Huawei has set up a project group related to its automotive business, headed by Wang Yanmin, formerly president of the Global Ecological Development Department, Tencent News reported on April 28.
Unlike the car BU, the project group is specifically responsible for the development of the automotive category within the Huawei Store, the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Wang's position has been taken over by Walter Ji, president of Huawei's European consumer business, the report said.
Smart cars require more investment in product planning, channel sales, and other services, and there will be more product launches with car companies in the future, so a separate project team is to be set up, said the person familiar with the matter.
At the Shanghai auto show, Huawei announced it started selling cars in its store and launched the Seres SF5 SUV in partnership with DFSK, and will also create sub-brands with GAC and Changan Automobile.
The US sanctions have sent Huawei's cell phone sales plummeting, with shipments of less than 20 million units in the first quarter of this year, dropping it out of the top five.
Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei's consumer business, previously said that the only thing that can make up for the lack of phone sales is smart electric cars, whose sales are not as big as phones, but it has a very high unit price.
Currently Huawei's biggest concern is how to protect the development and stability of the channel under the lack of cell phone supply, the report quoted analysts as saying.
Selling cars is different from selling mobile phones, and stores and strategies need to be readjusted, which is a great test for the channel, the report said.
Last week, at Huawei's global flagship store on Nanjing Road in Shanghai, Yu announced it would start selling cars in its flagship store.
Huawei has more than 5,000 high-end experience stores, far more than BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla and the new car makers, Yu said.
"It's a huge advantage for us, covering every important city in China," he stated.
The first model to go on sale in Huawei's channel is the Seres SF5, which will enter Huawei's stores and flagship stores and be sold under the Huawei Zhixuan brand.
The Seres SF5 is a hybrid vehicle with extended-range technology and is available in two versions, with the 4WD version priced at RMB 246,800 ($38,000) and the 2WD version priced at RMB 216,800.
The car is available for pre-order online and offline from April 21, through Huawei Experience Store, Huawei Store, Seres Experience Center, and Seres app.
As of 24:00 on April 22, Seres SF5 has exceeded 3,000 orders after two days of pre-order, according to the data announced by Seres on Friday.
First new energy car model sold by Huawei exceeds 3,000 orders in two days
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