Sinopec employees can purchase Mercedes-Benz cars at a 20,000 yuan discount through group buying. Yesterday, it was reported that the Sinopec Group provided group-buying services for its employees to purchase various types of cars, including Mercedes-Benz models. Upon visiting the "Sinopec Group Buying Website," it was found that the service targets only Sinopec employees. Employees purchasing Mercedes-Benz C-Class or E-Class sedans could receive a 20,000 yuan discount, while those purchasing Peugeot cars could receive discounts ranging from 2,000 to 4,000 yuan. The Sinopec Group did not comment on the matter yesterday.
The website went online in March 2009.
The "Sinopec Group Buying Website" indicates that the site went live in March 2009 and is hosted by the Sinopec Daily, which is under the Sinopec Group. A relevant person from the Sinopec Daily stated yesterday that the establishment of the website was mainly to serve employees, and so far, only a few Mercedes-Benz C-Class cars have been sold without any sales of E-Class models. When the economy was not performing well in early 2009, many manufacturers hoped to expand their influence and sales through this online platform. After receiving orders, the group-buying website directly hands them over to 4S dealerships without collecting money from employees.
Yesterday, someone noticed on the homepage of the website popular products such as Beijing Benz, Chongqing Changan, Dongfeng Peugeot, Beijing Hyundai, Apple, Newman, and Samsung. If employees group-purchase Peugeot cars, they can receive an additional discount of 2,000 to 4,000 yuan based on the base price. For Mercedes-Benz C-Class and E-Class sedans, the discount for employees of the Sinopec Group starts at 20,000 yuan.
The information on the website shows that since going online in March 2009, it has cumulatively saved Sinopec employees over 20 million yuan in car purchases.
Analysis suggests "it's not the same as benefits."
According to the website's information, all services are available to all employees of the Sinopec Group and its subsidiaries. All members must truthfully fill in their real names, phone numbers, email addresses, and full names of their affiliated units during registration, with reviews conducted within 12 hours. However, customer service personnel from the website mentioned yesterday that even non-Sinopec employees can participate if they register with accurate information.
A Sinopec Group employee commented yesterday: "I know about the company’s group-buying website; it seems to be run by the Petrochemical Daily. Nowadays, group buying is common, but I haven't participated yet."
Han Xiaoping, a social supervisor hired by Sinopec, remarked that since it is a group-buying website, it should aim for profit and not just serve Sinopec employees. This is not the same as employee benefits.