New Ningbo Dealership Joins Others In Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai And Shenzhen#
Earlier this month, Jing Daily looked at the rapid expansion of Rolls-Royce in China over the past several years, powered initially by business elites in Beijing and Shanghai then -- more recently -- by younger entrepreneurs in first- and second-tier cities. As many observers of the Chinese auto market have pointed out, the younger age of Rolls-Royce buyers in China relative to their western counterparts is even pushing global trends, leading the automaker to initiate a new rebranding strategy aimed at projecting a more active, sporty image with new models like the Ghost.
Along with its global rebranding initiative, Rolls-Royce is focused on expansion, and, much like other major luxury brands in virtually every industry, this expansion is now going beyond initial markets like Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou and into targeted markets like Hangzhou and Ningbo, where Rolls-Royce just opened its eighth dealership in China.
As Rolls-Royce China regional director Paul Harris said at the opening of the Ningbo dealership, the new showroom reflects Rolls-Royce's "commitment to the China market, already our third largest in the world." Speaking on his outlook for the year ahead in mainland China and Hong Kong, Harris noted, "with a healthy order bank for both Phantom and Ghost models, I am confident this will be a record year for the market. As a result, we are already considering further dealer expansion into other areas of China."
As General Manager for Greater China Jenny Zheng, added at the opening, “We are experiencing solid demand for our cars throughout China, increasingly from customers in their early 30s or even as young as their 20s, proving that, our brand has been successful in broadening its appeal.”
Heartened by sales figures that showed sales in China tripling year-over-year in the first quarter of 2010, we would expect Rolls to eye prospective dealerships in other wealthy cities like Dalian, Wenzhou or Yiwu.