Dubai: German automotive giant Volkswagen hopes to increase its presence in the Middle East with its first regional office Dubai.
Currently, the carmaker holds only five per cent of the regional market.
Andreas Prinz, managing director of Volkswagen Middle East, said regional market sales had always been small compared to other regions, although brand recognition is high.
"We have a very positive image here, that's what we know. We are currently not one of the big players here compared to the worldwide scale and this is something we want to build and improve on," he said.
The move to open an office is part of the company's overall strategy to have a stronger presence in several regions.
Prinz added that Dubai was one of various regional or national offices to open.
Leader
Dubai is the regional leader for the automotive trade as well as spare parts and re-exports, with access to over 1.5 billion consumers on three continents. The UAE market accounts for an estimated 100,000 new vehicle sales annually, plus another 5,000 or so in the commercial vehicle category.
Together, the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states represent annual new car sales of around 500,000.
Dina Karam senior researcher at Reachmass, a local research firm, said the car maker has plenty of room to grow. "The market can definitely handle another large car maker, there is no threat of oversturation," she said.
The company also plans to open a parts center here, but a date has not been determined. Volkswagen operates 45 manufacturing facilities in 18 countries and produces over 21,500 working vehicles globally per day.
Prinz said that next year's goals for the new office include increasing sales by 20 per cent. He added, several models launching in 2006, will help them reach their targets. The company will launch new generations of classics like the Golf GTI, Passat and Jetta, in the Middle East.
The latest addition for Volkswagen, the Phaeton XXL will be display at the Middle East International Motor Show which starts December 12.
