Seat will open 10 dealerships in Russia in the next two years to grow in the “large and exciting” market as the Volkswagen-owned automaker continues to expand outside its core western European market.
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It recently appointed a distributor in the country where it currently operates just a couple of dealerships.
The objective is to set up a dealership base in all Russian markets with over 1m inhabitants, Seat communications director Ignacio Sanchez Leon told just-auto.
He said the firm hopes to sell 5,000 cars there in 2009, backing local reports that Seat intends to sell 500 this year and 2,500 in 2008.
Meanwhile, Seat is also looking to beef up its presence in Central and South American markets.
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By GlobalDataBrazil is the key market there and the firm hopes to enter it soon. There are also initiatives to boost sales in the Andean countries of Ecuador, Colombia and Peru as well as in Venezuela and some Central American countries like Costa Rica and Panama.
Seat will continue to promote its business in Mexico, its largest market in Latin America so far.
Elsewhere, the loss-making brand, which hopes to deliver an operating profit this year after restructuring efforts, is also considering entering the booming Chinese and Indian car markets in the near to medium term, Sanchez said.
Ivan Castano
