Red Star Capital Bureau reported on July 2nd that today, Red Star Capital Bureau exclusively learned that the first direct after-sales service store of Ideal Automobile (02015. HK/LI. US), Almaty Direct Service Center in Kazakhstan, which has been established overseas, has opened trial operations at the end of June and has preliminary plans to officially open in July.
Ideal Automobile has confirmed the appeal information to Red Star Capital Bureau, stating that the number of Ideal Automobile in Kazakhstan has reached over a thousand units, and the demand for after-sales service is relatively high. Therefore, it is the first to establish a direct after-sales service center here. In addition to the first direct service center in Kazakhstan, direct service centers in other countries in the Middle East and Central Asia are also being planned.
It should be noted that Ideal Automobile has not yet been sold for retail overseas, and vehicles are still sold overseas through parallel exports. Public information shows that parallel export vehicles are similar to parallel import vehicles, both of which are traded through non official channels or authorized dealers of car companies, and are purchased by trading companies at market retail prices for secondary export or import of vehicles.
Ideal Automobile emphasized to Red Star Capital Bureau, "Currently, Ideal Automobile is still focusing on sales in the domestic market, and retail exports are still under planning. We have not authorized any organizations or individuals to sell Ideal Automobile's products and services, and we also hope to promote a direct sales model overseas in the future."
In the first two weeks of July 2023, Ideal Automobile experienced a difference of over 200 units between the insured and delivered quantities. After investigation, it was found that these vehicles are mainly sold to the Central Asian and Middle Eastern markets through private parallel exports.
Li Xiang, CEO of Ideal Automobile, once stated that Ideal Automobile will not enter overseas markets before 2025 and will concentrate all resources to achieve its 2025 goals.
Ideal Automobile is currently the only old brand new car making force that has not gone global in retail, and its overseas expansion has attracted much attention.
In 2023, Ideal Automobile achieved remarkable revenue of 100 billion yuan and profit of 10 billion yuan. At the end of 2023, it was reported that Ideal Automobile would launch its export plan ahead of schedule in 2024, but the company did not comment on this.
At the Q4 2023 performance meeting in February this year, Zou Liangjun, Senior Vice President of Ideal Automobile, stated that the overseas market is very important for Ideal Automobile, and the company is accelerating its development progress. It has successfully launched business in the Middle East and has launched recruitment for local sales and service teams in Dubai. In the first half of 2024, Ideal Automobile plans to establish a dedicated after-sales service network in Central Asia and the Middle East; Overseas delivery will begin in the fourth quarter, starting with the introduction of the Ideal L9 and Ideal L7 models locally, and customizing relevant plans according to local environmental policies.
However, after experiencing severe challenges for the first quarter, Ideal Automobile gave up its plan to go overseas early.
Zou Liangjun stated at the Q1 2024 performance meeting in May that, given the adjustment of this year's sales targets, the company will focus its energy on the domestic market this year. The company plans to establish its own after-sales service systems in Central Asia and the Middle East this year, which is currently underway. At the same time, it will begin to try to select suitable agents for market expansion in countries and regions other than Western Europe and North America.