Make Lenovo a global brand
(People's daily online)
Updated: 2006-06-19 17:01 Yong Tang: But many people would be surprised to know Lenovo's global
headquarter is not in Beijing, but in USA. So Lenovo has become an American
company?
Advani: Lenovo is a global company. What is the perception they have when
consumers buy a Sony or Toyota or BMW? They are not thinking it is a Japanese or
German or English company. It is a just great TV or a great car. They have
transcended national borders and become global brands everybody loves. Right now
Lenovo is a Chinese company. But more and more it will be perceived by the world
as a global and international company. More and more companies will come to the
world stage where they will be known because of the value they deliver to the
customers, not because of the location of the company.
There is a term Global Integrated Enterprise. As The World is Flat put it,
the national boundary will not be critical because the Internet is creating a
global virtual community for us. In Lenovo, we get the best ideas from any part
of the world and bring them to the rest of the world. We have credible R&D
and design capability.
Yong Tang: According to the agreement signed between Lenovo and IBM, the logo
of IBM will stay on ThinkPad computers for up to five years.
Advani: Right now there is only one logo on the product, that is IBM. Our
market research tells us that before people know Lenovo and start feeling
comfortable with Lenovo, having the IBM logo on the product gives them a sense
of security and a sense of confidence.
Yong Tang: When will the Lenovo logo appear on your product?
Advani: The Lenovo logo will appear toward the end of this year in addition
to IBM logo. Since then there will be two logos on our products, IBM and Lenovo.
Yong Tang: Which logo will be bigger in size?
Advani: The ThinkPad logo will be bigger. Lenovo logo will be smaller. Why?
Because ThinkPad is a strong brand. I want the equity to go from IBM ThinkPad to
ThinkPad. ThinkPad stands for the premier business tool and it is a strong
brand. What we want to do is to want people ten years from now to continue to
desire ThinkPad. Great brands could be destroyed if you move away from its core
essence. Companies usually take a brand and stretch it too much. Therefore the
Lenovo logo will be smaller and the ThinkPad logo will be bigger. That is only
for laptop computers. On desktop computers, the Lenovo logo will be bigger.
Because we want to build a master brand like Toyota.
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