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General Motors Names Ritch Schaafsma Executive Vice President Of SAIC-GM-Wuling

General Motors has just appointed Ritch Schaafsma as the new Executive Vice President of SAIC-GM-Wuling, the automaker’s second joint venture in China that markets the Wuling and Baojun brands. Schaafsma will start on June 1st at the company’s headquarters located in the city of Liuzhou, in the Guangxi region of the Asian country.

In his new leadership role as SGMW Executive Vice President, Ritch Schaafsma will report to General Motors Executive Vice President and GM China President Julian Blissett. His mission is to accelerate the transformation of the two joint venture brands in order to increase their competitiveness in the Chinese market, while capitalizing on Wuling’s international expansion as a global brand.

New Wuling Global Silver logo

“Ritch brings to his new role extensive global and local experience in corporate development and business expansion,” said Julian Blissett in a statement. “He will support the continued growth of SAIC-GM-Wuling’s brands and business as the joint venture expands its global footprint,” he added.

New Baojun logo

Since 2020, Ritch Schaafsma has served as Vice President of Business Expansion at GM China, where he oversaw the development of new business models to improve profitability and General Motors’ growth in the country. Schaafsma previously served for three years as Vice President of Corporate Development for GM China.

SGMW is a three-way joint venture between GM China, SAIC and Guangxi Automobile Group, formed on November 18, 2002. It is highly popular and known for its wide range of Wuling Hong Guang commercial mini-buses that have led in sales for several years now in China. At the end of 2018, SGMW launched a strategy to expand its business to the passenger-car market.

Wuling Hong Guang MINI EV

In the era of automotive industry transformation, SGMW has made significant progress in promoting and repositioning its brands while actively driving the mass adoption of electric vehicles in the country. The new Wuling Hong Guang MINI EV, which launched in July 2020, quickly became the best-selling electric vehicle in China, and since the first quarter of this year, it’s the best-selling EV in the world.

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Deivis is an engineer with a passion for cars and the global auto business. He is constantly investigating about GM's future products.

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Comments

  1. Why is GM trying to help the Communist Chinese Government with the expansion of their business?
    Is the Communist Chinese Government trying to help the United States of America?
    Quid pro Quo is dead!

    Reply
    1. Every Western world corporation is on their hands and knees begging the Chinese to be part of their market and use their technology. There’s no growth in the US. All the growth is in China as all the CEOs know.

      Since the US was decimated in the Trump trade war and failed to respond to the pandemic, the super rich are transferring/investing their wealth at a furious pace. More than any other time in history. China has won the war without firing a single shot. Bow to your new overlord.

      Reply
    2. Communist Chinese??????????

      WTF do you think those Trump cheques and massive trillion $ stimulus distributions are? Your f’ing country is more communist/socialist than the Soviets or Chinese ever were.

      Open your eyes redneck!!!

      Reply
    3. Communist Chinese??????????

      W./- T.- / F./- do you think those cheques from the orange baboon and massive trillion $ stimulus distributions are?

      Reply
      1. Your country is more communist/socialist than the Soviets or Chinese ever were.

        Open your eyes.

        Reply
        1. your name “Nigel” I’m presuming you may be British.
          I don’t know what Country you are referring to but if
          it’s America, you may want to come up out of your
          mother’s basement and see what’s really going on in
          the world.

          Reply
      2. Nigel, please read “Chinese Communist Government”.
        Rest of your comment makes little sense.

        Reply
    4. Govt. Of Nepal is providing free land for such EV Production and expansion. The road ways in Nepal fits wuling mini ev concept. We have a investment company here in Nepal and happy to be a partner in ev parts production facility as well🙏

      Reply
      1. Greetings from MIG Holdings Limited, Nepal 🙏

        Reply
  2. They mis-spelled, Wuhan….using Muslim Wiegers labor = $$$$$$$$

    Reply
  3. Damn Nigel, your frustration for the US and Trump are misdirected…replace with Wun Dum Fuc Beijing Biden… The Chinese own the Biden family. Remember Hunter… Might as well include Russia…Comrade Biden just approved the Russian pipe line – right after cancelling our own US pipeline. My guess he owns them a favor for helping Hunter too. Guess which country manufacturers solor panels and windmills…yup, we are going to pay China for the new green steal.

    I agee, corporations see millions of Chinese future buyers. $$$$$$$$$ We pay them to make and sell and they become the industrial leader of the world. The world will be the Weiger plantation.

    Reply
  4. I’m beginning to think “GM Authority” is controlled by the CCP. Getting damn scary.

    Reply

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