The story of Geely entering the Western market began a positive one. It has been showered with praise for how it handled Volvo for its first decade in charge, making it a mainstream premium player more than ever before.
But as time has gone on, there’s been little evidence to back up that early success with other western brands. Polestar, though engineering decent cars, is hugely loss-making; Volvo is undergoing painful cuts after becoming too bloated itself; and then there was the delayed EX90 launch, and even when it did come, it still wasn’t ready.
Geely’s acquisition of Lotus began brightly: Lotus was in dire straits and Geely swooped in to save the day. In the early days, things were looking up. It built gradually, invested in Hethel and the Emira and let the Lotus brand be resplendent in its sports car heritage.
But then it opened a new design centre in the Midlands, the first sign that Hethel was no longer Lotus’s raison d’être, and announced new models which were essentially Chinese-developed and built EVs. These were rushed through for the anticipated demand of luxury electric SUVs and saloons – a demand that is yet to come. In doing so, it weakened the heart of Lotus, demoting Hethel, its people and expertise.
Geely’s sizable funds haven’t been wisely placed either. It brought in executives above those already there, people who had no reverence for the brand, and opened lavish facilities including in London and Amsterdam, creating yet more disconnect between the Lotus we all know and love. This profligacy was only made worse by unachievable targets for its EV sales, which were all missed by a mile.
This latest news hit the automotive industry hard when it broke last Friday. There has clearly been back-and-forth with the UK government, Geely and Lotus, so while Geely is adamant that Lotus has a place at Hethel, time will tell.
One thing’s for sure: Geely has managed it badly and might have ultimately caused the demise of one of UK automotive’s most lauded locations.