Geely gets image boost through strategic transformation

• Source: ce.cn
• [11:08 April 28 2009]
• Comments

By Li Tiezheng

Geely Panda

Geely's purchase for DSI can be considered as a big movement in China's auto industry, which has also aroused a big shake. How could a private auto enterprise which can only manufacture low-end self-independent brand autos in people's eyes do such a surprising movement? Not long ago, Geely Automobile Holding Ltd. organized a large scale interview named "Enter New Geely", and all people seeing Geely's change have found the answer to this question: That is today's Geely, not yesterday's Geely yet; it has been transformed thoroughly and become a modern auto manufacturer with a promising future.

In 2009, Geely changed its strategic goal from "Manufacture the good autos affordable for ordinary people, and let Geely autos distribute in the world" to "Manufacture the good autos with the most safe, environment-friendly and energy-conservation performance, and let Geely autos distribute in the world." Although it differs only from several words, it reflects Geely's ten-year change and transformation. If we say that originally Geely's consideration is based on the cost, and only "manufacturing the good autos affordable for ordinary people", today's Geely has ambitiously planned to start from the quality and technology and "Manufacture the good autos with the most safe, environment-friendly and energy-conservation performance" for the market competition participation in a higher level and a larger scope. After the ten-year preparation, Geely has achieved its strategic transformation and enterprise upgrade.

Last year, Geely has a rising performance in the declined market, showing a robust vitality. So far, the sales registration volume of its autos has reached over 220,000 with the export volume of over 40,000, ranking No.9 among the passenger cars nationwide. But it ranks No. 1 among the cars with 1.5L discharge volume, increasing 11.4 percent of profit tax and achieving RMB1.8 billion yuan; such a performance has surprised the insiders.

In Geely's Beilun production base, correspondents have seen the modern production workshops and equipments as same as those in joint-venture auto enterprises, and standard production flows and technics, which are Geely's basis of finishing product transformation. Last year, Geely's products sold well with no price reduction. This means the old Geely has spanned over the era with the low-cost-and-price competition and Geely is no longer an auto enterprise only being able to manufacture low-end autos. Such a progress has also been reflected in related authorities' social survey reports on such topics as "selling satisfaction", "service satisfaction", "new-auto quality" and "charm index", which show that the degrees of brand familiarity and satisfaction are being enhanced steadily.

However, Geely doesn't satisfy the current situation. They have mapped out the 2015 selling target with more challenges, i.e. to shape up 5 major core technologies and 15 product platforms, to launch over 40 types of autos, covering the cars of such levels as A00, A0, A, B and C, including MPV, etc, with the total sales volume of about 700,000. In the future, Geely's newly-launched auto will dazzle people, such as FE-1 and FE-2 in 2009, and SUV, MPV and better B-level cars in the early 2010.