Focus Overview
In March, 2875 units of AITO Wanjie M5 were insured, ranking ninth among new powerful models in March and being one of the only two high-end cars in the TOP10. Perhaps Huawei AITO won’t be able to achieve its sales target this year, but we must admit its good performance among various new brands.
As the “former Huawei Automobile”, BAIC Blue Valley JiHu appeared to be mediocre. The total number of insured vehicles of the two models, αS and αT, was only 747 in March. In other words, in March, 3.8 JiHu cars were equivalent to one AITO Wanjie.
Why do “former and current Huawei automobiles” have such different developments? In the short term, it is due to channels and branding.
Although JiHu was previously known as Huawei Automobile in the industry, it did not really benefit from Huawei Automobile’s terminal channels and the dividends brought by the Huawei brand. Although the JiHu Huawei version HI model made an appearance at the Huawei exhibition hall, it was not actually sold.
There were also internal differences within JiHu about the Hi model entering the Huawei exhibition hall. If terminal sales were controlled by Huawei, JiHu would become a mere contract manufacturer. In that case, what was the significance of the JiHu brand? In fact, JiHu is also being manufactured by Magna.
Therefore, in order to maintain the brand’s independent style, JiHu is also expanding its channels. As of last year, it had more than 120 accumulative outlets. In contrast, AITO Wanjie’s Huawei channels have already covered over 500 outlets, and will reach 1000 this year.
As for branding, the differences between JiHu and Huawei are extreme.
The AITO Wanjie brand was labelled as Huawei Automobile since its birth and is Huawei’s own son in the terminal market. JiHu, on the other hand, is more about Huawei technology inside and has not really tasted the fruits of Huawei’s automobile.
JiHu’s branding is basically a low-key brand without any marketing highlights, even though it had good sales last year. So, where did its marketing expenses go?
By comparing their channels and branding, the prominent differences between JiHu and AITO Wanjie have caused differences in sales.
Of course, this is also the result of JiHu’s active choice. Although the road is difficult, it can at least maintain its brand independence. However, how long can this road be sustained is based on how much determination BAIC Blue Valley has.
As for the introduction of the AITO Wanjie brand, it also means that Sailisbury has surrendered, and Xiaokang Stock has been participating in the new car manufacturing for 6 years, with no improvement in brand management other than some accumulation in the field of energy storage technology. Zhang Xinghai has lost his patience.
Now, for Zhang Xinghai, it’s better to work for Huawei than to let the investment be in vain for years. Even earning some money from labor is better than nothing!
After JiHu and Wanjie, the problem of embracing or rejecting Huawei has come to Avita’s hands.
This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.