Very little by little, the cars of Lynk & Co, a brand of the Chinese group Geely with Volvo engineering, are beginning to be seen. Throughout 2022, its first physical facilities facing the customer will appear in Spain, but let’s not call them dealers.
The implementation of Lynk & Co in Spain is not like that of another brand with a traditional approach, see MG, to say one that sounds recent to us -although it is a hundred years old, but that is another topic-. The dealers have not arrived first and then the carsIt won’t be exactly the other way around either.
Currently Lynk & Co does not have physical facilities in our country, as we usually think of them. It is true that the cars that have been taken off the boats have to go somewhere before they are distributed, but dealers as such do not have. And they may never have them.
If we go to your website we see that they have something similar to the concept of «store», just as the Tesla concept has gotten us, which is not exactly a dealership. To begin with, the «store» they are directly controlled by the manufacturer and more like a bag store in size. Lynk & Co calls it “clubs” and they are clearly focused on an urban and young clientele.
This year the inauguration of the first “clubs” in Spain, but as usual the two big capitals go first, I’m talking about Madrid and of Barcelona. Throughout Europe we will find a “club” of Lynk & Co in Amsterdam, Antwerp, Berlin, Stockholm, Gothenburg, Hamburg and Munich.
This is what they tell us about their facilities: “Lynk & Co clubs don’t look like dealerships, and that’s because they’re not. They are community centers where we hold events and exhibit works by local artists and products from brands that inspire us. You can explore the 01 on your own, buy all kinds of items or have a coffee while chatting relaxed with other members. Needless to say, our friendly staff are always there to help you.”
Yes OK cars can be found on display in the “clubs”the website indicates it this way, they are places more designed to build brand image or act as a social center than to attract customers, show them the car, choose colors, upholstery and extras, and release a signal to place an order or choose camp car Lynk & Co goes to his ball.
“There is more and more interest in payment for use and where there is a deep environmental awareness” – Alain Visser, CEO of Lynk & Co, in relation to Spain
The brand intends to take advantage of a still small market niche, people who neither want to own a car nor tie themselves to a leasing or leasing. With slogans like “Give yourself the luxury of driving a great car”the client can choose between the traditional formula, buyor to subscribe for 500 euros per month. From the formalization of the subscription to the delivery it can take three to four weeks.
For that figure you can drive a Lynk & Co up to 1,250 kilometers a month or 15,000 a year, although they clarify that «The kilometers that you do not use will be accumulated or compensated with the following months». The formula of giving the car to friends and family to pay less is not yet implemented in Spain.
Of the Lynk & Co 01 there are two versions, standard hybrid for 35,000 euros, or plug-in hybrid for 40,500 euros
The fee includes insurance, scheduled maintenance, remote updates and roadside assistance. Unlike a leasing or leasingthere are no ties, can be left from one month to another. After subscribing the cars are delivered free of charge in A Coruña, Barcelona, Bilbao, Madrid, Malaga, Seville, Valencia and Zaragoza, anywhere else on the peninsula for 150 euros “at the door of your house”. The islands will have to wait.
What is the situation of Lynk & Co in Spain?
Registrations of Lynk & Co began in our country in the second half of 2021. According to data from the ANFAC employers’ association, the year ended with 527 registered units of the Lynk & Co 01, its first and only model. Currently still no more for sale here.
In fact, in the last month of the year, 75 cars were registered, and even more significantly, in January 2022 there were 112 units. The total sum leaves us with a balance of 639 units at the end of January this year. Good data, considering that other little-known brands performed much worse in 2021, such as DFSK (268), DR (28) or Zhidou (11).
But we don’t have to think of Lynk & Co as just another manufacturer, or just another brand. For starters, the actual number of Lynk & Co users is over 639, as their cars can be owned or used on a subscription basis. The company talks about 3,500 subscribers/members in Spain. Another thing is how many are using their continuous subscription, of course.