Renault Korea is transferring management rights of dealerships facing closure to Taian Motors, an Audi dealership partner. This is part of an attempt to endure through next year. Currently, with no new cars available, sales have plummeted significantly, but maintaining showrooms is crucial to revitalizing sales starting next year when new car launches are expected.

Since the launch of the XM3 in 2020, Renault Korea has faced a severe drop in sales due to a lack of new models, pushing dealerships to the brink of closure. Renault Korea is thus selling management rights of struggling dealerships to Taian Motors.

“We have grouped the dealerships and sold them to Taian Motors in units of ten,” Renault Korea emphasized, stating, “We couldn’t just watch as dealerships closed, so we are working together with the affected employees to sustain these dealers and promote mutual growth.”

In stark contrast, KG Motors and GM Korea are facing drastically different situations despite the severe drop in sales.

Major dealerships of KG Mobility in Seoul are set to close sequentially from October until the end of the year, as the volume of sales plummeted to a level that made it impossible to sustain the dealerships. KG Mobility had revived following the transition of Ssangyong Motors, but individual dealerships are unable to endure and are closing one after another.

A sales employee from one of the KG Mobility dealerships mentioned the harsh reality, saying, “To sustain a dealership, we need rent, salaries, and other expenses, but with sales plummeting, we have no choice but to close.” He further stated, “The remaining sales staff are not transferring to other dealerships but are preparing to shift to different brands or lines of work.”

Last year, GM Korea faced significant turmoil due to the closure of the Bupyeong Plant No. 2. The number of dealerships in its home base of Incheon dropped dramatically from 21 to 11. By the end of the year, three more will close, leaving only eight remaining.

A current sales member at Chevrolet lamented, “Due to the lack of new models and factory withdrawals, existing dealerships have significantly dropped,” adding, “By the end of the year, three more dealerships will close.” Additionally, the sales representative explained, “The owners of the closed dealerships received a certain amount of support from the headquarters.”

Lee Sang-jin daedusj@autodiary.kr