GWM ORA Global Sales: 2018-2022

GWM created the ORA brand in 2018. Why? It is an electric brand to appeal to a youngwer cra buyer. The brand’s exclamation mark logo was designed to signify GWM’s determination to continuously deliver extraordinary products that "surprise and delight" consumers.

ORA stands for "Open, Reliable, and Alternative". That would mean the lettering should all be capital letters, something I haven't been doing. 

Things started slowly with a few thousand sold in the first partial year of the iQ model. Nothing to read into that. 2019 sales reached 38,900, so a solid start for a pure EV. The Black Cat model was the main model.

In 2020, the iQ was phased out. The White Cat and Good Cat models were introduced, those models had a moderate impact but a full sales year would determine their success. 56,300 sales (+45%) for ORA was a good year.

It got even better in 2021 with the three pronged 'Cat Attack'. 135,000 sales (+140%) and the claws were out. Things could only get better, surely.

But they didn't. In 2022, they axed their two best selling models as they were losing money on them. Shifting to a more premium positioning of the brand didn't work. It was for younger buyers after all.

They had been putting a lower grade chip into the Good Cat than advertised and that caused a backlash. Exports had commenced and were disappointing. 104,000 sales (-23%) was the result. 

Could GWM's ORA brand recover or fall by the wayside? The story continues here.

Data source: GWM. Photos: Good Cat (Above) & White Cat (Below).