Chinese car manufacturer Great Wall Motors will close its European offices in Munich. This will happen in August this year, and the reason is that the company is having a hard time finding buyers for the Ora and Wey product series in the Old Continent. All 100 employees will be released from the headquarters.
However, the car manufacturer will remain in the existing markets in Europe, including the one in Bulgaria, but cancels its plans to expand in other European countries. As already mentioned weak sales play a key role in the decision. Great Wall Motors has only 6,300 sales in Europe in 2023.
Statistics show that in 2023, Great Wall sold a total of 316,018 cars in its overseas markets, but only 6,300 of them were in Europe. As German media outlet Manager Magazin reports, Great Wall's offices in Munich will close at the end of August, and all 100 employees will be laid off. Despite this news, Great Wall issued a statement about its commitment to existing European markets, while acknowledging the need for adjustments amid a volatile market.
In November 2023, Great Wall Motors announced the consolidation of the Ora and Wey brands into a single unit, GWM, renaming their products accordingly. The Chinese automaker then planned an expansion into Spain, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Iceland and Bulgaria within 2024, which has now been partially cancelled. As already mentioned, this does not affect the home market.
The representative of the brand in our country commented on what was happening as follows:
In 2020, Great Wall Motor decided to centralize its business in Europe, creating its company in Germany - Great Wall Motor Deutschland GmbH, guided by the fact that it is one of the most developed and competitive markets in Europe with a long history and experience in the engineering, design and production of cars.
Considering the growth of sales in international markets, which recently represent more than 30% of the total, GWM decided to change its approach and business strategy, and as a result, the Great Wall subsidiary was recently established International Trade Company Limited, which company will focus entirely on the development and operation of all foreign markets. The newly established company will have a central role in developing overseas markets and providing sales, marketing and after-sales support, on the way to achieving the full potential of each market. To date, a large part of the markets are already managed by the newly created company, and it is expected that this will gradually happen to all markets by the end of 2024.
Given the change in overall strategy, GWM has decided to close Great Wall Motor Deutschland GmbH, relocating some of its employees to other locations, but keeping Europe as its priority market to develop. All activities for the implementation of GWM's business strategy in Europe, which includes entering new markets, creating new and upgrading existing distribution networks, introducing new product lines, as well as the ongoing studies of localization opportunities, by establishing productions in Europe, will be taken over by the newly created company.
The future of the company and its products are exciting, and its presence and development in the European market – for sure. The company and the exceptional partnership in the person of BAI, with its growing product portfolio, will continue to delight its Bulgarian customers by providing them with a comfortable and safe journey, with class and style for every character.
The closure of the European office means that overall management will now be carried out directly from the headquarters in Baoding, China. The GWM range currently includes the Ora 03 (formerly known as the Ora Funky Cat) as well as the Wey 03 and 05 SUV models. Haval models are also sold in our country. The most luxurious model of the Chinese at the moment is Wey 05. It remains to be seen if the European debut of the Panamera-style GMW Ora 07 sedan will take place in the summer of 2024, as originally announced.