. "First the hard, then smooth. That's the way to win," he says.
No comments:
Post a Comment