10:25 am, September 8, 2021
Lotus has announced plans to cash in on the Asian market by opening up to 70 new showrooms and a factory in China.
The Norfolk-based firm is hoping to have the huge network of Chinese showrooms open by 2024 with its new Wuhan factory expected to be completed next year.
Reuters reports that the plant is aiming to be at full capacity – building 20,000 cars – by 2023 and will produce around 2,000 compact SUVs next year.
The decision comes at a time when premium and luxury car sales are growing in China.
Already the world’s biggest car market, consumers now have even more money to spend as coronavirus restrictions are lifted.
Lotus is also owned by Asian companies – Geely from China and Malaysian firm Etika Automotive.
Feng Qingfeng, CEO of Group Lotus, says the firm is hoping to rival Porsche in the Asian country.
Porsche has said it sold 88,968 cars in China last year thanks to demand for its Macan compact SUV.
Qingfeng says the new showroom network will begin by targeting major cities like Beijing and Shanghai.
It will then expand the network further over 2023 and 2024 to include cities like eastern Suzhou and Ningbo.
According to its website, Lotus currently has just four showrooms in China.
Pic: PA Images
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