Mercedes-Benz's first local chief executive in China is stepping down. On February 14th, Mercedes-Benz (China) officially announced that Duan Jianjun has resigned from his position as President and CEO for personal reasons. Effective March 1st, the reins will be handed over to the current Executive Vice President of Sales, Daniel Lescow.
As the first Chinese national to hold the CEO role in Mercedes-Benz's history in China, Duan Jianjun's departure appears to signal the end of an era. This has sparked questions about whether replacing a Chinese executive with a German one indicates a retreat from the brand's much-touted localization strategy. The answer is a definitive no.
Duan Jianjun's tenure as CEO coincided with the most complex period for Mercedes-Benz in China. Having worked his way up from Sales Vice President to the top role, Duan spent many years within the Mercedes-Benz system. He was best known for his distinctive "marketing aesthetic." At new vehicle launches, he was renowned for his eloquent speeches, often quoting classics. This style, effective during the era dominated by internal combustion engine vehicles, enhanced the brand's premium image, making the three-pointed star a coveted symbol for the middle class.
During his leadership, despite facing market challenges, Mercedes-Benz maintained resilience in its Chinese sales. Particularly between 2023 and 2025, amid intense competition from new electric vehicle makers and fierce price wars, Duan Jianjun worked diligently to uphold the brand's pricing structure and premium stature.
However, the market dynamics have shifted. With new energy vehicle penetration exceeding 50% and continuing to rise, relying solely on brand heritage and marketing rhetoric is no longer sufficient to counter the wave of智能化. Duan's departure, in a way, signifies that Mercedes-Benz has completed a phase of building its "brand equity moat" in China. Moving forward, due to a fundamental restructuring of the industry's logic, the company requires a more direct, robust approach that can better leverage global resources to break new ground.
If Duan Jianjun was "the Chinese executive who understood Mercedes-Benz best," then his successor, Daniel Lescow, could be described as "the German executive who understands China best." He is not an outsider dispatched from Stuttgart with no knowledge of the local market. On the contrary, his key career achievements were largely made within the Chinese context.
Lescow was deeply involved in the repositioning of the Smart brand. Smart's electrification transformation serves as a model case of collaboration between Mercedes-Benz and Geely. In this process, Lescow needed to not only comprehend the Mercedes-Benz brand identity but also work closely with a Chinese private enterprise like Geely.
During his tenure as Executive Vice President of Sales at Mercedes-Benz Sales Co., Lescow also spearheaded a crucial initiative: digitalization. In China, the traditional 4S dealership model is under pressure, challenged by the direct-to-consumer approach pioneered by Tesla and other EV startups, which has altered customer expectations. The digital transformation pushed by Lescow helped bridge the online and offline divide, enabling Mercedes-Benz to begin engaging directly with customers, much like the new competitors.
This demonstrates his familiarity not only with how the Chinese market operates but also with its unique digital ecosystem. Therefore, Lescow is the natural choice to succeed Duan Jianjun. He understands the global perspective from Stuttgart headquarters, possessing the ability to mobilize technical and financial resources from the parent company, while also being well-versed in the competitive realities of the Chinese market.
According to Mercedes-Benz's 2025 financial report, the company delivered approximately 575,000 new vehicles in China last year, a decrease of about 19% year-on-year. During an earnings call, Oliver Thöne, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, responsible for Greater China, stated, "China will continue to be the most important single market for Mercedes-Benz globally," but future development will focus more on optimizing the value chain and improving local profitability.
Currently, the China business has been elevated to a strategic priority at the board level. Internally, it is revealed that in 2026, Mercedes-Benz will launch more than 15 all-new and facelifted models in the Chinese market, representing the most intensive product offensive in the company's history there.
In retrospect, the transition from Duan Jianjun to Daniel Lescow can be seen as marking the entry of Mercedes-Benz's localization strategy in China into its 2.0 phase. Over the past decade, localization for foreign automakers primarily focused on personnel and marketing: appointing Chinese executives, telling Chinese stories, and producing long-wheelbase models specifically for China. Now, the core of localization has shifted to research and development and the supply chain. With China's comprehensive leadership in electric powertrain technology and智能化, Mercedes-Benz needs executives who can not only sell cars but also integrate Chinese technological advancements with German engineering excellence.
The Chinese market is currently the "eye of the storm" for Mercedes-Benz's global transformation. In this market, long decision-making chains are a critical weakness for traditional automakers. Having a German executive like Lescow, who enjoys the trust of headquarters and has extensive frontline experience in China, offers a significant advantage: reduced communication costs. He can more directly convey the urgency of the Chinese market to the board, securing greater R&D autonomy and resource allocation. This represents a "structural localization" – transforming China into a genuine second pole for global R&D, rather than just a sales hub.
The most significant crisis Mercedes-Benz faces currently is the potential loss of its authority in defining luxury in the automotive sector. Lescow's primary task upon taking office is not to maintain the status quo, but to go on the offensive. He needs to accelerate the implementation of outputs from Mercedes-Benz's R&D centers in China. Sources familiar with the matter suggest that the role of such managers is "never to turn the steering wheel back, but to continue accelerating on the established path."
By 2026, the Chinese automotive market is far from the era where foreign brands could make easy profits. While the prestige of brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi (BBA) persists, the sense of crisis is unprecedented.
This leadership change is a profound organizational adjustment by Mercedes-Benz to adapt to the new normal of the Chinese market. Duan Jianjun fulfilled his role of stewarding and transitioning the brand during its peak, while Daniel Lescow shoulders the responsibility of leading Mercedes-Benz to break through in the latter half of the智能化 era. Under his leadership, Mercedes-Benz needs to deliver products that are smarter, more attuned to Chinese users, and yet still uphold the brand's signature standards.
In the world of business, continuous evolution is the ultimate validation of any localization strategy.