Baojun resets positioning of SAIC-GM-Wuling’s first sedan to be delayed

The Baojun 630, which was scheduled to be listed in the near future, has slowed down the pace of emergency operations.

Since the release of its own brand Baojun in the middle of last year, SAIC-GM-Wuling has been in full swing to prepare for the launch of the first new model. According to the original schedule, this new model will be available at the end of June or early July, but SAIC-GM-Wuling has already postponed. The time for Baojun to be listed may be extended by two weeks or one month.

According to reports, SAIC-GM-Wuling will reposition the "Baojun" brand and improve Baojun's first model 630. The preparations for the new car have not been fully completed and may be the main reason why Bao Jun delayed the listing.

The SAIC-GM-Wuling Public Relations Department responded to the reporters of the "Daily Economic News". "At present, Baojun 630 is advancing in an orderly manner according to our existing market rules. All preparatory work before the listing is also underway."

Not willing to operate low-end brand

SAIC-GM-Wuling’s joint-venture brand “Bao Jun” once released the first new model Baojun 630 during this year’s Shanghai Auto Show. According to the original schedule, this new car will be available at the end of June or early July. However, after collecting feedback from multiple parties, SAIC-GM-Wuling decided to adjust the positioning of the "Baojun" brand before "closing the door."

A few days ago, a person close to the SAIC-GM-Wuling told reporters that "Baojun started this year at the Shanghai Auto Show, which received feedback from many consumers and the media, and therefore needs to make changes in the interior design, and is now undergoing corresponding adjustments. ."

"From the perspective of consumer feedback, most people are satisfied with the appearance of Baojun 630, but think that the interior needs to be upgraded." The above person said.

During this year's Shanghai Auto Show, General Manager of SAIC-GM-Wuling-Shenyang also acknowledged that the market positioning of Baojun 630 changed during an interview. Shenyang said that "the Baojun 630 has a clear positioning in the early period, but with the collection of various information feedback, we decided to change our position."

SAIC-GM-Wuling’s publicist also confirmed that “the Baojun 630 did not ship to the market because of adjustments. Originally, the time to market was expected to be at the end of June or early July. The time is uncertain.”

According to industry analysts, according to the previous GM's architecture in Chinese brands, rankings from high to low should be Cadillac, Buick, Chevrolet, and finally the new brand Po Chun founded with SAIC; among them, Baojun will focus on the low-end car market to avoid The Chevrolet brand competes directly.

But from the point of view of General Motors' current formations, the Chevrolet brand has an “upside-up” trend. The recently listed Chevrolet Aveo Europe shows Chevrolet's strategy of arranging a boutique car with a price of less than 100,000 yuan. Provides more market space for Baojun.

Shenyang confirmed this judgment to reporters. He disclosed that “the original positioning is still relatively low, because at the beginning we lacked confidence in ourselves, and the results became more and more confident. The Wuling brand has a premium of at least 8% compared with similar brands in the market. We hope Baojun brand first. One step is to go steady and gradually establish a premium for this brand.”

“From the brand operation point of view, we also hope to run a strong, image-oriented brand. This way the brand under the brand will sell well. No brand is willing to do the low end.” An unnamed SAIC-GM-Wuling executive said "Operating the Po Chun brand will give SAIC-GM-Wuling's management more say. In the past, when using other people's brands, every design improvement must seek the opinions of its 'owner'. Their opinions are often inconsistent with ours. It is SAIC-GM-Wuling’s own brand. We can design the model we want based on market demand.”



According to report, the Baojun brand's models are also planned to be exported to overseas markets, but SAIC-GM-Wuling senior officials denied that Baojun models will be linked to the Chevrolet brand overseas. This is an important reason that SAIC-GM-Wuling owns brand rights.

Carefully launch new brands

Due to previous failures in the development of a passenger car, SAIC-GM-Wuling summarized its experience and lessons, and was extremely cautious about every step of Baojun's new brand promotion. Yang Jie, general manager of SAIC-GM-Wuling Sales, stated that "the construction of the new brand is based on the product. The first impression of the Baojun 630 on the customer is very important because it represents a brand new brand."

However, in Baojun’s initial sales, SAIC-GM-Wuling executives stated that they should be lightly loaded. Yang Jie told reporters: "We did not say how much sales must be completed, and we did not set specific targets. We are cautious about the expansion of the network and the recruitment of distributors."

Along with the delay in the time to market of the Baojun 630, the affected dealers will also be affected by the construction and operation of the Baojun brand dealer network. The reporter learned from Shanghai's only Baojun dealer, Shanghai Chida Automobile Sales & Service Co., Ltd., that the Baojun brand store is still under construction. At present, there is no Baojun 630 sample car to Shanghai, and bookings are not accepted.

“This year, there will be more than 150 dealers in the Po Chun brand. There will be 100 dealers before the listing.” Yang Jie said, “We prefer to just start walking a little more stable, or blindly open a lot of stores, But the product hasn't kept up and it doesn't work."