Great Wall officially establishes independent sales network for Haval brand

Gasgoo.com (Shanghai April 2) - Great Wall Motor's independent sales network for its Haval SUVs has officially begun operation, the National Business Daily reported today, citing an announcement made by the manufacturer in Beijing. Great Wall will operate the new Haval sales network alongside its main sales network simultaneously.

According to Great Wall Board Chairman Wei Jianjun, the Haval vehicles will be adorned with a new logo. R&D, production and customer service for the Haval brand will also be done independently. Mr. Wei also made sure to point out that only Great Wall's 'H' series of SUVs will be sold via the Haval brand, while the 'M' series of SUVs will continue to be sold by Great Wall. It will take around three years to develop all of the necessary facilities for the Haval brand to be entirely independent from Great Wall's main sales network.

In contrast with Great Wall, many other domestic own brand manufacturers, such as Chery and Geely, have rescinded multi-brand strategies and returned or are returning to single brand strategies. Commenting on the issue, Mr. Wei emphasized that "the Haval brand strategy was not made overnight [and] is based on market [experience]."

2013 marks the tenth year anniversary of Great Wall's Haval SUV series. Over one million Haval SUVs have been sold since its launch. The manufacturer sold a total of 621,400 vehicles last year, with 280,000 of those sales being of SUVs. The Haval series constitutes 45 percent of Great Wall's total vehicle sales, and is its main profit earner.