H&H Group: A Global Firm with Chinese Origins (B)

The protagonist of case A, Laetitia Garnier, eventually became CEO of H&H Group. Demonstrating her fit with the company and role, Garnier presented the Group's entire annual results report in Mandarin at the 2018 annual results conference in March 2019 when founder and former CEO Luo Fei announced her appointment. Garnier became the first Western woman to manage a Hong Kong-listed company with Mainland Chinese origins. Although this resolves the central question of case A, it raises others regarding the exact path she would take to globalize the company and culturally integrate the group under a new identity following the acquisitions. As shown in case B, Garnier spent a considerable amount of time and effort to unite all brands under the big H&H Group umbrella and align them towards a consistent mission: to make people healthier and happier. H&H actually inherited this ethos from the acquired company Swisse, while preserving its Chinese roots by retaining elements of Biostime in its new logo and value systems. However, challenges still popped up amid the cultural transition. The new motto “CLED” (adopted from the Swisse team and standing for “Celebrate Life Every Day”) faced translation issues in several key markets. In French, this sentence signaled religious overtones, whereas in Chinese, it sounded like a slogan for a yoga studio. The group dedicated itself to refining the group's identity to ensure it retained the key essence of each brand while resonating with a variety of target audiences. On top of that, Garnier kept Swisse's premium, proven, and aspirational (PPA) model and added an “E,” standing for “engaging,” to shorten the distance between H&H's wellness brands and their target audience. Finally, H&H kept implementing its glocal approach to align headquarters’ strategies with tailored execution in each local market. The voyage ahead remains long. Regardless of whether Garnier decides to acquire more brands or continue to operate within the current scope, the cultural integration and unified identity of a global group with China roots will remain a key distinction.