Frustration in the high-end market has become the heart of the group Midea must break, in the recently held annual meeting in 2018, the company chairman Fang Hongbo also admitted the existence of this flaw, according to the latest news, the United States will be next month Released a new high-end brand strategy, the positioning of the new brand will be higher than Haier's Casa Imperial.Experts said that the United States want to successfully transform the high-end, in addition to the future need to balance the internal power relations, but also in all aspects of a clear and clear Image and positioning.
Ice trip
At the recent 2018 Operation and Management Conference of the United States, Fang Hongbo, chairman of Midea Group, said that the biggest regret of the United States is that in the face of the tide of consumer spending nothing and missed the high-end market, the United States will not have a new large-scale M & A within the next two years Focus on endogenous growth, promote the transformation of the Chinese market, overseas market transformation to OBM.
Fang Hongbo warned: 'The United States is still a big gap between product power, we have to know that this is our crisis. Brand power needs to be upgraded. Today's consumer upgrades have become the main driving force of China's home appliance industry competition, not the size, Not the cost, nor the channel.Our profitability is very volatile, the underlying reason behind is the transformation of the OBM (own brand) and the global operation is struggling. "
Recent news that Midea Group will release a new high-end brand strategy this year, the new brand positioning will be higher than Haier's Casa Di, the United States has formed an independent team, independent trader to operate, and the product line is ready, the product line Consistency and human-computer interaction.And, at present, in the Midea Group's various divisions, there is an intensive work to enhance the proportion of high-end products and increase the average price of the products.
For this news, the relevant person in charge of the United States told the Beijing Commercial Daily reporter that at this stage there is no news for high-end brands to share. With the upgrading of consumption and promising high-end markets, Midea has been devoting itself to meeting the needs of a vast number of consumers for a better life.
Produced by observers, Ding Technology Editor Ding technology pointed out that the reason why the United States to push the new high-end brands, on the one hand because of the trend of high-end appliance industry upgrade significantly, the United States need to have more high-end brand card market; on the other hand, Most of the products of the United States are ranked head of the industry, but the product structure there is still room for optimization, improve the proportion of high-end products contribute to higher quality development. 'There is another reason, the United States's largest rival Haier, the company's The high-end brand Casa Di has achieved staged success. As the overall revenue and Haier are close, similar high-end independent brands need to lift their profit margins to enhance their overall competitiveness.
Appliance analyst Liang Zhenpeng also pointed out that only profit high-end products, with the consumption upgrade, appliance companies want to improve the premium ability, added value, net profit, you must transform the high-end, but for the United States, based on the existing brand Direct transformation of high-end more difficult, so the best way is to launch a new high-end brand.
Sleepy high end
If you evaluate from the perspective of performance and market value, Midea Group is undoubtedly one of the most outstanding home appliance enterprises in China. At present, Midea Group's operating indicators are at the historical best level.
From 2012 to 2016, Midea Group's revenue increased from 102.6 billion yuan to 159.0 billion yuan, net profit attributable to parent company increased from 3.26 billion yuan to 14.7 billion yuan; in the first three quarters of 2017, Midea Group's revenue was 186.95 billion yuan, Net profit of 15 billion yuan, both over a year-to-year record high for 2016. In addition, in 2017, Midea Group ranked second in China's manufacturing listed companies with a market capitalization of 363 billion yuan.
However, just as Fang Hongbo described it, big but not strong, rich and not refined, is the issue that the United States must face.In the current stage of the escalation of consumption and the increasingly prominent demand for quality, the high-end brand is like a must Solve the same knot.
In fact, the United States is not without too high-end attempts.Liang Zhenpeng pointed out that the United States many years ago launched a high-end brand Van Tiro, but the brand has not been able to 'fire up', when Van Tiro is like Casa Di, is also Learn European product design concepts.
Until now, the United States and the various business segments in the terminal sales despite the abjection, but in the high-end market, the United States brand rights are relatively weak and Haier's Casa Di is actually a firm foothold in the high-end market, 2017 卡萨Emperor sold over 10 billion, the target is doubled by 2018. According to Zhong Yi Kang released the first two weeks of 2018 refrigerator market data, more than 15,000 yuan price segment, the industry's overall share of 4.98%, up 1.45% .For most brands Said the high-end refrigerators break the market is still heavy resistance, Casa Di became the only exception.The data show that Casa Di refrigerator in the 15000 yuan market share of 36.8% in more than 10,000 yuan accounted for 34.7%, ranking first, Leading German, Japanese, Korean brands.
For the beautiful high-end heart knot, Fang Hongbo frankly stated at the 2018 Annual Management Meeting: "The group level has paid no attention to the high-end brands and has been stocking for a long time. Sub-brands operate independently at the department level and are entangled with the brands of the United States. Sati was an independent operation from the very beginning, cutting everything strictly with Haier, except for the manufacture. Casa Di started with ice from Haier's strong category, while the United States was weaker in strength than Haier on ice.
It is understood that the promotion of high-end, the United States has already begun to call the advantages of multi-brand.Microsoft's acquisition of Toshiba in 2016, the Toshiba brand will be rolled out in the world will be the United States one of the next job, in addition to the United States in 2017 and Electrolux The establishment of a joint venture company, the high-end German brand AEG introduced into the country.Reportedly, in June this year, AEG will have product launches, the main project channel, positioning to see the German high-end brand Miller.
Rough road
The views of the industry mixed with the question of whether beauty's high-end brand heart knot can be solved.
Liang Zhenpeng believes that the domestic appliance business in recent years are in the high-end transformation, but the real success of the brand with very few, from product development to large-scale production design, product promotion to sales and other various aspects of business in Everyone is willing to invest in all aspects, but very few brands can survive, so the United States want to rely on a successful transformation of a new brand is very difficult.
Take Casa Di as an example, the reason why the brand can occupy a place in the high-end market, a large part of the reason is to drop out by money, in the process of quality, mold development, product design, product development capabilities, must be done Strengths, these are all necessary factors. "Liang Zhenpeng said.
Major General Ding analyzed that from the perspective of market demand, consumer upgrades are accelerating, the demand for high-end home appliances is growing rapidly, and the United States has very good market opportunities. From a perspective of capabilities, the United States has no obvious shortcomings in terms of technology, funds and channels, However, fashion, design and high-end brand-building, etc. need time precipitation.Overall, the United States have the opportunity to succeed in the high-end home appliances market.
Now it seems that the transformation of high-end beauty has been imperative.For the future, Fang Hongbo said: "Whether it is the beauty of the brand or a new sub-brand, the key is to clear and clear image and positioning, from R & D to category selection, All the work of pricing strategy and marketing channel should focus on this positioning.
Liang Zhenpeng pointed out that the advantage of Midea is that it has sufficient financial resources and rich channels. However, it must be noted that whether it is the development of molds, lean manufacturing, marketing, laying of channels, or product positioning, the corresponding talent technologies and patents, etc. If the United States wants to succeed, it must achieve its ultimate goal in all aspects.
At the technical level, the United States has a strong accumulation of R & D investment, the number of patents are among the forefront of the industry, enough to support the development of the United States's high-end brands, the United States to do is to reach consensus at the group level, coordination of different product lines Interests, give high-end brands greater autonomy, and at the brand level to a certain extent, "de-beautification," and truly establish an independent high-end brand image in the market. "
In addition, in his view, although the success of Casa Di worthy of the United States to learn from, but not directly copied because the United States present competitive environment, consumer environment and Haier was originally introduced when the Casa Di has been completely different, the United States should Itself, based on the consensus to mobilize the Group's resources, out of a unique beauty of the high-end brand development.