Dissatisfied with its share of the white household appliances market, GD Midea Holding Co., Ltd. is striving to catch up with the outrunners like Haier Group and Gree Electric Appliances Inc of Zhuhai.
Midea managed to complete the two-year assets integration at the end of 2009, said Fang Hongbo, chairman for the Foshan-based company, in an interview, describing the assets consolidation as tough in the past two years.
The company beefed up its air conditioner sales network in the third- and fourth-tier cities across the country in the second half of 2009, shortening its distance with bigger rivals, said Mr. Fang. Currently, Midea lags behind Gree in air conditioner sales revenue, ranking second among all the makers in the country. Midea saw its air conditioner sales volume at home stand around 4 million less than that posted by Gree in 2009, although it dwarfed the latter with an export volume of 6 million.
An access to the US market as well as a broader presence in the rural area in China will pave the way for the company to stand toe-to-toe with its archrivals in the future, pointed out Mr. Fang, noting that Midea has been authorized to tap into the variable frequency air conditioner market in the US previously.
Midea wins a bidding invitation to market 82 models of variable frequency air conditioners under 17 types in the government-initiated household appliances promotion campaign in the vast rural market this year, according to a shortlist unveiled by the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) on February 4.
In addition, Midea sets an aim to overtake Haier Group, the No. One washing machine maker in the country. To complete the goal, the household appliances giant will invest more than CNY 1 billion to set up two washing machine production bases in Jingzhou and Guangzhou this year.
Net profits generated by the three brands under the helm of Wuxi Little Swan Company Limited , a washing machine unit of Midea, are expected to reach CNY 260 million-CNY 280 million in 2009, approaching those reported by the washing machine operation of Haier Group.
The competition between the big two companies in the washing machine arena will get fiercer in the future, predicted Zhang Xiaoga, an analyst at Orient Securities Co., Ltd., noting that Midea managed to bring its washing machine sales revenue CNY 3 billion smaller than that posted by Haier last year.
Source: SinoCast
