Companies

CMC loses exclusive Iveco franchise to Peugeot Kenya dealer

showroom

Urysia’s showroom on Bunyala Road, Nairobi. PHOTO | FILE

Peugeot’s dealer in Kenya, Urysia, has signed a dealership contract for sale of Iveco vehicles in Kenya, ending the exclusive franchise previously held by CMC Holdings.

The new dealership gives Urysia a presence in the light and heavy commercial vehicles category; including buses, trucks, tippers and prime movers.

Urysia has only been selling Peugeot saloon cars and utility models since 2012 when it launched operations with the French car brand in 2012.

“We are the new Iveco dealer in Kenya,” said Urysia’s chief executive Claude Mwende in an interview on Monday.

“We are excited about Iveco’s product range. It enables us to cover nearly all vehicle classes,” he said, adding that the first shipment of the Iveco brands are expected in May.

Urysia’s dealership in Iveco brands is currently not exclusive, meaning that the Italian vehicle manufacturer could appoint other distributors.

Before Urysia’s entry, CMC had been the sole dealer of Iveco, focusing on selling prime movers. The dealership award to Urysia marks yet another loss to CMC, which has in recent years surrendered major franchises to rivals.

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For Urysia, the addition of Iveco presents a significant growth opportunity in the highly competitive new vehicles market.

“Most of the new vehicles sold locally are commercial units and we have been absent in this space before. We can now venture into this market in a comprehensive way,” Mr Mwende said.

He added that besides ordinary transport and construction vehicles, Urysia will be looking at offering specialised units for the military and mining applications.

Urysia is in the process of building a showroom and service centre for the Iveco franchise next to its head office along Nairobi’s Bunyala Road that also houses its Peugeot showroom.

This will see the company spend a total of Sh1.4 billion to launch the Iveco dealership, including property, equipment and human resources.