Owing to the sudden plunge in demand for premium sports utility vehicles (SUVs) in China's automobile market, the German-based luxury car maker, Porsche AG expects China to become its largest market in 2014.
The premium sports utility vehicle segment of China's car market has experienced a considerable increase in demand in the past four years. In 2010, around 1.33 million SUVs were sold in China, as reported by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
The Chief Executive Officer of Porsche, China Motors Ltd, Helmut Broeker stated, “China has been our second-biggest market, with more than half of sales coming from our SUV model, the Cayenne. We expect it to beat the US to be our No 1 market in 2014, with significant sales growth from the coming, smaller SUV model, the Cajun.”
Broeker confirmed that the company's plans to locally manufacture the Cajun model is not yet defined, as the local production of the model would require a minimum annual sales of 25,000 to 50,000 units.
The German automobile company says that it expects the sales this year to exceed 20,000 units, up by 60-70% from previous year. According to Broeker, the units are expected to double, reaching 40,000 in 2015. Therefore, in order to prepare for the boost in sales, the company plans to have around 100 dealerships across China by 2014 end.
Currently, the company has only 39 dealers in China and is preparing to add 20 dealers by the end of next year. Confirming reports, Broeker said, “The strong growth brings a big challenge: We need to provide enough, and high-quality, service to the customers. So the major task for us in the next year will be training our dealers.”
In addition, the company will also aim towards enhancing the Porsche brand image in the Chinese automobile market. Porsche also plans to open its Porsche Driving Experience Centre in China, the third country to have this Experience Centre, after United Kingdom and Germany.
Thus, with great potential foreseen in the SUV segment of China's car market, premium car maker Porsche gears up to take full advantage.
