Giant let its founder retire and turned the bike maker toward service

King Liu had built Giant from a 1972 supplier into the world's largest bicycle maker, but by 2015 he was 81 and the bicycle market was slowing. He publicly framed succession as a way to give younger leaders a chance, while remaining an adviser.

The board made the handover concrete for January 2017: CFO Bonnie Tu became chairperson and COO Young Liu, King Liu's son, became CEO. The message was not continuity alone; the new team promised smart manufacturing, online-offline channels and consumer-centric services.

That design turned a personality-led founder company into a more professional team. Giant could pursue e-bikes, carbon bikes, Liv and service retail without forcing one heir to imitate King Liu's centralized style.

Giant kept the world's biggest bicycle maker intact while shifting toward e-bikes, online-offline retail and service.

The retirement date was discussed before the final appointments, so customers and dealers saw a planned handover.

Bonnie Tu brought finance and professional management while Young Liu carried family continuity and China operating experience.

The strategic brief named growth areas, not just titles, giving the new team permission to change Giant's model.

A founder can make succession less risky by announcing early, naming operating heirs, and changing the management model before the crisis.

Giant's succession became a Taiwanese example of a founder stepping back while the company kept both brand and manufacturing strategy. The handover also elevated Bonnie Tu as the group's first woman boss and made e-bikes, digital channels and service a central part of the next chapter.