Chinese auto major Great Wall Motor Company (GWM) is all set to start operations in India and is already in the process of manufacturing its Haval brand of sports utility vehicles (SUVs) at Talegaon (Maharashtra), in a plant acquired from General Motors. The company will also invest $1 billion in India over the next few years in brand building, marketing, supply chain and research & development (R&D). In an interview with BusinessLine , Hardeep S Brar, Director – Marketing & Sales, GWM, said the company would start selling cars from 2021. Excerpts from the wide-ranging interview:

With a full-fledged presence in the Auto Expo this year, it appears you have begun brand building in India...

Yes, our brand premiere is at this Auto Expo, but our journey in India began in in 2016 as a pilot with our R&D Centre in Bengaluru, which has been doing a lot of work for our global business but also kind of understanding the Indian market as well. So, it took us four times really to get into the Indian market and a lot of work has gone into that. We have also announced today an investment of $1 billion in India and this comes across in all areas, including manufacturing, R&D, supply chain and, of course, a big chunk on marketing and sales. These are the four areas where we are making investments. We are showcasing our SUV range as well as some of the EVs and we will see what is the response of the Indian consumer. We are starting our operations sometime next year (2021) with the Haval range of SUVs, which has been the number one brand in North China, consecutively for the last six years.

Why focus only on SUVs and EVs?

You would have seen in the automotive market over the last few years that the SUV segment is the one which is growing and even in the last year’s numbers we have seen while overall segments are down, the SUV range has grown. And, that clearly shows the shift towards SUVs and companies are preferring to get into that space. So, I think the strength of SUVs that we have and the way India is moving there, we are going in the same direction and that is why it would be right time for us to enter into the market with that. The second space is getting into Electric and that is another mainstay of GWM and that's what we are looking at. We will be launching two brands in India – Haval brands of SUVs and GWM Electric for the EVs – and these will be representative of what we have globally. We also have in display the concepts of plug-in hybrid and Vision 2025 to represent our future products.

How strong is your R&D here and what role does it play in your global operations?

Our core strength lies in a whole lot of R&D, which means that even on the powertrain front we are doing a lot of electrification even going up to fuel-cell vehicles. Though we have traditional ICE vehicles, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and a pure electric the on road already, that is a continuous process. So, we are working on all categories in the R&D centre from all these aspects. We have around 150 engineers in the Bengaluru Centre and will hire more to develop future products.

What will be your USP to sell these vehicles, especially with the ‘Chinese product’ perception in the minds of customers here?

First of all, we are a global brand. We are already present in 60 countries, and practically all the continents. And yes, we need to build a brand for India as well, because the brand is not known here. So, we have to do a lot of brand building, and at the core of our brand building is our products. On the perceptions, you know our products will be intelligent in terms of both safety as well as connectivity. We are talking about a lot more technology and features that no one has built so far. And, when we talk about intelligent safety, it is not only safety when the crash happens, but what we call active safety features, which do not let the accidents happen. Our designs are also aligned to global norms and there will be no compromise towards the quality of the products.

What will be the production capacity at the plant? What kind of modifications are you doing to suit your vehicles?

For the first year, we are looking at production capacity of 1.37 lakh units and we are doing all the modifications in terms of lines, dyeing and fixtures. The plant was manufacturing only small cars (the GM plant manufactured the Chevrolet Beat for export) so we will need some kind of modifications for bigger cars. But, the plant is ready, which is why we are able to announce our launches from 2021.

Are you also looking at retaining employees who worked for GM?

We will take over the plant sometime in the second half of this year (as per agreements) and that’s when we start our work. On the hiring part, those things will unfold as we move forward; right now we can't give you an exact number. Right now, what we are sure of is that the investment we’re going to make and of course, the people, will be very important. But, as per GM’s statement, they will settle with all the present workers. We may do some rehiring of the same people. But, it will be very difficult to give any number right now.

You said your products will be technology-rich in terms of software as well as hardware. What about the security and privacy aspects of customers, especially as Data Privacy Act is also coming soon?

IIn terms of data security, of course it is a global concern and in India as well, and every country frames its own rules. So, we would adhere to whatever norms and regulations are laid down by the Government of India. All that would naturally be adhered to. There's no question about that. It all depends on where you store your data and we will adhere to all the rules framed by the government.

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