Great Wall Motors sets a small goal for "going global"

Author | Cao Anxun

As the domestic new energy market becomes increasingly competitive, Great Wall Motors, as one of the top three Chinese independent brands in terms of exports, has shown more ambitions for overseas markets.

On April 25th, at the Great Wall Motors Ecological Overseas Strategy Conference, Mu Feng, the President of Great Wall Motors, proposed that the company will promote "ecological overseas" initiatives, focusing on the "international new four transformations" of localized production capacity, localized operations, cross-cultural branding, and secure supply chains. This aims to drive a comprehensive "going global" strategy covering research, production, supply, sales, and services.

The ultimate goal is for Great Wall Motors to achieve overseas sales of over one million vehicles by 2030, with high-end models accounting for over 1/3 of the sales.

This is no small feat for the current Great Wall Motors.

In 2023, Great Wall Motors' overseas sales exceeded 300,000 vehicles for the first time. This means that in the next seven years, the company's annual overseas sales need to increase by more than 3.33 times compared to last year to achieve the target.

To achieve this, Great Wall Motors has proposed a series of "going global" strategies with the core concept of "being rooted in China globally and localized overseas".

According to Mu Feng, firstly, Great Wall Motors will rely on its research and development centers in seven countries and ten locations to build a full-chain development system. Starting from user needs, they will plan products, implement engineering development, conduct real local validations, and truly serve the local markets.

Furthermore, Great Wall Motors will emphasize contributing to local social responsibilities. Factories in ASEAN, Latin America, and other regions will focus on local production to enhance cost competitiveness while contributing more jobs and tax revenue to the local markets.

Lastly, Great Wall Motors plans to closely follow internet developments and increase promotion on platforms like Douyin.

Great Wall Motors Vice President Shi Qingke stated that overall, the company's strategy is to establish operations where the market is. They will build professional management teams, supply chains, and other ecosystem services locally, leveraging the system and capabilities of the Chinese market in research, production, supply, sales, and services, combined with international market cultures to establish a local presence.

The confidence in setting "small goals" for Great Wall Motors comes from the fact that the company's "going global" strategy is now in a harvest period, with the five major brands of Haval, WEY, ORA, TANK, and Great Wall Cannon all achieving international presence.

Financial reports show that in 2023, Great Wall Motors achieved overseas sales of 314,000 vehicles, an 82.37% year-on-year increase, reaching a historical high. The proportion of high-end vehicle sales is gradually increasing, with overseas revenue reaching 53.114 billion RMB, a 101.53% year-on-year increase.

Currently, Great Wall Motors has 14 million global users and over 1,000 overseas sales channels.

For the industry, Great Wall Motors' accelerated "going global" efforts not only have the potential to achieve breakthroughs in sales and improve its position in the new energy race, but also help pave the way for more opportunities for Chinese automotive companies to expand internationally