2:49 pm, September 2, 2024
Polestar has become the latest manufacturer to turn its back on the agency sales model.
In a statement issued today, the Swedish EV manufacturer – which refers to its showrooms as Spaces – said its move to the non-genuine agency (NGA) model would enable it to reach more customers, with the UK among the first European markets to embrace the change.
The NGA model lets dealers share the commission with their customers, meaning retailers partly control the price of the transaction.
Originally intending to offer its vehicles on a subscription basis, Polestar opened its first UK Space in London’s Westfield shopping centre in October 2020.
It now has nine Spaces in the UK and plans to increase that figure to 17 over the next 18 months.
Now it says it’s ‘developing its sales model’ as well as expanding its ‘retail footprint’ in tandem with the launch of its two new luxury electric SUVs, the Polestar 3 and Polestar 4.
Polestar’s UK retail partners can now actively sell from each Space, with customers still able to configure and order their Polestar online, as well as via the expanding network of Polestar Spaces.
Polestar UK MD Matt Galvin, who took over the role from Jonathan Goodman in June, said: ‘Expanding our retail operations with new and existing partners will enable us to reach more customers.
‘Through these partnerships and expansion, we will capitalise on our strong brand and growing model line-up.’
Polestar said the UK was one of the first European markets where it was moving to the NGA model, as part of a strengthened business plan to turn a profit next year.
Galvin added: ‘We have delivered more than 30,000 Polestar 2 electric fastbacks to our UK customers since we launched in 2020.
‘The development of our sales model and expansion of our retail footprint is a natural step to continue building upon the strong Polestar brand position, particularly with deliveries of our two new luxury electric SUVs Polestar 3 and Polestar 4 starting.’
John O’Hanlon, CEO of Waylands Automotive, which runs Polestar’s Bristol Space, said: ‘The new agreement between Waylands and Polestar will allow us to enhance the engagement with existing and future Polestar customers and will help us manage the customer journey in much more detail.
‘I am really looking forward to adopting this strategy with Polestar 3 and 4 arriving this month.’
The news comes on the heels of Polestar reporting a $242.3m (£184.4m) operating loss for the second quarter of 2024 on revenue that fell by 17% to $574.9m (£437.3m).
It attributed the deficit to ‘lower global volumes and higher discounts’, according to Automotive News Europe.
The manufacturer is also having to contend with high costs as well as more competition.
Last week, it was revealed that Thomas Ingenlath would be stepping down as Polestar’s CEO, having been in the role since the firm was established seven years ago, to be replaced next month by Michael Lohscheller.
Pictured at top is Polestar’s Sheffield Space
