Dubai: British luxury car maker Aston Martin announced on Monday it has established a new operation especially for Middle East, North Africa and India "due to the importance of this region", according to a release. The new company, Aston Martin Middle East, North Africa and India (Ammena), will oversee all the automotive and non-automotive activities in the region, the company said.
However, the location of the new office has not been decided yet, a spokesperson of the carmaker told Gulf News. "It could be Dubai, it could be Kuwait or Bahrain," she said. "This will be decided in a few weeks."
Kuwaiti sovereign wealth fund Investment Dar since 2007 has been a major shareholder of Aston Martin, currently holding 51 per cent.
Ammena also has appointed Mark Kenworthy as its new Automotive General Manager for the region. Kenworthy has spent the last three years managing a vehicle distribution operation in the Middle East prior to which he worked as dealer development manager in the UK.
Important market
"The Middle East remains a vitally important market for Aston Martin, amongst the regional community there is huge enthusiasm for sports cars, motor racing and English heritage all of which are areas where Aston Martin excels," Kenworthy said. "Equally, the North African, Turkey and Indian markets represent strong growth potential for the company as we introduce the Aston Martin brand to these regions."
Aston Martin was selling around 150 cars in the Middle East in 2009, according to a figure Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin's CEO, gave Gulf News in an interview at the Dubai Motor Show last December. Bez said he is targeting sales of 400 to 500 cars in the region in the medium term.
The UAE is the carmaker's most important market in the region, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are other sales spots. No country sales figures were immediately available from the company's spokesperson. Aston Martin's distributor in the UAE is Al Habtoor Motors.
To fund its expansion into new markets, Aston Martin's chairman David Richards earlier this month told the Daily Telegraph that an initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange "is not out of consideration."
