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Maybach to drive into Chinese market
By Xiao Zhang (China Daily)
Updated: 2004-05-14 09:17
German car firm DaimlerChrysler has said it plans to introduce its high-end
Maybach models to the Chinese mainland market next month, courting the nation's
growing ranks of super rich.
The luxury car will make its debut at the Beijing International Auto Show, it
said, following the unveiling of Asia's first Maybach Centre in Hong Kong last
year.
Showrooms will be opened in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, in South China's
Guangdong Province, before the end of the year and two models - Maybach 57 and
Maybach 62 - will be launched in a bid to enter the Chinese market, said Peter
Honegg, president of Mercedes-Benz China Limited, a subsidiary of
Daimler-Chrysler.
Maybach will share Mercedes-Benz's sales and service network in China, Honegg
said.
"With sales and service support from Mercedes-Benz, Maybach will become the
high-end luxury car brand with the most complete sales and services networks in
China," he said.
The company's high expectations for Maybach in China come from its confidence
"not only in our own hard work, but also in the rapid economic development of
China, which is creating a new class of wealth," Honegg said.
According to Fortune magazine, out of the 40 wealthiest people aged below 40
years old across the globe, six are from the Chinese mainland. China is also the
world's fastest growing luxury market, accounting for 3 per cent of total global
sales.
The launch of Maybach in China is part of the global revival of the brand
after a 60-year gap. Maybach cars became very popular soon after their launch in
Europe and North America in the 1930s, being the only high-end luxury brand that
could compete with Rolls-Royce at that time.
But sales plunged after the outbreak of World War II, and Maybach left the
market amid the chaos of the war years.
The new Maybach has regained widespread recognition all over the world during
the first two years since its comeback, said Maybach President Leon Hustinx. "We
currently have a total capacity of 1,000 cars a year, and we are extremely
satisfied with the number of orders received until now.
"We should emphasize that Asia has a very special position in the global
strategy of the new Maybach," Hustinx said.
"Leading the world in terms of economic growth, Asia and the Middle Kingdom -
China - are now exhibiting phenomenal purchasing power," he added.
Hustinx said in an interview: "We have high expectations for the China
market. To open three showrooms in such a short time shows how confident we
are."
The Maybach 57 and Maybach 62 are priced at 5.38 million yuan (US$648,000)
and 6.18 million yuan (US$745,000) respectively. The pricing for the China
market is in line with other markets, company executives said.
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