Volvo's NZ Sales Outpacing Global Growth

Volvo says it is on track for a third consecutive record year of growth in New Zealand - despite international production shortfalls of its most popular models.   

Volvo’s national manager for NZ Coby Duggan says Volvo is now one of New Zealand’s fastest growing luxury car brands with mid-year sales tracking 54% ahead of the previous year to date figures.

Duggan says the growth is being driven by large SUV sales and this is expected to continue.

“Not surprisingly the XC90 has had a key role to play in the brand’s success both here and abroad – it was New Zealand’s most awarded car last year and we’ve seen unprecedented interest from owners of competitor product in the luxury SUV segment.

“The most exciting part is that the XC90 will be the oldest car in our showrooms in less than three years so the rate of product development right across the Volvo range is phenomenal,” he says.

Duggan says the NZ market performance is reflected internationally with Volvo operating income more than tripling to $928 million compared to reported in the same point last year.

“The rate of sales growth here is more than five times greater than the global average, making our market one of the fastest growing in the world.

At the same time there is a global shortfall in production of around 15,000 cars which is a factor which will also impact on this market.

Ultimately it means the brand’s biggest challenge is keeping up with the customer order bank,” he says.

Duggan says the Volvo dealer network has invested heavily in multimillion dollar upgrades of their retail showrooms, with a number of these facilities due for completion within the next 12 months.