Kia UK plans to sell 100,000 vehicles a year in the UK by 2010 – a big jump up from the 12,000 shifted in 2002.
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The huge growth will come from more new products, more dealers plus supply from the South Korean company’s new European factory in Slovakia, which is scheduled to start production within two years.
Kia UK managing director Paul Williams said the brand had come a long way since the factory took control of the import operations just over two years ago.
Speaking a the brand’s dealer conference at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel he said: “Back then we did the dealer conference using an old laptop – it wasn’t exactly Trotter’s Independent Trading but it wasn’t blue chip either.
“We have come from a low of 12,000 vehicles a year in 2002 to a projected 45,000 in 2005 overtaking SEAT, Skoda, Saab and Suzuki on the way. Now we are chasing car companies which don’t begin with an ‘S’ – Land Rover, Mazda and Volvo.”
Williams said that while the brand had “grown up”, it would not become dull and boring. “We have to be disciplined in how we grow. Many car companies have got to this stage but failed to move to the next level. We are going to move to the next level, we are still very ambitious and we are looking to sell 100,000 cars a year by 2010.”
