How GRL found its way to a subdivision market

David Liu, our CEO since 1992, brings a relentless drive for innovation and passion for personalized electrical components to his role. GRL was founded by David Liu’s father. In the early 1990s, GRL began to explore the low voltage electrical industry. In the 2003 years, David Liu inherited his father’s business and brought GRL into a new first year of development.

Beginning of GRL in the 1990s

“I have always had a dream that I must go out of the village,” David Liu said. “I must establish a large-scale and influential enterprise.” He founded the predecessor of GRL Electric – Yueqing Dongjia Electric Co., Ltd.

When we first started the business, it was more of a family workshop than a company. With only three punching machines and five employees, two series of switches and accessories are mainly produced. Of course, at this time our customers are mainly local in Wenzhou, David’s hometown.

Mr Liu’s father often said, “A thousand-footed centipede only walks one way.” This proverb widely circulated in Yueqing was enough to influence David Liu’s life. “This is the same as the invisible champion,” David Liu said. “Enterprises must be refined, specialized, and go all the way.”

After a period of steady development, David Liu keenly discovered that the main products of powerful group companies are short circuit breakers. The field of isolation switches is relatively weak. Many professional manufacturers on the market are still in a small and weak situation. Customers are not very aware of the brand selection of isolating switches, which has become an opportunity for the development of GRL.

“How to defeat the strong with the weak?” David Liu said, “to avoid its edge and find a new way, just like Tian Ji’s horse racing. We should use our strengths to attack others’ weaknesses.  I designed The slogan:” Professional manufacturer of isolating switches, you can do it if you dare to think.”

In this way, GRL set the initial development strategy of “survival first, development later”. Do our best work with limited resources. At that time, every employee had multiple roles and worked harder. Do not seek the best, but seek better. While our company maintain low prices, we still ensured good quality that lays the foundation for enterprise development.

GRL had ushered in an opportunity when it is developing steadily. In 2011, David changed his marketing ideas and began to pay attention to State Grid’s bidding and followed closely by State Grid’s bidding units. In 2012, GRL Electric cooperated with a foreign trade company to develop overseas markets. One product sells over $2 million a year.

GRL started to produce busbar systems in 2017, and now busbar products have become the core products of our company. In the same year, David discovered the opportunity in the industrial control market and found the opportunity for the GRL to break through the bottleneck of the power grid.

GRL countless changes

In the process of finding a way to subdivide, GRL also experienced countless changes:

Initially, we were constantly eliminated by customers until now we can choose cooperative customers independently. Before we only had one or two products, we can now provide a full range of products. The production series is not limited to isolating switches, but can also provide electrical connection series products.

Of course, our competitors are no longer only from Chinese brands, we are also confident that we can fight against international first-tier brands. GRL is not only a foundry for other companies now, we already have our own brand and realize a global service.

“Inheriting my father’s business is my forced and helpless choice.” David Liu concluded. “If you want to do well, you must break the boat. You must do well in the business that Dad left behind. There is no turning back, and you must move forward bravely. It is with these few ideas that I can make GRL grow and find its own way of subdividing the industry.”

Although the COVID-19 seems to make everything slow down, GRL never stopped. We will continue to keep moving forward with a passionate, innovative and brave spirit. Through our most efforts, we believe that we can provide the most satisfactory service and Electrical solution to our worldwide customers!