CAMBODIA: Rolls Royce has signed an agreement to open a dealership in Cambodia, one of the world's poorest countries

Record ID: 533812

  • Title: CAMBODIA: Rolls Royce has signed an agreement to open a dealership in Cambodia, one of the world's poorest countries
  • Date: 10th June 2014
  • Summary: PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA (JUNE 9, 2014) (REUTERS ) ROLLS ROYCE PHANTOM SERIES 2 ON PARKING IN FRONT OF THE SOFITEL HOTEL ROLLS ROYCE MOTOR CARS REGIONAL DIRECTOR, PAUL HARRIS PREPARES FOR THE SIGNING CEREMONY WITH MANAGING DIRECTOR OF HGB GROUP CO., LTD RAY LONG SIGNING CEREMONY MEDIA HARRIS EXCHANGES THE ROLL ROYCE CAR LOGO WITH LONG ROLLS ROYCE CAR LOGO MODELS REMOVE COVER
  • Embargoed: 25th June 2014 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Cambodia
  • Country: Cambodia
  • Topics: Business,Industry
  • Reuters ID: LVA4H7VBIH2E23E6WUHCN4PTJMJJ
  • Story Text: Rolls Royce Motor Cars is opening its first dealership in Cambodia. The company has appointed HGB Group Co., Ltd as its official dealership to represent the brand in Phnom Penh.
    The two companies held a signing ceremony in the capital on Monday (June 9). The showroom is due to open next month.
    Cambodia's Senior Minister and Minister of Industry and Handicraft, Cham Prasith, Rolls Royce's Asia Pacific Regional Director Paul Harris and the General Managing Director for Emerging Markets Herfried Hasenoehrl attended the ceremony.
    Harris says it's the right time to open the dealership. .
    "Why now, why not before and why not after? I think that we have a model range that means that we need to become actively involved in the market. It's simply that. There's enough cars here, frankly enough work, particularly in the customer satisfaction after-sales area to enable us to establish a business here," he said.
    The starting price for Rolls Royce vehicles is $450,000 USD.
    Some cars sellers worry that it won't be a level playing field if the government allows one company to import luxury cars and bans others from doing the same,
    Sin Soken owns a dealership selling cars like the Toyota Land Cruiser, Lexus, and Mercedes.
    "It allows a company to import cars and bans others from importing, too. So I urge the government to allow us to import cars from other countries as well, like from the U.S., Germany, etc., in order to fill the demand from people in the market place."
    Many ordinary Cambodians like guest house worker Prom Veasna feel that their country is still very poor and it is not the right time to import expensive cars like Rolls Royce.
    "For people in the Cambodia economy like me -- I use the bicycle and I have a piece of sandwich to eat which costs about 1500 Riels (30 USD cents) so that means we are still very poor and it is not a good time to have such a very expensive car, from half a million dollars upward, imported because our economy, the GDP the people earn is still very low."
    During the event, HGB Group Co., Ltd, announced that Rolls Royce Motor Cars Phnom Penh plans to establish a four-car showroom in the capital by the last quarter of the year.
    The arrival of Rolls Royce cars come as customer orders in Cambodia have increased since 2005 and they need the dealership to service the customers.
    With the move into Cambodia the brand is represented in 15 markets and 26 cities in the Asia Pacific region outside China. The company has recently opened dealerships in emerging markets such as the Philippines and Vietnam, and expanded its networks in more established markets such as Australia, India, Japan and Taiwan.
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