Branding China : How Huawei started?
[see also our focus on Xiaomi]
Huawei transformed from small sales agent company to multinational Networking Corporation in just 25 years. It is also the largest telecommunications equipment maker with 21 R&D institutions all over the worlds including Europe and the USA. About half of the 140,000 employees of Huawei are working in research centers around the world including the USA, Europe, South America and Asia. At the end of 2013, company recorded CNY240 billion profits, which is more than 2 times higher than in 2012. Nowadays, its products and services are sold in more that 140 countries and it currently serves to 45 out of 50 world largest telecoms providers.
Huawei entered telecommunication market through innovation and technological firsts
As mentioned above, the company was starting as a sales agent for a Hong Kong firm. It was founded it 1987 by former military officer Ren Zhengfei as a public company owned by employees with initial capital of RMB 21,000. During the first 6 years after the foundation, the company was accumulating knowledge about private branch exchange (PBE) technologies and conducting its own research in the area. In 1992, it started to produce its own PBE and introduced its C&C08 digital telephone switch, which had the largest switching capacity in China at that time. This technological achievement and the efficient branding strategy in China allowed the company entering the mainstream telecommunications market.
International development of Huawei
Since 1997, Huawei started its overseas expansion from the contract with Hong Kong company Hutchison Whampoa providing them with fixed-line network products. Later on, the company started to expand its production lines by launching wireless GSM-based products, CDMA and UMTS. The first research center was opened in India, Bangalore for further development of new production lines. In the next few years the company was opening new R&D centers worldwide to accumulate new knowledge and promote innovation. It became a member of International Telecommunications Union in 2001 reaching the sales level of US$552 million.
Since 2004, Huawei has started to develop its branding overseas and actively integrate with foreign communications market and signed contracts with many leading foreign companies such as Vodafone and British Telecom for further co-operation and research. In 2005, for the first time in the history of the company, foreign orders exceeded domestic sales. It leaded Huawei to be the first Chinese telecommunications equipment supplier having Approved Supplier Status from Vodafone Global Supply Chain.
Huawei does strong investment in R&D
Until now, Huawei has been opening new R&D centers in Australia and India to promote new technology and strengthen relationship with European countries. In 2010, the company was included in Global Fortune 500 list published by American magazine Fortune. Its innovative techniques in managing the company, developing branding strategy and improving technology resulted in its rapid growth and global competitiveness.
As it mentioned above, Huawei is a fast growing company, which started its way from distributing PBE for Hong Kong firm and transformed into global corporation for less than 30 years. Its global recognition and competitiveness were reached by means of high level of investment in research centers all over the world. Due to new lines and product improvement its connections abroad growth and strengthen every year.
See also: branding in China
Sources:
