China's Great Wall cars in Serbia - Centar S sales and service center in Belgrade to attract investment of about EUR 1 million

The biggest private car producer in China, Great Wall, has arrived to Serbian market. Thus, yesterday, service and sale center in Belgrade, Centar S, was opened where cars will be sold.

Exclusive distributor of these cars for the market of Serbia is Great Wall Serbia Auto Group. The company manager, Radovan Beric, outlined advantages of three models which arrived to domestic market, saying that pick up model, "steed 5" is the pioneer in its class in China. Apart from it, customers from Serbia can opt for hover H6 which won in Bulgaria the “Golden wheel” award for the best quality and price ration as well as H5 model for which Beric says it is adapted in price for domestic market.

Beric said for eKapija that nearly million euros was poured in Centar S .

Although last year saw weak results in Serbia in car sales, Beric thinks every crisis is at the same time an opportunity.

- Our ambition in Serbia to prove with quality and product reliability as well as to sell a few hundred of cars – Beric says.

A collocutor of eKapija announced that by the end of March, apart from service and sale saloon in Smederevski put, opening of two facilities more is planned, in Novi Sad and Nis.

(Radovan Beric)

The GM at Centar S, Dragan Stevanovic, said at the opening that Serbia is among first couple of European partners which Chinese giant picked up so Great Wall vehicles are now available in our country as well.

– I am convinced that Centar S will fit into successful business philosophy of Great Wall which annually produces more than a million vehicles.

Iliya Terziev, Executive Manager at Bulgarian Litex Motors which has been soo far the only official producer of "Great Wall cars for Europe which produces 50.000 vehicles per year attended the opening.

- Production net Lovec is not the same as the one in Great Wall in China and worldwide. Vehicles which we produce in Bulgaria are specific and they are specially produced for European market and they are completely in line with the EU regulations - Terziev said and added that contribution of Serbian distributor is strategically important for Bulgarian producer as well.

At the saloon opening, it was announced that construction of production department of Great Wall has just started in Russia with an annual production capacity of 150.000 cars while the investment totals more than USD 500 m.

Great Bulgarian wall

Ilija Terziev said for eKapija that three years ago, when the production of Great Wall cars started in Bulgaria, 1500 vehicles was sold in the first year and that then Great Wall already was sixth-ranked in car sales in Bulgaria.

Cars made in that plant have English quality guarantee, "Vehicle Type Approval" (VCA), and they are exported to Romania, Macedonia and Italy. Terziev says that Litex Motors, parts are procured from companies such as Johnson Controls, Bosch, Delphi, Borg Warner and that the cars, although Chinese, are “very European”.

- We are lucky that today, three years after the opening of the plant in Bulgaria, we have been present at the start of sales network in Serbia. We hope we can transfer knowledge to our colleagues in Serbia because our nations are brother ones, we are the same people, same cultures and we hope we can help to reach the same success in Serbia as in Bulgaria - Terziev concluded.

R.S.