General Motors’ offer in China needs to be overhauled, says new GM in the country, Julian Blisset, on Wednesday.
More attention to luxury cars, new technologies and attractive models at the bottom and top of the market should boost sales and increase profitability. GM has been doing very well in China for years, thanks in part to the success of brands such as Buick and the Chinese brands Baojun and Wuling. However, the number of registrations dropped to 3.1 million last year, where 4 million should be the norm, according to Blisset.
Partly for this reason, Wuling, just like Baojun, must eventually focus more on affordable electric city cars. The traditional GM brands Cadillac, Chevrolet and Buick should focus on luxury SUVs and preferably electric ones. Blisset: “Chinese consumers are embracing technology, including those in the car and under the bonnet. The electrification of the offer will go much faster here than in Europe and the United States; we have to get ahead of that with electric models.”