Chapter 50 Chapter 11 Extraordinary 2007 (12)

These ideas are all preparations for the next development of "Li Ning".From the design and use of the entire park, it can be seen that Li Ning and Zhang Zhiyong have regarded innovation as a necessity.Everything they do is for innovation, and let the corporate culture of innovation become the real and continuous driving force for the development of the company. However, this industrial park is not entirely a plus.Moving from the bustling Chongwenmen New World Office Building within the Second Ring Road to outside the Fifth Ring Road, the new park also has a weakness: whether the self-contained pattern of the park will reduce Li Ning’s communication with the outside world, or even close itself stand up?In fact, Nike has also faced this problem.With its world headquarters in a well-appointed suburban campus and its founders ignoring state affairs, Nike may have developed a dangerous tendency toward insularity—potentially threatening the company's ability to connect closely with customers and pursue innovation."I do think there's a danger, a very strong feeling," said Parker, Nike's new president at the time. "I worry that innovation at Nike is becoming too insular." Improvements were made, and he personally designed Nike's innovation process.After setting up his first R&D lab, he also founded a group called Explore to work on further innovations.He said the group is working with academics, inventors and other companies to pursue the possibility of "deep space" innovation.

In Li Ning Company, Zhang Zhiyong, who has just moved to a new home, apparently has not yet felt the threat that may come from geographical location and spatial pattern. In fact, at the end of 2007, the threats and challenges Zhang Zhiyong faced were much more direct.Sitting in the office of the new park, Zhang Zhiyong has a book "Nothing Impossible - Recreating Adidas" given to him by a friend on Zhang Zhiyong's desk. He has not had time to read it yet.Outside his office are samples of shoes developed by "Li Ning", including the award-winning "Flying Armor" and "Banpo", which won the iF Industrial Design Award.What makes him feel at ease is that the company has achieved many achievements through innovation; what makes him most worried is that in the blink of an eye, the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, which will be decisive for the company's future and needs to be faced with more innovations, will be is coming.

Chapter twelve "My hands even tremble a little." Zhang Zhiyong said. Next to him stood Li Ning and several other colleagues, all of them looked very nervous.It was the summer of 2004. In a hotel room near the East Sishitiao Bridge in Beijing, Zhang Zhiyong took out a bidding book, opened the beautiful cover, and began to fill in the numbers with a pen, each with great care. What Zhang Zhiyong held in his hand was the bid for Olympic sponsors submitted by Li Ning Company to the 2008 Olympic Organizing Committee.The bidding documents are very beautifully printed, and all the amounts in the bidding documents are blank when printing, for fear of leaking secrets, and to continuously obtain market information so that the best decision can be made at the last moment.Zhang Zhiyong remembered clearly that he only filled in the bid amount that everyone had considered for a long time with only 30 minutes left before departure. "When I filled it out, I felt very, very nervous." Zhang Zhiyong recalled.

Zhang Zhiyong filled in a very huge amount for the company at that time. 30 minutes later, Li Ning led his CEO Zhang Zhiyong and several core employees, carrying a box containing a thick stack of Olympic bid documents, and set off on foot. After walking for 10 minutes, they arrived at the Qinglan Building on the Second Ring Road of Beijing. This is where the Beijing 2008 Olympic Organizing Committee was located.Among the companies bidding for Olympic sponsorship qualifications, the chairman of the company rarely submits the bidding documents in person. However, Li Ning, who has always kept a low profile, appeared in this small link of this matter, which shows that he attaches great importance to it.

All possible accidents were taken into account, Li Ning even rented a hotel room near Qinglan Building as a temporary office for the working group, in order to avoid traffic jams or other unexpected situations when submitting bids. These meticulous arrangements have only one purpose: try to ensure "winning the Olympics". The Olympics has always been Li Ning's dream. "Please support China's bid to host the Olympics." As early as 1993, Li Ning lobbied around the world as a representative of China's bid for the Olympics.A report on Wendi Deng, wife of media tycoon Rupert Murdoch, once introduced that even Wendi Deng, a part-time employee of Li Ning in the United States at the time and an ordinary student studying at California State University Northridge, also distributed "Beijing 2000" printed on the campus. This shows that Li Ning is eager to bid for the Olympic Games and mobilizes a wide range of people.However, China lost the bid by two votes.Afterwards, Li Ning joined the bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games. In 2001, China finally succeeded in bidding for the Olympic Games.At that moment, the whole of China was boiling, and the joy in Li Ning's heart was even better than ordinary people.

When Zhang Zhiyong was promoted to the general manager of the company in 2002, he clearly felt Li Ning's enthusiasm for China's hosting of the Olympic Games.He gave an example: "When I first took office, I was told that there were two important and urgent things to do. One was to bid for Olympic sponsors, and the other was to formulate a long-term development strategic plan that the company urgently needed." After the formulation of the plan, not only "rescued" the company out of the difficult period of stagnant turnover, but also brought about a qualitative change in the subsequent development of Li Ning Company. In Li Ning's mind, participating in the Olympic Games and this far-reaching decision Equally important, this shows Li Ning's dedication and importance to the Olympics.

This persistence can be traced back to 18 years ago, when Li Ning founded the company, the young Li Ning company has continued Jianlibao’s desire and business philosophy to become a sports powerhouse, and actively participated in large-scale sports events almost stubbornly: the first sponsorship in 1990 For the Asian Games, the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, and every Olympic Games in 1996, 2000, and 2004, "Li Ning" was the sponsor of the Chinese Olympic delegation. In fact, apart from feelings, the Olympic project is also a good sports marketing strategy in business.According to the results of a brand survey conducted by Li Ning Company, consumers believe that one of the most substantial brand assets of "Li Ning" is that the brand is always connected with the Olympic assets.

Now, the Olympic Games will finally be held in front of our own house. This exciting moment not only makes "Li Ning" but also more Chinese enterprises see hope.For example, Lenovo Group, in 2001 and 2002 when it decided to bid for the sponsor of the Olympic Games, was the same as "Li Ning" and was also the domestic leader in its industry. Yes, at this time, the internationalization of both has not yet found a way out.Therefore, the Olympics is undoubtedly a rare opportunity for Chinese companies moving forward in the fog. "Li Ning" is fully aware of this. "I believe we are one of the first companies to prepare." Zhang Zhiyong said.

It is precisely because of his dedication to the Olympics that in the process of applying for the qualifications of Olympic sponsors, Li Ning once again showed his commercial boldness and courage to the outside world.When Li Ning Company participated in the bidding, the company's listing plan was being implemented, and the company's turnover had not yet exceeded 1 billion yuan, and its profit had not exceeded 100 million yuan.According to the strength of the enterprise at that time, Li Ning Company could not support the bidding fee filled by itself.But Li Ning comprehensively judged that according to the company's five-year strategy, the company will have enough financial resources to pay the bid amount in 2008, so Li Ning filled in an astronomical figure in the bid. "It was actually quite bold to make this decision at that time." Even when Zhang Zhiyong looked back in 2008, he still lamented Li Ning's determination and courage at that time. In fact, Li Ning himself and his company, For the first time, the entire company's wealth and life were suppressed.

Li Ning's Olympic sponsorship and the familiarity between Li Ning and the State Sports General Administration gave Li Ning confidence.The whole company is also in a mood of optimism and excitement.Excited to actively face the opportunities and challenges brought by this era. However, things backfired, and now they have no chance to test whether this astronomical gamble is correct. More than ten days after submitting the bid, Zhang Zhiyong faced a conclusion that everyone now knows: he missed the Olympic sponsorship. "One of our employees cried at that time. We all felt very sad at that time." Zhang Zhiyong said.

But he couldn't shed tears because he was depressed. He still had a task: he had to call the boss in other places to tell the bad news.After the call was made, Zhang Zhiyong told Li Ning the bad news directly.There was silence on the other end of the phone, and then Li Ning spoke in a calmer tone.As men with the same introverted and stable personality, they cannot and do not need to exchange each other's disappointment and sadness, but Zhang Zhiyong can hear the deep loss in Li Ning's tone.During that phone call, the two talked a lot. At the end of the conversation, the two men encouraged each other instead of regretting together.Li Ning said a lot to Zhang Zhiyong, and Zhang Zhiyong remembered the last sentence: "Don't indulge in being sad, I don't think it is necessary." Not long after, on January 24, 2005, the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee officially announced Adidas as the sponsor of the Beijing Olympic Games.Although there were psychological preparations before, as soon as the news came out, Li Ning's company was still temporarily shrouded in the shadow of "failure".Afterwards, Lenovo Group got its wish and obtained the sponsor qualification of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Regret failed, only to admit. Zhang Zhiyong and Li Ning summed it up, at least, "Li Ning" participating in the bidding itself is a victory. "I think we need to keep participating. If you don't participate because your competitors are strong, I think it's a negative attitude," Zhang Zhiyong believes, "A positive attitude will affect everything in the company." Now, it is It's time to face this failure positively.