Hyundai wants to increase its market share to five per cent in Europe by 2020 from 3.5 per cent at present, the head of the South Korean carmaker’s European arm said.
Hyundai actually benefitted from the crisis that slammed into Europe’s car market in 2007, winning precious market share from European domestic competitors, Hyundai Motor Europe’s chief operating officer Allan Rushforth told AFP in an interview on the sidelines of the IAA auto show in Frankfurt.
“We actually took benefit out of the crisis, together with our sister brand Kia. The Korean brands were able to use the crisis and turn it into an opportunity,” Rushforth said.
Hyundai had just opened a factory in the Czech Republic in 2007 and begun to expand its European model range.
“So we were able to bring new vehicles into new segments from that time, which allowed our sales to grow in a market that was declining,” he said.
In addition, the German government launched a scheme to entice consumers to trade in their old cars for more environmentally friendly models, which was subsequently copied by other European countries.