Volkswagen hit 5 million sales in China during 25 years

As we keep saying different posts, China is the most surprising car market in history. It’s past is interesting, the present is boiling hot and volatile, but the future is the most hard to guess. And fought for by car makers and marketing strategies/companies. Partners are usually the key to success, as is a good relation with the Chinese Government.

Now, hitting a number like  1 million sales in one country only is a day of celebration for any car maker in the world. Most CEOs probably, from medium size companies at least, can only dream of achieving that in their lifespan. But what about 5 million cars sold in China? No, that’s now bicycles, it’s German vehicles, Volkswagen to be precise.

VW started business in China a long time ago. 25 years to name the bill. Those were different times needless to say with different dynamics. Working from the start with a Chinese partner SAIC, they produced cars there as beautiful as you can see them on Bavarian tracks. We don’t know if they saw ahead, just guessed or were un-Germanlike brave with that move, but the insecure past is over for now and the Chinese market is a blessing for one rooted there already.

As an indication of how quickly the Chinese car market is growing it’s worth noting that it took VW until 1998 to sell the first million cars. They’d got that up to four million by 2008, which means they’ve sold a very impressive one million cars in China in the last eighteen months.

VW took the figure of 5 mil with specific cautiousness, not getting drunk with the success. They plan to invest some more 4 billion Euros in the next two-years to expand. They already hold a solid base and recognized presence here, and I don’t mean just words and publicity. Four production plants, an engine plant, a tech centre and a design center work around the clock to produce the eleven VW and Skoda models they make and sell in China.

Congrats and “Happy Birthday” for the Skoda Superb that marked the 5 million car sold !