沃尔沃请林书豪代言 为在华量产铺路

    一年半以前，浙江吉利控股集团有限公司（ZheijiangGeely Holdings Group Co.）牵头的中国财团收购了瑞典的沃尔沃汽车（Volvo Cars）。如今，沃尔沃终于获得了关键协议，获准在中国生产汽车。

    上周，沃尔沃还聘请了一位新的代言人，他就是华裔美国人、炙手可热的篮球新星林书豪。

    尽管沃尔沃的东家是中国人，但中国仍然把它视作一家外国公司。由于总部位于瑞典哥德堡，因此沃尔沃面临着复杂的法规，要求其必须拥有本地合作伙伴才能在中国进行生产。福特汽车（Ford Motor Co.）在2010年8月以18亿美元的价格将沃尔沃出售给了吉利。

    上周，沃尔沃总裁兼CEO斯特凡•雅各比向路透社（Reuters）表示，沃尔沃打算使中国成为继瑞典之后的“第二大本土市场”。曾担任大众汽车（Volkswagen）北美区CEO的雅各比说，他的最终计划是在中国制造90%的沃尔沃汽车零部件。

    新的协议将使吉利可以在吉利汽车上使用沃尔沃的技术。雅各比这位进取心十足的德国CEO表示，他的目标是让沃尔沃占到全球豪华车市场份额的20%。这一市场目前主要由宝马（BMW）、奥迪（Audi）、梅赛德斯（Mercedes）和雷克萨斯（Lexus）把持。

    第二个令人瞩目的事情是，沃尔沃在上周一签下了23岁的纽约尼克斯队（Knicks）篮球明星、台湾移民的后代林书豪担任全球品牌代言人。来自中国的NBA篮球明星姚明在不久前退役，使中国的球迷们与这项运动的联系变得不再那么紧密。

    沉浸于瑞典传统的沃尔沃早已成为高端汽车品牌，在美国和世界各地都表现不俗。如今，沃尔沃有了吉利这把保护伞，将有望扩大在中国的市场份额，尤其是如果该公司能够通过法规，在中国生产沃尔沃品牌汽车的话。

    吉利董事长李书福坚称，他将保留沃尔沃的瑞典风格。他说：“吉利是吉利，沃尔沃是沃尔沃。”每次问起沃尔沃与众不同的特色是否会逐渐模糊，他都会抛出这句话。

    汽车网站Edmunds.com的分析师米歇尔•克雷布斯称，沃尔沃必须将其美国产品线从目前的9种车型“简化”至三种核心车型。“如今，人人都注重安全性。这曾是沃尔沃的看家本领。现在沃尔沃必须思考自己到底想要代表什么特质。”

    Eighteen months after a Chinese consortium led by Zheijiang Geely Holdings Group Co. bought Sweden's Volvo Cars, the venture is finally securing key agreements that will allow it to build vehicles in the People's Republic.

    This week the venture also hired a new pitchman, Chinese-American basketball sensation Jeremy Lin.

    Despite Volvo's Chinese owners, The People's Republic of China determines it to be a foreign company. Because Volvo is based in Gothenburg, Sweden, it is subject to complex rules requiring it to have a local partner for production in China. Ford Motor Co. sold Volvo to the consortium in August, 2010 for $1.8 billion.

    Stefan Jacoby, president and CEO of Volvo, told Reuters this week the company intended to make China "our second home market," after Sweden. Jacoby, formerly the head of Volkswagen in the U.S., has said he eventually plans to use 90 percent Chinese-made parts in Volvos.

    The new agreement will allow Geely to use Volvo technology for Geely cars in China. Jacoby, a hard-driving German executive, says his goal is for Volvo one day to account for a fifth of the world's luxury car market, which is currently dominated by BMW, Audi, Mercedes, and Lexus.

    In a second remarkable development, the companies Monday signed Lin, the 23-year-old New York Knicks basketball star and son of Taiwanese immigrants, to help market Volvo globally. NBA basketball star Yao Ming, who hails from the People's Republic, recently retired, leaving Chinese basketball fans bereft of a connection to the sport.

    Volvo, steeped in Swedish heritage, has long been a premium automotive brand with a strong presence in the U.S. and around the world. Now under the Geely umbrella it is poised to gain share in the People's Republic, especially if the company can navigate regulations and manufacture cars there under the Volvo brand.

    Li Shufu, chairman of Geely, takes pains to assert that he intends to preserve the Volvo's Swedish flavor. "Geely is Geely. Volvo is Volvo," has become his mantra when asked about the possible blurring of Volvo's distinctive character.

    Michelle Krebs, an analyst for Edmunds.com, said Volvo must "simplify" its product lineup in the U.S. to three core models, down from the current nine. "And everyone touts safety these days. That used to identify Volvo. The company now has to think what it wants to stand for."