How is the market of Volkswagen worldwide?
Volkswagen is the second largest automobile company in the world after Toyota. Our dream is to be the leading automobile company in the world. We are already the market leader in many countries, especially in Europe. But to become the world’s number one automobile company, it’s very necessary for us to rapidly expand ourselves in Asia. So we are trying our level best to expand our market in Asian counties in recent months.
How has the market of India been responding to Volkswagen?
A couple of years back, people of India and the Indian sub-continent could not name Volkswagen when asked about the good automobile companies. Some people knew about the old Beetle but had no idea about the recent models. But now, India is showing a lot of interest in our cars. We sold about 3,000 units of cars in India last year. This year, we are planning to sell about 40,000 units.
What made you select Vishal Group as your authorized importer for Nepal?
It was very necessary for us to have an equally capable partner. So after negotiating for months or probably a year, we realized that we fit together. We share similar goals like we want to work hard to make our customers happy and give our level best and we both believe in quality. It’s more like fixing a marriage.
Which cars are you planning to introduce next?
We are yet to introduce two more models to Nepal -- Polo and Vento -- which are the cars we manufacture in India in our new factory. Polo -- the 2010 World Car of the Year, which is gaining noteworthy attention in India, will probably be the largest selling car in the Nepali market from the Volkswagen stable. But till date, the production of the car is not enough for export. Once we become able to meet the demand in India, we’ll introduce it in Nepal.
What makes you think Nepal will be a good market for your cars?
We believe that every market is a good market for us as we have cars of every need. We have a huge range from a small hatchback to truck. There’s no reason why Nepal should not be a good market. And also, as India and Nepal has similar demography and taste, we’re hoping for a good result from the Nepali market as well.
Our long term mission is to acquire about 10 percent market share in Nepal. But, I know that it’ll take time for this. As our cars have just been introduced, we are hoping to sell about 500 units this year. And hopefully the numbers will increase significantly from the coming years.
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