Case 17Haier Group: Internationalization Strategy*
The transformation of the bankrupt Qingdao General Refrigerator Factory into the Haier Group, the world's biggest supplier of household appliances, is an epic tale that symbolizes China's rise to become the world's dominant manufacturing economy. In the process, Haier's CEO, Zhang Ruimin, has become a national hero and internationally‐renowned business leader who has been ranked among the world's top‐50 management thinkers.1
Since 2012, Euromonitor has recognized Haier as the world's leading white goods producer in terms of units sold. In terms of revenues, the ranking is less clear (see Table 1). This is due to the complex legal structure of the Haier Group: financial data is only available for Haier's listed subsidiaries, Qingdao Haier and Haier Electronics. However, with Haier's acquisition of General Electric's appliance division in 2016, it appears that Haier has become the world's biggest domestic appliance company in terms of both output and revenues.
TABLE 1 The world's leading domestic appliance companies, 2018
Source: Forbes Global 2000, 2018.
| Ranka | Company | Country | Sales ($bn.) | Profits ($bn.) | Assets ($bn.) | MarketValue ($bn.) | Employeesb |
| #245 | Midea Group | China | 37.8 | 2.7 | 40.1 | 55.7 | 96,418 |
| #294 | Gree Electric Appliances | China | 23.9 | 3.6 | 34.7 | 45.1 | 71,610 |
| #565 | Qingdao Haierc | China | 24.6 | 1.1 | 24.6 | 17.3 | 74,570 |
| #748 | LG Corp | South Korea | 9.1 | 2.1 | 20.2 | 13.3 | 16,096 |
| #1042 | Whirlpool | US | 21.4 | 0.3 | 20.3 | 11.0 | 93,000 ... |
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