It is kind of exciting to read that Volvo Car Group, which is owned by China’s Geely Group, will export a second model made in China to the U.S. Volvo just announced that it is moving production of its flagship S90 sedan to China from Sweden, and that the China-made model will be exported to the U.S. and Europe.
This is the second China-made model that Volvo will sell in the U.S. The long-wheelbase S60 Inscription sedan went on sale in the U.S. in 2015. Another sign that China’s auto industry is becoming a bigger part of the U.S. market: Volvo will produce a long-wheelbase version of the S90 for the U.S. market.
In China, many automakers already produce a long-wheelbase version of one or more of their models to cater to China’s rather large base of chauffeur-driven owners. I believe this practice – special long wheelbase models, that is – originated in China. General Motors China also pioneered the practice of putting all kind s of amenities in the back seat. I remember attending the press conference in Shanghai when GM launched the first model with those rear-seat amenities such as temperature controls and rear-seat screens.
I believe we will see more Chinese influence in the U.S. buy sell market as well in coming years, and sooner rather than later. That’s one reason I will be in China next week, moderating a buy sell panel at the annual meeting and convention of the China Automobile Dealers Association. Linda Barnette, the newest partner at ABSR contributor MD Johnson, Inc., will be on my panel, as will Miguel Yelos San-Martin, owner of YSM Design, a well-known dealership design firm. More on that from China.
Meanwhile, back here in the U.S. we have two great pieces for you this week. There seems to be a lot of interest among our readers about opportunities for dealership general managers to become dealership owners. So this week I profile Randy Powell, general manager and equity partner at a Mercedes-Benz dealership in Alabama. Read it to discover his path to ownership.
Also, this week, we have a new contributor, Sally Lopez, the new Director of Information Technology, Dealer Services at Rosenfield & Co. Lopez writes about the importance of getting your IT person or team involved from the very beginning of a buy sell. She conveniently provides a check list of ten important questions to ask as you examine a dealership’s IT system, which is, as Lopez points out, the start and stop of all of a dealership’s most important processes.
Then of course we also have Transaction News.
Enjoy!
