Xiaomi’s founder loses a billion-yuan bet

小米創(chuàng)始人輸?shù)?0億賭約

① In 2013 business folk gathered in Beijing to honour Chinese “Economic Figures of the Year” were treated to an unexpected twist. One of the winners, Lei Jun, ventured that in five years the sales of Xiaomi, the smartphone-maker he founded, would surpass those of Gree, a manufacturer of air-conditioners with government roots.

2013年，眾多商界人士齊聚北京參加中國“經(jīng)濟年度人物”頒獎盛典。他們目睹了一個出乎意料的橋段：獲獎?wù)咧焕总姾姥裕善鋭?chuàng)立的智能手機品牌小米的銷售額，將于五年之內(nèi)趕超有著政府背景的空調(diào)制造商格力。

② To make things interesting Dong Mingzhu, Gree’s chairwoman, bet him 1bn yuan that her company’s turnover would stay ahead. Mr Lei accepted. Since March 19th, when Xiaomi posted revenues of 175bn yuan in 2018, corporate China has awaited the figure from Gree. On April 28th the verdict was in: it made 200bn yuan. Mr Lei was out of the money.

為了讓事情更有趣，格力公司女董事長董明珠與雷軍豪賭10億元，稱自己公司的營業(yè)額將保持領(lǐng)先。雷軍欣然應(yīng)允。3月19日，小米公布2018年的營收為1750億元；自此之后，全中國都對格力的數(shù)據(jù)翹首以盼。4月28日，這場賭約蓋棺定論：格力營收2000億元。雷軍賭輸了。

③ The bet looked bold for Mr Lei in 2013. Xiaomi was then making a quarter of Gree’s annual sales. The “Apple of the East”, as it was dubbed, represented a new sort of Chinese company: market-driven and spunky, not state-led and stodgy; online instead of bricks and mortar; relying on digital technology rather than mechanical engineering. By mid-2018 Xiaomi’s revenue neared 90% of Gree’s. Ms Dong suggested that the wager was meaningless given how different Gree and Xiaomi were.

對2013年的雷軍而言，這場豪賭看起來十分大膽。當(dāng)年小米的全年銷售額僅是格力的四分之一。被稱作“東方蘋果”的小米，代表著一類全新的中國公司：以市場為驅(qū)動且干勁十足，不由國家主導(dǎo)，也不墨守成規(guī)；以互聯(lián)網(wǎng)為載體，而非實體店；依賴于數(shù)字技術(shù)，而非機械工程。到2018年年中，小米的營收已接近格力的90%。董明珠曾表示，考慮到格力與小米之間的巨大區(qū)別，這場賭約是沒有意義的。

④ In reality, the companies are not that dissimilar. They face similar challenges. Xiaomi and Gree have both taken a punt on changing their original business models. Gree is selling more online. Xiaomi is opening more physical stores. Ms Dong now makes smartphones, and Mr Lei has a line of air-conditioners. Whether or not he makes good on it, the bet highlights the changing face of China Inc.

實際上，這兩家公司的差別并沒有那么大，雙方都面臨著類似的挑戰(zhàn)。小米和格力都曾嘗試改變最初的商業(yè)模式。格力增加了線上銷售，小米則要開設(shè)更多實體店。董明珠現(xiàn)在也做起智能手機了，而雷軍也有了空調(diào)產(chǎn)品線。無論雷軍是否會兌現(xiàn)承諾，這場賭約都凸顯了中國這家企業(yè)不斷改變的面貌。