With an aim to swipe a 10% market share of the booming luxury car market in India by 2020, Volvo has plans to start local assembly of its cars in India. After witnessing a double-digit growth in sales, the manufacturer has found India to become one of the fastest growing markets for Volvo cars globally. Currently, the Swedish car maker imports all its cars via the CBU route, which attracts an almost double amount of duties on its products.
In an interview, Volvo Auto India Managing Director Tom von Bonsdorff said, “The headquarters of the company is really opening up its eyes to India. While no decision has been taken yet on starting assembling our vehicles in India, it is no longer a question of if but it is about when.” He further added that the top management was confident about the country’s potential considering its economic growth thus giving impetus to the talks of setting up an assembly plant here.
Volvo India’s MD also hinted that the car maker could enter the used car sector with Volvo Select, where they have plans to start trial operations with one dealer initially, and then gradually expand operations nationwide. According to von Borsdoff, the platform will be ideal for aspiring customers who are unable to buy a new Volvo. But can opt for a used example, backed by the manufacturer’s assurance.
Source: ET