Aside from presenting the product plan for Omoda & Jaecoo, Chery International president Zhang Guibing also clarified the positioning of his company’s various brands, including not just the main marque and O&J but also Lepas and iCaur. The executive moved to answer criticism that the firm had too many brands that lacked clear differentiation. Specifically, Zhang compared his nameplates to those of other established carmakers. No prizes for guessing what Chery was supposedly equivalent to – the mainstream brand was likened to Toyota, Hyundai, Volkswagen and MG. Meanwhile, the more premium Omoda & Jaecoo was said to be comparable to Kia and, oddly enough, BYD; then again, according to the latest product plan, Jaecoo is set to pivot further towards ruggedness, so this diagram might need to be updated later on. Perhaps the most notable is Lepas, which Zhang compared to Mazda. The fledgling brand has struggled to establish itself, having hitherto offered products which are very similar to Chery’s own models – and in fact, the L4 and L8 do actually wear the Chery badge in China. Perhaps a new range of sportier models, which were previewed privately to dealers and members of the media during the Chery International Business Summit in Wuhu, will address this. More straightforward is iCaur, which is said to be analogous to Jeep. The brand has openly cited inspiration from classic off-roaders for its cars (and the V23 in particular), including the Toyota Land Cruiser, Mercedes-Benz G-Class and the original Land Rover Defender. While the brand’s vehicles aren’t quite as capable off the beaten track as those cars, they have been rather successful thanks to their retro designs, and the forthcoming V27 range-extended EV should further reinforce their strong positioning. Last but not least is Exeed, a premium brand that is limited to selected countries in places like the Middle East and Latin America and has been likened to Lexus. Zhang paid tribute to those international and Chinese brands, saying that they provided the seeds for Chery to grow each “tree”. He added that he hoped these “trees” will continue to grow into a forest, suggesting that even more brands – including the newly-launched Freelander – are set to follow. Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro. AD: Drive the Omoda Jaecoo car of your dreams with the best deal. Submit your details and Carro's Omoda Jaecoo dealership will get in touch with you. Compare prices between different insurer providers to save the most on your car insurance renewal compared to other competing services. Many payment method supported and you can pay with instalment using Atome, Grab PayLater or Shopee SPayLater. Use the promo code 'PAULTAN' when you checkout for 10% discount!