Lamborghini restarts engines for growth with new dealer, new model

 Sales of Lamborghini sports cars came to a standstill last year not because of the prolonged economic slowdown in Korea but because of financial difficulties faced by its Korean car dealer Charmzone.

This local dealer has since been replaced by SQDA Motors and Italia’s iconic super car manufacturer is all set for growth, presenting a bold annual sales target of 44 units, an 11-fold increase from 4 units in 2015.

The sales goal was mentioned during the launch event for Lamborghini’s Huracan LP 580-2, the rear-wheel-drive version of the raging bull.

The latest Lamborghini car, with a price tag of 299 million won ($242,498) after tax, is loaded with a 5.2-liter V10 engine that delivers 572 horsepower.

The new dealer of Lamborghini hosted the event at its first showroom, which opened in affluent Samsung-dong, Seoul, last Friday.

During the event, a company official stressed the importance of the Korean market in terms of the firm’s future growth. 

“Greater China is the biggest market in sales for Lamborghini (in the region) and Japan is catching up. Our ambition is to see Korea grow up to the same level of Japan in five years from now,’’ Andrea Baldi, head of the Asia-Pacific region at Lamborghini, told The Korea Herald.

Sales in the three major Asian economies are more important than ever before, with the proportion of the carmaker’s sales in Asia continuing to grow.

Sales of Ramborghini, which has a 53 year-long history, hit a record high of 3,245 units in 2015, 28 percent higher than the 2,530 units in 2014.

Asia took 28 percent of the automaker’s total sales in 2015, more than double of the 13 percent in 2007.

According to Baldi, the raging bull marque is gearing up for further growth in the coming years with plans to add a third model to the existing Huracan and Aventador, with the production of the Urus SUV.

Regarding marketing strategy, SQDA Motors said it will focus on satisfying sophisticated Korean customers. The new dealer is an affiliate of Hong Kong-based Lei Shing Hong, which also has dealership for Mercedes-Benz in Korea.

“Customers in Korea are challenging because they know what they want. This is something that we appreciate. This is actually very similar to the Italian customer,’’ Baldi said.

Lamborghini’s super cars are driven by some celebrities here. For instance, K-Pop star G-Dragon drives the Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4.

By Seo Jee-yeon  (jyseo@heraldcorp.com)





서지연기자@heraldcorp.com