After going through a difficult business environment in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Master Group Corporation (Asia) expects to grow sales by 10 per cent this year.
Last year the group, which consist of various automotive retail and rental businesses, saw earnings decline to Bt21.4 billion. Total auto sales reached 10,078 units, down 13.5 per cent while the market fell by 31 per cent, said Dr. Sanhavuth Thamchuanviriya, CEO of MGC-ASIA.
He said for 2021, group earnings are expected to rise by 10 per cent to Bt23 billion.
“We had to make a lot of changes last year in order to minimize the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic that has affected many businesses,” he said.
For example its car rental fleet (SIXT and Master Car Rental) had to be downsized dramatically, from over 1,000 vehicles to just over 500, due to the low number of tourists, he said.
“However, luxury products seemed to enjoy growth as people were unable to travel overseas and they spend money on luxury items instead,” Dr. Sanhavuth added.
MGC-ASIA has several luxury car brands under its wings including Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin and Maserati, in addition to Azimut yachts.
It is also the distributor for Peugeot (with 6 new showrooms coming up this year) and Harley-Davidson, apart from being the largest BMW and MINI dealer in the country and a Honda automobile dealer as well.
The group is also training personnel in preparation for the growth of electric vehicles in the country, and plans to start automotive retail businesses in other Asean markets such as Vietnam. Currently it already has car rental businesses in Malaysia and Laos.
MGC-ASIA is also in the insurance business, with Howden Maxi Insurance Broker growing earnings by 14 per cent to Bt2.7 billion last year.
Dr. Sanhavuth stated that the group’s next major move is to be listed in the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), in order to raise funds for future expansion.
More new brands could be taken up by MGC-ASIA, particularly those within the STELLANTIS stable which includes as Alfa Romeo, Citroen, Fiat, Chrysler, Jeep, Lancia, etc.
