At the 2026 China Motorcycle Chongqing Forum, Keeway Group Vice President and head of its overseas motorcycle division, Bao Zhengqin, shared insights during a panel discussion on the shift from product export to global operations in the Chinese motorcycle industry.

Regarding international expansion, Bao emphasized that local distributors are indispensable. Although Keeway has entered over 100 countries globally, it operates direct subsidiaries in just seven; the remaining markets rely on distributor partnerships. He believes distributors are crucial because they possess a deeper understanding of local markets. The inherent issue is not with the distributor model itself, but the difficulty in finding suitable partners in certain markets.

Bao acknowledged that distributors have limitations, particularly in rapidly changing environments where direct market information can be diluted after passing through a middleman. He also noted differences in focus levels, as a company operating directly dedicates full attention, whereas distributors may juggle multiple brands. These two approaches are not contradictory and can be pursued in parallel based on specific market conditions.

"Going all-in directly inevitably brings numerous challenges. Despite the growing strength of Chinese enterprises, our years of overseas experience show we have stumbled many times, especially in emerging markets. The initial years often result in massive losses, requiring patient accumulation over time. Every pitfall that needs to be encountered, we have faced one by one in our own operations."