General Motors Company GM is planning to woo the urban rich in China through a new direct sales platform that will curate its most elite products across multiple brands as the American automaker tries to regain momentum in the world's biggest car market.
Reuters reported on the move earlier on Thursday.
What Happened: GM said in a statement that it is planning to launch a platform called Durant Guild to enable the availability of "iconic import products" across China, host invitation-only events to showcase products, open "experience centers" in urban hubs and potentially stage pop-ups.
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Julian Blissett, GM's China head, said Durant Guild “will enable us to enter new market segments in China, serving the more diverse needs of our discerning Chinese customers.”
Why It Matters: In China, sales of GM’s flagship Buick, Cadillac and Chevrolet brands have fallen by a third over the past five years to 1.3 million cars a year as consumers have taken to home-grown EVs such as XPeng Inc XPEV, Nio Inc NIO and BYD BYDDY BYDDF, as per Reuters.
"There's a lot more appetite to take more off-road types of vehicles to explore nature, and that wasn't a trend five, 10 years ago," Blissett was quoted as saying in the report.
Events: Durant Guild, named after GM's founder William Durant, will be wholly owned and operated by GM. The platform will launch officially as soon as this month, the report said, with GM hosting a series of invitation-only events.
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