Era of 3 Million Imported Cars... Certified Used Car Business Also Accelerates Rapidly

"A New Revenue Source and a Virtuous Cycle Opportunity for Increased New Car Sales"

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] As the era of 3 million imported cars in South Korea approaches, imported car companies are expanding their certified used car businesses.

According to the industry on the 30th, the proportion of imported cars in the used car market has been increasing by about 1% each year, from 12% in 2018, 13% in 2019, to 14.2% last year. As the imported car market grows, the sales volume of imported used cars is also increasing.

For this reason, imported car companies are actively entering the certified used car business, where they directly repair and perform performance inspections on used cars of their respective brands before selling them.

Although certified used cars are secondhand, they are directly inspected by the brand, which increases trust in the vehicle, and their prices are reasonable, making them increasingly preferred by customers recently.

Imported car companies are continuously expanding their certified used car-related businesses both online and offline to boost sales.

Mercedes-Benz, which ranks first in domestic imported car sales, launched its certified used car brand in South Korea in 2011 and currently operates 23 offline stores nationwide. Mercedes-Benz Korea launched the online sales platform 'Mercedes Online Shop' last month, strengthening not only new car sales but also the certified used car business.

BMW, which was the first among imported car companies to start the certified used car business in South Korea under the name 'BMW Premium Selection,' has expanded its certified used car stores to 20 nationwide since 2005. It also operates a website where all BMW certified used cars nationwide can be compared and purchased in real-time online.

In addition, MINI operates 14 stores, Audi 12, Jaguar and Land Rover 8 each, and Volkswagen 7 certified used car stores.

As preference for certified used cars rises, the sales volume of certified used cars from the top four domestic imported car sellers?Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, and Volkswagen?increased from 14,992 units in 2017 to 25,680 units last year.

An industry official said, "Imported car brands see certified used car sales as an opportunity to create new revenue sources while simultaneously increasing new car sales, forming a virtuous cycle."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.