Gree Air Conditioning: Ten years greener and greater

MANILA, Philippines - Most Filipinos would agree that it’s hard to live without air conditioning. But while aircon was once a luxury reserved for hotels, mansions and megalithic malls, now one in 10 Philippine households have at least one space-cooling system. And with the current threat of El Niño and the new “normal” of 40-degree summers, that number is expected to rise quicker than our thermometers.

“As of today, the total size of the appliance market is about P110 billion. Out of the total consumer appliance market, 20 percent belongs to the air conditioner category, and it is expected to grow up to four percent over the next three years,” explained Anthony Andrada, general manager of Filipina Climate Solutions, Inc. as Gree Electric Appliance Inc. of Zhuhai marked its 10th year of making our living and working spaces a little bit cooler.

Host and Ugong Trade & Holdings chairman Jesus Pineda, Jr. opened his sprawling West Greenhills home, brimming with religious antiques and contemporary art, to mark the milestone. Pineda, in 2005, became sole distributor in the Philippines of the Chinese air conditioning brand that is quickly gaining wind in the global appliance industry.

“During that time, we were in the business of lighting distribution. We did not know how big or what the potential of the appliance business was in the Philippines for a brand like Gree,” recalled his son, Juan Carlos Pineda, president of Ugong Trade & Holdings. “There was a lot of skepticism in introducing a Chinese brand to the Philippine market. We understood that it was going to be a tough battle to compete against well-known Japanese, American and Korean brands,” he added.

“There were several dealers who rejected our offer to sell Gree in their stores for two reasons. First, there were no after-sales service to attend to their repairs and maintenance. And second, there were no available spare parts to service the repairs,” Jesus shared. “After reviewing these complains, I personally talked to each chief executive of these companies and promised them I would come back in six to 12 months and that we would have service centers and spare parts.”

Cool solutions: An inverter makes it possible to control the variable refrigerant flow in an air-conditioning unit, making it more efficient and less energy-consuming. Gree’s inverter series come in a range of models that match each Filipino’s way of life — the window-type inverter (above) is perfect for the clever family who likes to save on money and energy, while its electronic split-type (below) inverter is for the smart home owner who likes it sleek and remote-controlled, and the standing-type inverter (right) is for the intelligent executive who likes to operate and entertain in style.

Now, Gree Air Conditioning has 116 service centers nationwide, dedicated to after-sales service for design, installation and preventive maintenance. It is also being carried in 287 retail outlets around the country. “The most important thing in building a brand is to be able to deliver what you have committed to your market,” the elder Pineda said. He also knows a successful distribution business is largely dependent on strong retail partnerships, even time-forged business relationships.

“We would like to thank our dealers, for, without them, we would have had a hard time penetrating the Philippine market,” Jesus stressed, addressing the support of Star Appliance Inc., Robinsons Appliances, Ansons Emporium, Automatic Centre, S&R Membership Shopping, K Servico Trading, Duty Free Philippines, and Emcor Inc. for carrying Gree Air-Conditioners in their retail outlets for the previous decade, cementing its foothold in the country’s air conditioning stake with a reasonable and equitable market share.

“We are now looking forward to a new phase in the life of the Gree brand in the Philippines. We plan to make every home, every office and every establishment a Gree cold spot,” said the younger Juan Carlos. To better expand the brand’s market share, projected to double by 2020, his new Filipina Climate Solutions, Inc. will be devising ways of better addressing each market segment.

“What we did was define our market in terms of purchasing and market behavior,” shares general manager Anthony Andrada. Filipina Climate Solutions, Inc. identified the Class D market, the largest economic segment in the country, as “Basic Seekers,” or entry-level air conditioning consumers who opt for the most affordable units. For them, Gree has compact window-type units that are priced below P10,000. Class C, on the other hand, are called “Practical Users,” most concerned with cost of ownership and savings in electrical consumption. They are best addressed with Gree’s window-type inverter models, with power consumption as low as 740 watts. For the rising middle class which is adopting the trend of split-type units, Gree has a lineup of sleek and slim non-inverter and inverter models. And finally, for Class A & B, or what they call “Premium Seekers,” Gree’s multi-variable units make it possible to keep every corner of their homes perpetually climate-controlled. 

Yet, as Gree Electric Appliance Inc. proved, even these existing models could soon be outdated. China produces 60 million air-conditioning units per year, and newer forms of air conditioning are quickly developing. “Our secret is that we focus on research and development of our core technology, and producing durable products,” said Gree Electric Appliance Inc. overseas sales director Chen Shaolin of the company’s 120-hectare manufacturing base in Zhuhai.

“Currently, the world is experiencing energy and Internet revolutions. We are very active in capturing these new trends, to utilize the mobile Internet, and develop energy-saving products, as well as those that use clean and alternative energies to better improve quality of life,” Shaolin added. Gree, which has 5,000 PhD holders in its R&D department, will soon roll out solar-powered air conditioning units, as well as a new line of inverters that require only five watts to power 2.5 horsepower air conditioners. This leap has made it possible for Gree to join the Global 500 companies this year, with international revenues of over $20 billion annually.    

“We’re moving forward to energy saving, and we plan to promote this new line of air conditioners starting next year,” Jesus Pineda promised. That would mean more Filipinos will enjoy the benefits of cooler, cleaner air, and more climate-controlled living spaces for a fraction of our energy-consumption costs. That would also mean more and more Filipino families will soon be switching on Gree air conditioners in their own homes.

“We are proud that we are the exclusive distributors of Gree in this country, because we believe that Gree, over time, will be the leading air conditioner manufacturer in the world,” Jesus Pineda said.