Honor distances itself from Huawei in new brand strategy

Budget Chinese phone maker, Honor, outlined late last week its new brand strategy as it kicks off the year as a fully independent company, aiming to broaden its scope onto various other technologies.

During a livestreamed event, George Zhao, CEO of Honor Device Co., Ltd unveiled a slate of new products for 2021, including the Honor View40 smartphone. The occasion also saw the unveiling of Honor’s new slogan, “Go Beyond,” which describes the company’s ambition to become a global iconic tech brand by offering innovative, high-quality products with proven reliability.

“We are so grateful for the long-standing support of our loyal consumers and partners who have been by our side over the last seven years. Our customers are our number one priority, and as we embark on this exciting new chapter, we are dedicated to going above and beyond to create a new intelligent world for everyone around the globe,” said Zhao during the event.

The former Huawei subsidiary said that it will focus on three key pillars which are “All Scenarios, All Channels, and All People,” as it will continue to embrace its “1+8+N” product strategy.

It is worth noting that the “1+8+N” ecosystem was and still is a Huawei initiative that focuses on the Internet of Things (IoT) and artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystems.

The “1” refers to smartphones, while the “8” includes the number of devices that are compatible for use such as PC, tablet, TV, audio, glasses, watches, locomotives, and headphones. On the other hand, “N” refers to mobile offices, smart homes, sports and health, audio-visual entertainment, and smart travel products.

 The “+” sign in between represents Huawei Share and HiLink, the very technology that makes the connection between all devices effortless.

The Chinese phone maker emphasized its independence from its former parent company, Huawei, as it announced a setlist of partnerships to further its technological capabilities, such as AMD, Intel, MediaTek, Micron Technology, Microsoft, Qualcomm, Samsung, SK hynix, and Sony.

The company’s emphasis on its independence aims to circumvent U.S. sanctions – placed by the former Trump administration as part of its trade war with China – and being blacklisted by other western countries who have chosen to follow suit by freezing Huawei out of their respective 5G rollout efforts.

Honor highlighted that its current workforce includes almost 8,000 employees who will cover the entire spectrum of end-to-end operations, including over 50 percent R&D staff. With five R&D centers and over 100 innovation labs worldwide.