“China remains an important cornerstone of ŠKODA’s growth strategy. Together with our partners, we will continue with our largest-ever five-year investment plan of over 15 billion RMB in China and further strengthen our presence on the Chinese market,” said Bernhard Maier, ŠKODA AUTO CEO at the Czech China Business Forum held during the CIIE. “The CIIE provides an excellent opportunity for ŠKODA to highlight our long-term commitment to ŠKODA’s strongest single market. Furthermore, we are excited to introduce our new flagship model, the KODIAQ GT, at the Czech National Booth.”
ŠKODA AUTO is one of the most successful Czech companies in China. With the KODIAQ GT, ŠKODA is appealing to lifestyle-oriented customers with a vehicle that combines the robustness and versatility of an SUV with the sporty elegance and dynamism of a coupé for the first time in the SUV class. The new KODIAQ GT celebrates its official premiere in China at the Guangzhou Motor Show (16-25 November 2018).
Dr. Ralf Hanschen, President of ŠKODA China said: “The ŠKODA KODIAQ GT is another milestone in our SUV offensive in China. With the launch of the KODIAQ GT, we are also rolling out new initiatives to further raise the ŠKODA brand awareness. We will continue to provide customers with clever solutions for a better life.”
During President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the Czech Republic two years ago, Volkswagen, SAIC and ŠKODA AUTO signed a Memorandum of Understanding that included a five-year investment plan of over RMB 15 billion. This is the largest investment programme in ŠKODA’s history in China.
ŠKODA’s SUV campaign in the Chinese market is an important pillar of this initiative. This campaign began with the introduction of the large SUV ŠKODA KODIAQ in 2017. The compact KAROQ and KAMIQ SUV models were launched the Chinese market in the first half of 2018. The ŠKODA KODIAQ GT will be the Czech brand’s new top model in China. ŠKODA’s first SUV Coupé is the next milestone in the brand’s SUV campaign.
ŠKODA’s good relationship with China has a long history: In 1935 the ŠKODA POPULAR was exported to China. A year later, the brand was running five commercial agencies in the country.
In 2007, the Czech manufacturer re-entered the Chinese market. At that time, ŠKODA launched the local production of OCTAVIA under the umbrella of the joint venture SAIC Volkswagen. Since 2010, China has been ŠKODA’s largest single market. The millionth vehicle was delivered in 2013. In 2017, the company achieved a new delivery record with 325,000 vehicles in China – one in four ŠKODAs delivered worldwide that year. In February 2017, just ten years after re-entering the Chinese market, ŠKODA handed over the two-millionth vehicle to a Chinese customer.
In the first nine months of this year, the Czech brand recorded double-digit growth rates in China. By the end of September 2018, ŠKODA had delivered 250,200 vehicles to customers in China, exceeding the previous year’s result by 17.7%.
