Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Electric vehicle maker Nio has “persuaded to resign” two employees and issued “severe warnings” to four senior managers after a promotional campaign from its sub-brand Onvo drew widespread criticism for cultural insensitivity during China’s Qingming Festival.
Chinese media reported on Tuesday that the campaign, which featured the slogan “Qingming battery swap, depart anytime,” was seen as inappropriate during the traditional holiday, which is dedicated to honoring the deceased.
The phrase was interpreted as referencing death, sparking backlash on Chinese social media for lacking respect toward cultural traditions.
On Nio Group’s internal platform, Onvo’s new brand chief and longterm Nio executive Shen Fei wrote, “Fire him directly, and investigate the person who interviewed him and his superior as well.”
Following the publishing on social media, the regional general manager and Onvo’s Branding team removed the post and launched an internal review. Despite the response, the campaign had already circulated online, resulting in reputational damage both inside and outside the company.
In a statement, Nio’s sub-brand Onvo said that a regional marketing employee designed the poster aiming to promote the company’s 85-kWh battery offering. The employee submitted the design for approval, but the content was released without undergoing the proper review procedures.
Both the employee who created the poster Mr. Lin and Onvo’s Brand and Communications worker, Mr. Wang, were fired by the company, aligning witht he company’s Employee Handbook. Four managers, including senior brand and communications staff, received warnings for oversight failures.
Below is the email sent out to employees across China, as shared by the local media outlet IT Home.
Statement
“On April 4, Human Resources received a real-name complaint via the Speak Out channel regarding inappropriate content in ONVO’s “Qingming battery swap” poster. After investigation and verification, the findings are as follows:
The controversial slogan “Qingming battery swap, depart anytime” was designed by a regional marketing specialist, Mr. Lin, who was asked by the regional company to promote the 85-kWh battery.
Due to a lack of understanding of the content review process, Mr. Lin sent the poster directly to Mr. Wang, who is responsible for reviewing content in ONVO’s regional brand and communications team. The content was approved and published without escalation.
Later, the general manager of the regional company and the ONVO brand team identified the issue, urgently removed the content from social media, and conducted a review of the incident. Improvement measures were formulated. However, by then, the content had already spread, resulting in negative public sentiment both internally and externally.
According to relevant provisions of the Employee Handbook, disciplinary action for the involved personnel is as follows:
Mr. Lin, regional marketing specialistDuring the design process, he failed to fully understand the cultural significance of traditional Chinese holidays and lacked sensitivity in phrasing, which led to negative public opinion. Considering the impact of the incident, he is dismissed (persuaded to resign).
Mr. Wang, ONVO regional brand and communications team. As the content reviewer, he failed to conduct effective review and did not raise objections, leading to the release of problematic content. His actions constitute serious negligence and he is dismissed (persuaded to resign).
Mr. Chen, head of the regional marketing team. Failed to provide effective onboarding and training for Mr. Lin, resulting in a lack of proper content review in this incident. As a manager, he also lacked oversight and is therefore given a severe warning.
Mr. Shen, head of ONVO regional brand and communications team. Failed in management duties and in establishing and communicating an effective review mechanism for promotional content. Given a severe warning.
Mr. Ji, head of ONVO brand and communications. Demonstrated management failures and is responsible for repeated negative publicity from the ONVO brand. Given a severe warning.
Mr. Li, general manager of the regional company. Failed to perform final checks and did not detect the mistakes of subordinates in time. Given an official warning.
The lack of process enforcement and incomplete training were key reasons behind the incident. Relevant departments are working to review the approval system and accelerate training and empowerment for related personnel. We hope all colleagues will learn from this incident, and work with a spirit of responsibility and continuous improvement.”
Local media recalled this Tuesday that a previous campaign featuring the slogan “Swap your boyfriend instead of your battery” had been also criticized on Chinese social media in March.
March marked the last month of Alan Ai as Onvo’s chief stepped down after the monthly delivery results were published on the first day of April.
Onvo sales halved to 700 units last week, marking the lowest result since February and the first full week under new brand head Shen Fei.
China’s Qingming Festival, marked by a three-day holiday from April 4 to 6, led to interruptions in manufacturing and vehicle logistics across the country’s automotive sector driving carmakers to post lower registration figures.
Onvo deliveries reached nearly 6,000 in January, 4,049 in February and 4,820 in March — well below the target of 16,000 units in January and 20,000 in March communicated late last year.
Nio CEO William Li recently admitted that Onvo had “not met expectations” in the first months of this year, pointing to several reasons for the weaker-than-expected demand.
To jumpstart demand, Onvo launched its first major incentive campaign under Shen’s leadership over the weekend. Customers who place a deposit for the L60 by the end of April will receive a 6,000-yuan ($825) “worry-free” charging package, which can be used for public charging, home installation, or battery upgrades. The offer is designed to cover the equivalent of two years of free charging based on four battery swaps per month.
Nio Group, which includes both brands, recorded 2,500 registrations in the first week of April — down from the 4,400 vehicles registered in the last week of March.