Scooter News Piaggio Update Two announcements as Piaggio takes over Indonesian operations and sets up a brand new company owned R&D centre in China.
Piaggio Press
PIAGGIO GROUP ENTERS THE INDONESIAN MARKET WITH A NEW COMPANY
Jakarta (Indonesia), June 9, 2011 - The Piaggio Group strengthens its presence in Asia by announcing its entry into the Indonesian market with a new subsidiary, PT. Piaggio Indonesia, which will market directly the Group's vehicles that have been distributed so far through its importers.
With 7,400,000 units sold in 2010 and an expected 10% growth in 2011, Indonesia is the world's third largest two-wheeler market in terms of sales after the People's Republic of China and India.
The incorporation of Piaggio Indonesia was announced today in Jakarta by Roberto Colaninno, the Piaggio Group Chairman and CEO, during an inauguration ceremony attended by Fauzi Bowo, the Governor of Jakarta, and by the Italian Ambassador to Indonesia, Roberto Palmieri. The event, which attracted the major Indonesian dealers of the Piaggio Group and the local press, was attended also by Costantino Sambuy, the Group's Director of the two-wheeler market in Asia, and by Sergio Mosca, the Managing Director of Piaggio Indonesia.
Before the event, Roberto Colaninno met the Indonesian Minister of Economic Development, Gita Wirjawan, the Chairman of Indonesia's Investment Coordinating Board. "The starting of Piaggio Indonesia's operations is a critical step in the Group's strategy for South-East Asia" said Roberto Colaninno. "Based on the model that has been successfully tested in the Vietnamese market, Piaggio will organize its growth in Indonesia through a series of steps: the first, launched today, is the beginning of our local subsidiary's operations, by creating an efficient commercial organization that allows both for the development of the marketing of our vehicles and for an in-depth study of the Indonesian market in terms of products, customer expectations and prices. In the future, if this market lives up to expectations, the Piaggio Group will establish a new production site in Indonesia to meet local demand."
The growth of Piaggio Group's operations in Asia has led to the opening of the first Vespa flagship store in Malaysia (January 2011), and the goal is to reach 20 stores by the end of the year. In March, the Group began commercial operations also in Thailand by distributing the Vespa and Piaggio ranges through an exclusive distributor. More recently, it has opened in Taiwan - in Ximen, Taipei - the largest Vespa flagship store in Asia, in partnership with the Taiwanese distributor of Taikoo Motors cars.
The Company PT. Piaggio Indonesia will distribute in the Indonesian market the ranges of Vespa (LX 125 and 150) and Piaggio (Liberty 150 and Zip 100) scooters that are currently produced at the Piaggio Group's facility in Vinh Phuc, Vietnam. These products will be sold through a network of dealers that will cover the areas of Greater Jakarta, Java, Bali and Sumatra, reaching 35 stores by 2011 and with the goal of creating a strong sales network of 150 dealers by the end of 2013.
PIAGGIO GROUP: NEW R&D CENTRE IN FOSHAN, CHINA
Foshan (PRC), June 7 2011 – The Piaggio Group will be opening a new research and development centre in the People’s Republic of China to conduct research in advanced technological innovation at the service of all the Group’s operations in Asia.
The news was announced today in Foshan, China by Piaggio Group Chairman and CEO Roberto Colaninno during a meeting with Foshan mayor Li Yiwei, Deputy Mayor Li Zifu and Li Jian, Director of the Foshan Economy and Trade Bureau. The meeting was attended also by the Consul General of Italy in Canton, Paolo Miraglia del Giudice, who played a very valuable role in developing the relationship with the local institutions. The meeting was also attended by a delegation of Piaggio Group management including, among others, Piaggio Director and Immsi CEO Michele Colaninno, General Manager of Finance for the Piaggio Group Michele Pallottini and Director of Product Development and Strategies Davide Scotti.
An industrial metropolis in Guangdong province with a population of seven million, Foshan is home to Piaggio Zongshen Foshan Motorcycle Co. Ltd., a joint venture owned 45% by the Piaggio Group, 45% by the Zongshen Group – one of China’s biggest manufacturers of motorcycles and motorcycle engines – and 10% by the Municipality of Foshan.
During the meeting Roberto Colaninno stated: "The birth of this important research centre, which will be 100 percent owned by the Piaggio group, is a response to the need to develop new engines and vehicles specifically designed to meet the needs of Asian markets. Specifically, demand for two-wheeled vehicles and lightweight commercial vehicles is destined to grow rapidly in the years to come thanks to rapid urbanisation in Asia and consumers’ growing purchasing power. There is also strong demand for technological solutions that will drastically reducing polluting emissions and fuel consumption, increasingly important factors for Asian consumers. The Piaggio Group’s direct presence, with its own researchers and laboratories, on the world’s biggest motorcycle market will allow us to further develop environmentally sound mobility technologies, an area in which the Group is already in the forefront of development world-wide".
Foshan mayor Li Yiwei expressed great interest in the Piaggio Group’s new initiative in Foshan, calling it “an excellent plan” and adding that “there are a lot of Chinese engineers in Foshan, and all of them would love to work for Piaggio”. The mayor also agreed that Piaggio could set up a special company which would be entirely Italian-owned, contrary to the usual practice for foreign investment in China, and offered the initiative all his support, guaranteeing that authorisation would be granted rapidly.
The new Piaggio research and development centre in Foshan will be concerned with electric engines, Diesel engines and small commercial vehicles with little or no environmental impact. The plan for the Group’s new R&D centre in China involves construction of laboratories with high tech instruments employing about 50 engineers. The Centre will also work in the field of scouting and qualitative assessment of components to support the Piaggio Group’s international purchasing activities.
The Foshan research centre will be part of an innovative organisational model based on the network concept, integrating all the Group’s worldwide research, development and purchasing activities currently performed in Europe, India and China.
published 13/06/2011 |