Gasgoo.com (Shanghai August 30) - Great Wall is currently not in the process of restructuring its brand structure, cyol.net reported today, citing statements made by manufacturer Chairman Wei Jianjun. In a statement on the issue, Mr. Wei said although the manufacturer had previously formulated such plans, there had been no new developments. "Several people, including our friends in the media, have previously recommended that we proceed extremely cautiously [when tackling this issue]."
Mr. Wei was very clear that the recent reports of what new logos Great Wall has decided upon and other specifics are purely speculation on part of the media. Several analysts believe that Mr. Wei's guarded response on the subject is due to the increasing difficulties own brands are facing, as well as the fact that similar brand reorganization programs done by other manufacturer have failed to live up to expectations.
Additionally, Great Wall's previous plan to restructure its sales network did not bring in stellar results. At that time, Great Wall established independent sales channels for its SUVs, pickup trucks and sedans. However, due to lack or product variety for the sedan and pickup lines, as well as poor sales in Beijing and other top cities, the plan was poorly received by many dealerships. The plan was reportedly only successful in Sichuan's capital of Chengdu and a handful of other cities. Commenting on the plan, Mr. Wei noted that, "[it] was not a matter of simply separating [the networks], but is actually a very long and complicated process."
Great Wall sold a total of 279,300 vehicles over the first six months of the year. That figure is equivalent to year-on-year growth of 17 percent, far above the industry average. Even more importantly, the manufacturer's net profits in the first half of 2011 grew a full 31.81 percent, finishing at 2.81 billion yuan ($444.01m).
