Vietnam to be picked as Piaggio’s hub in Asia

Italian scooter manufacturer Piaggio will appoint Vietnam as its hub in Asia-Pacific, replacing Singapore, said the president of the Piaggio Group, Roberto Colaninno.He revealed the information in Hanoi after he and Costantino Sambuy, general director of Piaggio Vietnam, met with President Nguyen Minh Triet late last week.

At the meeting, Colaninno informed his host of the Piaggio Group’s operations in Vietnam as well as its plan to expand activities and its strategy to diversify products in the country.

He said Piaggio was happy with the performance of its business in Vietnam and planned to increase its investment to make Piaggio Vietnam the group’s central hub in Asia.

He also confirmed that Vietnam was a big market for Piaggio motorcycles with more than two million units.

The company also wants to export their products from its factory in Vietnam to Singapore, Thailand, Laos, the Philippines, Japan and Australia.

Piaggio began production at its first plant in Vietnam at Binh Xuyen Industrial Park in Vinh Phuc in the middle of this year and plans to open a technology center and a research and development center to tailor products to suit Vietnamese and Asian people, Colaninno said.

Piaggio Vietnam has leased a large area near its factory in Vinh Phuc to serve its development strategy in Vietnam and the region.

The company aims to develop products which are both friendly to the environment and fuel efficient, like the scooters it is producing to meet Euro 3 standards.

The first Vietnamese-made Vespa LX 125 scooter was introduced earlier this year. The company also released its Vespa LX 150 in August. It plans to produce two new models next year.

Piaggio, the world’s fourth largest scooter and motorcycle manufacturer, started construction of its factory in northern Vietnam in October, 2007. The company said it spent US$30 million on the factory covering eight hectares at Binh Xuyen Industrial Park, with an initial annual output capacity of 50,000 units for local sale and export.

Piaggio Vietnam has enjoyed increasing demand and has contributed to the increase of motorcycle sales across Asia Pacific. In the first nine months of this year, Piaggio Asia Pacific sold 25% higher year-on-year. And in Q3, sales doubled year-on-year.

The Saigon Times Daily

Tags: Vietnam business news, Vietnam enterprise