Kia Motors  Celebrates First Year, Announces Hybrid Model for Local Market

Kia Motors Mexico celebrated its first anniversary in the country with the announcement of the arrival of Kia Niro Hybrid Utility Vehicle (HUV) to the Mexican market at the end of the current year. With the introduction of Niro, Kia Motors will offer its first hybrid vehicle in Mexico and will strengthen its product lineup in the country.

Kia Motors Mexico has fulfilled its goals and met high expectations in the domestic market by offering high-quality and innovative products with attractive designs. With 34,517 units sold during the first 12 months of operation in Mexico, Kia has become the ninth best-selling brand in the country.

“This has been a year of great challenges and also of extraordinary accomplishments for Kia Motors as we exceeded our own expectations,” said Seong Bae Kim, President and CEO of Kia Motors Mexico. “We are very happy and proud to have not only surpassed our first year sales target but have successfully established a comprehensive retail dealer network throughout the country that is providing world-class service to Mexican consumers,” he said.

Kia Motors Mexico expects to sell 45,000 units in 2016, which means that the automaker could reach local market share of over 3%, establishing itself as a truly competitive brand in Mexico with a lineup that will reach 7 models (Sportage, Sorento, Forte (Cerato), Rio, Optima, Soul, and Niro) by the end of this year.

One of Kia Motors Mexico’s strategic pillars is the consolidation of its dealer network, which is comprised of 73 dealers covering 94% of the national territory. As part of the celebration of its first anniversary, the automaker opened 25 new dealers in 21 new cities this week in record time.

“We have had a very successful year. Surely this is an unprecedented achievement in an industry where more than 40 brands compete”, said Horacio Chavez, Managing Director of Kia Motors Mexico.

“However, our challenge goes on and we work every day to strengthen the brand with the best products and the best customer service, with the aim of achieving 5% market share in the next four years,” he said.

The anniversary event was held at Hippodrome in Mexico City. It was chaired by the top executives of the automaker as well as representatives of the Federal Government and authorities of Nuevo Leon, where Kia Motors started production of the Forte last May as planned.