VinFast’s entry into the North American market has been rocky to say the least, with low sales and production quality issues that are bad enough to warrant them paying owners when their EV breaks down. Now the company is considering some drastic changes to its sales model.
Currently, VinFast has followed other EV start-up models with a direct-to-consumer model. However, according to the CEO, the company is now considering partnering with already established dealerships. The thinking is these dealer networks are already set-up and will provide a simple way to get VinFast vehicles in front of more eyes.
In an interview with Reuters, CEO Madam Thuy Le said this:
Opening our stores is great, but it takes a lot of time. Joining forces with other partners to go faster has always been our nature. We are currently defining the terms of this new model and discussing it with potential partners. More details will be announced in due course.
VinFast currently has 122 showrooms open worldwide, and they did not confirm how many dealerships they would be considering partnering with. The other start-up that runs this kind of model is Polestar. The deal is that Polestar has showrooms, and dealers can then charge only MRSP plus destination fees for the vehicle.
It is also unclear if VinFast will only look at dealership agreements in the United States or if that will spread to Europe and Canada.
