The company received this news as the final sales statistics for 2023 were tallied and validated. It shows that Chery sold twice as many vehicles in 2023 as in 2022 and that it is the second best-selling brand among SUV customers.
“We are very happy with the news that Chery is one of the most popular SUV brands in the country.
“If you consider that Chery only sells SUVs, our doubling of sales and overall ranking is very impressive because we do not sell any commercial vehicles or entry-level cars to bolster our sales numbers,” says Tony Liu, Deputy General Manager of Chery South Africa.
According to the final sales statistics for South African vehicle sales, in 2023 Chery sold a total of 16 110 vehicles. This is a major jump from 2022, when Chery sold an already impressive 8 013 vehicles.
Of the total sales, the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro sold 9 916 vehicles, making it the most popular model range for Chery and one of the overall best-selling passenger vehicles in South Africa. This also means that Tiggo 4 Pro sales more than doubled in one year.
The Tiggo 4 Pro range was expanded in 2023 to include the Tiggo 4 Pro LiT in manual and automatic variants. This model lowered the entry into the Chery family to only R279 900 while retaining the brand’s impressive warranty and service support.
“Our 10-year / 1 000 000 km engine warranty remains unmatched in South Africa. Chery also pioneered the inclusion of value-added services in the sales price, including rim, scratch and dent repair and even a take-me-home service,” says Liu.
Liu is referring to Chery’s decision to include items that a vehicle owner would pay extra for – such as paint protection insurance or protection against rim damage – in the vehicle’s sales price. These features are included under the banner of the Chery Cares package, while a number of extended service plan and warranty options are also available through the Chery Extender Programme.
On the other end of the luxury spectrum, Chery welcomed to new Pro MAX models to the range. The Tiggo 7 Pro MAX and Tiggo 8 Pro MAX takes the luxury and performance specifications of the previous range-topping models and adds even more specification and engine power.
With the addition of these new flagship models and new technology, such as four-wheel drive on the Tiggo 7 Pro MAX, both these SUV ranges also saw their sales numbers jump significantly in 2023.
In 2023, Chery also entered the big leagues as the official presidential vehicle partner of the BRICS Summit and later in the year as the new vehicle partner to the Lions Rugby Company.
During the recent festive season, Chery joined the Lions and Reach For A Dream to deliver gifts and cheer to children with life threatening illnesses at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital’s children’s ward.
This was but one of many social initiatives launched by Chery in 2023. The brand visited children’s homes and family care centres in Johannesburg and Soweto and, on a global scale, partnered with UNICEF to help vulnerable and marginalised children across the globe.
“We hope to announce a new initiative between UNICEF and Chery South Africa soon. This partnership will benefit poor and vulnerable children in South Africa,” says Liu.
To support its rapidly growing car parc, Chery also opened a new parts warehouse in Gauteng. Designed to deliver parts and components to every Chery dealer every day, the new warehouse covers over 7 000 square metres and carries an average of R70 million in parts at any given time.
“With our new parts warehouse we have been able to achieve an immediate fill rate of 98% and a 99% claim approval rating on our mechanical warranties,” says Liu.
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Tshego Sefolo and Londeka Shezi from Agile Capital – In 2015, after 13 years in the investment industry, Tshego Sefolo went to the market to raise hundreds of millions to launch his own private equity firm, Agile Capital. It took him and his business partner Londeka Shezi, less than a year to secure the investment, for not one, but two private equity firms. Londeka Shezi, is a director at Agile Capital, but her journey started when she completed her articles with Pricewaterhouse Coopers in 2009. She then joined Standard Bank where she worked in the Leverage and Acquisitions team, and went on to become a senior associate at Zico Group.