9:39 pm, September 16, 2009
KIA UK managing director has told Car Dealer he wants to add 30 new dealers to his UK retail network.
He may only have been in the job just six weeks, but Michael Cole said there are some urgent open points that need filling as he moves to increase his 140 dealers to 170.
In a one-on-one with Car Dealer at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Cole said his main targets were finding partners to represent Kia at Guildford, Oxford, Croydon, Liverpool and Reading.
‘We haven’t got a desperate need to fill 30, but I would like to see the network grow,’ Cole said.
‘These aren’t all urgent but there are key priorities for us. There are clearly some large areas where we need to improve our representation otherwise we won’t be able to capitalise on the opportunities coming.’
With Kia’s scrappage success and some exciting new product, like the compact SUV Venga, Cole admitted his phone hasn’t stopped ringing with interested parties.
‘I expect that we’ll be up to 150 dealers at least by the end of the year,’ he said.
‘But we’re not going out to just fill open points and take anyone – they need to be the right partners.
‘They need to share our attitude our philosophy and our determination to grow volume through great customer service.’
by James Baggott
