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"Good air conditioning made by Gree"
This is a slogan I often heard when I was a child. ….
Undoubtedly, among many air-conditioning brands in China, Gree’s position at the top of sales volume has been stable for many years, which can be regarded as "a monopoly".
However, up to now, Gree’s "overlord" status is no longer guaranteed.
Just because the air-conditioning market has emerged as a dark horse, with a daily income of one billion, it has become the "outstanding" in the air-conditioning field in China.
Dong Mingzhu, this name is almost unknown in China’s home appliance industry and even the whole business community.
She is the chairman and president of Gree Electric, and is known as the strongest female president in China.
Under her leadership, Gree has developed from a small factory to the largest air conditioner manufacturer in the world.
She dares to innovate and challenge, which enables Gree brand to transform from "Made in China" to "Created in China".
Dong Mingzhu was born in an ordinary family in 1954, and he showed the characteristics of intelligence and diligence from an early age.
After studying in school, she worked as an administrator in a chemical research institute in Nanjing. However, when her life was getting on the right track, a sudden change changed everything.
In 1984, Dong Mingzhu’s husband died of illness, leaving her and her newborn son behind.
It was the darkest moment of her life.
Many people will be devastated in the face of such a blow, but Dong Mingzhu didn’t. She knows that she should not only live, but also live more wonderfully, for herself and for her children.
She is determined to leave her stable job and go to Guangdong to find her own new life.
During her stay in Guangdong, she saw Haili Air Conditioner Factory recruiting salesmen, and the commission she gave was very high.
In 1990, she entered Haili Air Conditioning Factory.
At that time, the air-conditioning market was in a period of rapid growth, and the competition was increasingly fierce.
Dong Mingzhu’s sales ability was quickly revealed.
Not afraid of hardship, she traveled all over the streets of Guangdong and even went deep into remote rural areas to sell Haili’s products to customers.
Two years later, Dong Mingzhu created sales of up to 16 million yuan in Anhui, accounting for one-eighth of the company’s turnover that year.
At that time, her performance was the first in the company.
In 1994, great personnel changes took place in Haili Air Conditioner Factory, and many experienced salespeople chose to leave and look for their next home.
But Dong Mingzhu persisted, and she knew faithful wife’s truth.
Her determination and excellent sales ability won the recognition of management.
Finally, she was appointed as the director of the operation department and began to be fully responsible for the operation and management of the company.
Under the leadership of Dong Mingzhu, the company has undergone earth-shaking changes.
She developed a series of bold marketing strategies and promoted product development and innovation with the team.
Soon, the brand Gree began to emerge in the domestic and international markets.
In 2001, she was just appointed as the president of Gree, and a sense of mission was kindled in her heart. It is urgent to rectify the style of cadres and establish a new business philosophy.
She made clear Gree’s direction: not making low-end products, insisting on technological innovation and enhancing brand value.
In order to achieve this goal, she promoted Gree’s R&D department to tackle key technical problems and continuously introduce high-quality air-conditioning products. She also asked the marketing team to strengthen brand building to ensure that Gree’s image is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.
Unexpectedly, Dong Mingzhu boldly put forward the policy of "ten-year replacement".
This decision is almost unheard of in the home appliance industry.
With the passage of time, the quality and reputation of Gree air conditioners have been continuously improved.
Users know that this is an air conditioner that can be used for ten years.
If there is a problem, they can rest assured to find Gree to solve it.
It is with confidence in products that Gree Air Conditioning has quickly become one of the most influential and competitive home appliance brands in China, with a total of 200 million users worldwide.
By the end of 2019, with a wealth of $7.3 billion, she ranked 48th on Forbes China’s Rich List and became one of the richest women in China.
However, although Gree is far ahead in the market, the pressure of competition has never subsided. Behind her, there is a powerful opponent who is catching up, and that is Midea Group.
With their strong R&D team and diversified product lines, they are catching up in the home appliance industry.
Midea Group was established in 1968. He Xiangjian and 23 fellow villagers raised 5,000 yuan to start with. At first, it produced glass bottles and plastic bottles, and later turned to hardware products.
In 1980, He Xiangjian developed the first 40 cm iron desk fan and began to set foot in the household appliance industry.
The following year, Midea brand was officially registered and began to produce air conditioners, becoming the first enterprise in Guangdong with independent import and export operation rights.
In 1993, Midea Electric was listed on Shenzhen Stock Exchange, becoming the first listed company in China to restructure township enterprises.
However, shortly after listing, due to the decline in net profit of Bank of America and the economic crisis, the sales of air conditioners in the United States declined.
In response to the crisis, He Xiangjian adopted the business division system and divided the company into five departments, including air conditioners, kitchen utensils, electrical appliances and compressors.
In 1998, the 30th anniversary of the establishment of Midea Group, the business division system achieved initial results, income and profits gradually picked up, and enterprises began to expand their sales scope, going out of Guangdong and facing the whole country.
At the beginning of the 21st century, Midea tried to diversify its development, but He Xiangjian adjusted its strategy in time, focused on the home appliance industry, and made a series of successful acquisitions.
In 2010, Midea Group’s annual revenue exceeded 110 billion RMB.
However, the household appliance industry has gradually turned into a buyer’s market, and consumers’ requirements for quality have increased, which has brought new challenges to Midea and led to the decline of its brand position.
Gree air conditioning has gradually become a market leader.
In 2012, Midea’s air conditioners faced an unprecedented crisis.
Under the double pressure of economic slowdown and intensified market competition, only half of the production lines in the factory are in operation, and orders are rapidly decreasing.
The top management of Midea knows that it is far from enough to survive in the fierce market competition.
Subsequently, the company decided to make a bold decision: increase investment in research and development and innovation, and find a breakthrough.
They invested a lot of money and introduced top foreign scientists and engineers.
Fortunately, Midea’s choice was correct, and the new R&D team quickly brought a breakthrough. They developed a series of more efficient and environmentally friendly air-conditioning products.
The company began to recover gradually and the production line was busy again.
In 2014, Xiaomi Technology decided to invest in beauty strategically.
Midea’s brand image has also gradually shifted from a traditional home appliance manufacturer to an innovator of intelligent technology.
In 2016, Midea Group finally reached an important milestone-it entered the Fortune Global 500 list for the first time, ranking 481st.
There is a tendency to surpass Gree.
Over the years, the war between the two air-conditioning giants has never stopped, and even intensified.
But the gap is not obvious.
The watershed occurred in 2020 when the epidemic broke out.
In 2020, Gree will occupy 36.9% of China’s air-conditioning market and remain a leading brand.
Still in that year, Midea surpassed Gree in revenue for the first time, and the growth rate of revenue continued to climb.
From 2020 to 2022, Gree’s annual revenue was 170.497 billion yuan, 189.654 billion yuan and 190.151 billion yuan respectively, which was lower than 200 billion yuan for three consecutive years. In the same period, Midea’s revenue increased from 285.71 billion yuan to 345.709 billion yuan.
In the first half of 2023, Midea’s revenue was 197.796 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.69%; Gree’s revenue was 99.79 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.16%.
Midea’s revenue in air conditioning business is 92.006 billion yuan, Gree is 69.998 billion yuan, and Midea is 22.008 billion yuan higher than Gree.
In this regard, industry experts said that according to the financial report data, Midea’s revenue is significantly ahead of Gree. From this perspective, Midea is a veritable "air conditioner brother" in the current domestic air conditioning industry.
If last year’s data is not enough to support the accuracy of the information, let’s take a look at this year’s.
On the evening of April 29th, Midea Group (000333) released its financial report for the first quarter of 2024, with an operating income of 106.102 billion yuan (Gree was only over 70 billion yuan), a year-on-year increase of 10.22%, a record high in a single quarter;
The net profit of returning to the mother was 9 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 11.91%; The net profit of non-homecoming was 9.237 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 20.39%;
The basic earnings per share is 1.31 yuan. Cash flow from operating activities increased by 50% to 13.9 billion yuan.
In fact, in the wave of e-commerce, Midea has already been one step ahead of others, occupying most of the market share.
Nowadays, when you search for air conditioners online, the top few search results are almost all occupied by beauty.
In contrast, Gree’s performance in the e-commerce market is much bleak.
Why can Midea be so strong in the field of e-commerce?
The reason is not only because their air conditioners are of good quality.
Over the years, Midea has successfully built a strong brand image with its diversified product line of small household appliances.
Whether it is a rice cooker, microwave oven or electric kettle, beautiful products always give people a reliable and durable feeling.
This good reputation has attracted a large number of consumers, further boosting the expansion of Midea in the e-commerce market.
In today’s era of consumers’ pursuit of convenience, Midea skillfully uses the channel advantages of e-commerce, so that consumers can buy the products they need without leaving home.
On the other hand, Gree still has strong competitiveness in the traditional market, but in the field of e-commerce, their pace is obviously slow.
He Xiangjian and Dong Mingzhu, as two giants in China’s household appliances industry, have totally different styles.
He Xiangjian has always kept a low profile and rarely appeared in public.
Dong Mingzhu, on the other hand, was active in various TV programs and was once called "online celebrity".
Some people say that He Xiangjian’s low profile is the secret of beauty’s success.
Instead of flaunting it in public, he prefers to immerse himself in innovation and focus on products and technologies to provide consumers with a better home appliance experience.
Dong Mingzhu’s "online celebrity" route, although attracting a lot of attention, may sometimes distract the company’s attention.
What do you think of this?
Information source: official website, Gree Electric, March 27th, 2024-ranked first for 12 consecutive years, and the market scale of Gree central air-conditioning continued to lead in 2023!
Information source: China. com September 02, 2021-Midea and Gree both claim to be the first in market share. Who is the king of air conditioning?
Reference: Securities Times April 29, 2024-Midea Group’s revenue increased by 10.22% in the first quarter, hitting a record high in a single quarter.
