Kia is sticking resolutely to its decision not to offer customers a greater degree of personalisation as with the Mini and Fiat 500, but there is a chance that the connected car features available in Korea and America could come to Europe.
At the moment the only option with most Kias is metallic paint while the Optima saloon can be ordered with a high-end Infinity audio system from Harman. Retail customers can also buy cost-saving servicing and aftercare packages.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
Kia’s refusal to extend the range of options is for purely pragmatic reasons. The company’s factories around the world are working flat out to meet demand, and adding greater complexity to the build process would slow down the production lines.
“Customisation is not on the agenda as an area we’re trying to improve,” said UK commercial director Yaser Shabsogh. “For us, the positives of a simplified order system outdo the negatives. It makes it easier to manage the orders and stock. Do customers want to wait a long time to get their cars?”
Vehicles shipped from Korea spend at least 35 days at sea and around two weeks or so once they have arrived in the UK going through the distribution and preparation system. Half of all Kias sold in the UK come from Korea.
“We are not at a position where our brand is of a strength where people will pay a high premium to get exactly what they want or will wait to get exactly what they want,” Kia says.
However, Shabsogh is keener to see the company’s connected car features, showcased every year at the consumer electronics show in Las Vegas, come to the UK. “Do we want more technology in our cars? Definitely,” he said.
One barrier to this happening, however, is that Europe is not a “homogenous” market like America. “It is easier for the US to specify and cost various items of technology that for us,” says Shabsogh. “There is no reluctance on our part, but it would have to work for the whole of Europe and there are regions like southern Europe where the markets are more price focused.”
