Porsche Ukraine has been on the market for 13 years. What are the main achievements of the company that you can be proud of?
Being an integral part of the big Volkswagen family and having the honor tо represent AUDI in Ukraine is a great privilege you must take care of and work hard for it. I think that over the past 13 years we have done well and achieved remarkable results – stable and lasting establishment of the brand in the premium automotive segment of Ukraine, almost complete product range, professional and customer-oriented dealer network and last but not least excited customers that returns. And the best part is that the exciting AUDI journey is yet to come – more digital, more electric and more connected.
Denyu Bostandzhiev, Managing Director Porsche Ukraine LLC
What are the most difficult challenges that the company has faced during 13 years of work in Ukraine?
Doing business in Ukraine as foreign company is challenging undertaking. You need experience, patience, strong sense for integrity and a pinch of good luck. Of course, all the exceptional events that have happened in Ukraine in the second decade of this century, including the COVID pandemic that started in the last year significantly influenced our business activities. Nevertheless, we’ve always managed to successfully get through these difficult situations and succeed. In our corporate culture the challenges are seen more as a chance to change and look for new opportunities. After 13 exciting years on the local automotive market we are stronger and wiser than ever before and ready to challenge new boundaries.
How has the company changed after the introduction of quarantine, because the sale of cars is a close contact with people, which has become impossible in the usual format?
COVID completely changed the world in less than 3 months. Subsequent Lockdowns forced the global economy to find new safe ways for communication and distribution. Naturally, as well the automotive industry was forced to look for creative digital formats enabling the continuation of effective customer’s contact and relationship in the sales process of new cars and to ensuring maximum customer safety in the after-sales and service period.
What were the key points that helped you quickly recover from a complete lockdown and what helps you to grow, develop and run a profitable business in Ukraine in such difficult conditions?
Full commitment, clear understanding of the situation, professional attitude and adequate behavior of our employees are the key factors in dealing with tha pandemic. In fact, from the very beginning, we didn’t see the Lockdown as an obstacle, but a challenge and an opportunity to get better and get out of the crisis more united and motivated than ever.
The Volkswagen Group, which includes Audi, allocates large funds to ensure sustainable development and care for the environment. What are the most productive initiatives you can highlight?
Sustainable development and environmental protection is at the heart of the integrity principles of our company “Together4Inegrity”. All our employees have successfully gone through specialized training, ensuring the understanding and implementation of our corporate compliance policy. Moreover, during this year’s Earth Day on April 22. AUDI succeeded with his “Climate Day” in raising environmental awareness among employees. Around 85,000 AUDI employees across the globe participated in workshops and activities such as “plogging” to address one of the most important – or perhaps the most important – issue of our time. By the way, recently the UN Global Compact has confirmed the reinstatement of the Volkswagen Group as a participant. After a five-year break, the Group thereby returns to the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative.
From a product point of view, we are talking about billions of euros purposefully invested in research, development and production of the all-electric model range e-tron with the clear goal to offer the strongest range of electric models among the premium competitors and become completely CO₂-neutral by 2050 at the latest.
Denyu Bostandzhiev – Managing Director Porsche Ukraine LLC
What social projects do you support in Ukraine?
As part of the global strategy for social responsibility, our company supports various socially oriented and sustainable initiatives in Ukraine. One of the projects we are especially proud of is SOS Children’s Village. Since April 2020 we have been assisting the Kyiv Emergency Medical Services Center with vehicles and fuel in order to keep them mobile during the period of COVID and ensure smooth and safe service duty.
Audi introduces e-tron GT to the Ukrainian market. What are its features that appeal to you the most?
It is an Audi such as the world has never seen before: With the e-tron GT, the brand is demonstrating its plans for shaping an emotive and fascinating future of mobility.
The purely electric gran turismo from Audi offers dynamic performance in both engine versions: The e-tron GT quattro accelerates from zero to 100 km/h in 4.1 seconds, while the RS model takes 3.3 seconds.
The Audi e-tron GT represents yet another chapter in Audi’s history: It is a supreme gran turismo, and the RS version comes with particularly pronounced dynamic handling. It combines an expressive design language with powerful electric output, high efficiency, and excellent everyday usability. These properties make it a pioneer full of character that is shaping the future of the brand.
The Audi e-tron has been the sales leader among new electric vehicles for many months in a row. Will you hold the lead this year?
After the successful introduction on the market last year of the high-performance e-tron and the subsequent e-tron Sportback, today the SUV model e-tron is number one in sales of premium BEV on the Ukrainian automotive market. The next BEV model with outstanding sporting genes, rebellious character and revolutionary design e-tron GT is to be launched soon. And yes, our intention is to sovereignly hold the first position in the market of premium BEV and attract and excite more and more customers in Ukraine.
What is your forecast for the development of the car market in the coming years? What plans does the Porsche Ukraine company define for itself and its brands?
The development of the new passenger cars market in Ukraine is really difficult to be predict. The presence of frequent changes in tax policy – import duties, excises, other taxes and fees; relatively high interest rates on loans; imports of used cars, in particular from USA and last but not least the still missing middle-class incomes allowing the purchase of a new car still hinder the return of the passenger car market to the high levels before the World Economic Crisis. However, we sincerely believe that all open topics will sooner or later be properly addressed and find their adequate solution.
