After 35 years, Ayala exits Honda dealership
The Ayala conglomerate will let go of its Honda dealership business after more than three decades as it shifts focus toward the rapidly growing electric vehicle (EV) market.
Ayala Corp. and Honda Cars Philippines Inc. jointly announced on Thursday the transfer of ACMobility’s operations of Honda dealerships across the country to “new dealer principals” by Jan. 1.
ACMobility, through Iconic Dealership Inc., will continue operating Honda Cars Makati, Pasig, Shaw, Bacoor, Cebu, Mandaue, Iloilo, Negros and Cagayan de Oro until Dec. 31.
“This transition reflects our ongoing effort to optimize our portfolio and focus on new growth areas,” ACMobility CEO Jaime Alfonso Zobel de Ayala said in a statement.
“Among these are our initiatives in advancing sustainable mobility and electrification, where we continue to build solutions that benefit communities, businesses and the environment,” Zobel added.
This is a pivotal move for ACMobility, which first partnered with Honda in 1990 with the opening of Honda Cars Makati.
Since then, ACMobility has sold over 220,000 Honda vehicles through the dealerships it operates.
In exiting the business after 35 years, Ayala said this would also allow Honda to pursue its own “growth and innovation strategies.”
The country’s oldest conglomerate clarified that the affected dealerships would directly contact customers with active reservations to guarantee deliveries. Scheduled service appointments will “proceed as planned.”
Apart from Honda, ACMobility’s vehicle dealership portfolio is composed of Isuzu, BYD and Kia.
EVs have been Ayala’s new focus in recent years as the official distributor of the Chinese brand BYD in the Philippines, aiming to capture growing demand for modern cars.
Data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. and Truck Manufacturers Association show that car sales in the country increased by 1.6 percent to 269,207 units this year as of July.
EV unit sales totaled 16,195 during the period. Hybrid electric vehicles accounted for the biggest market share at 82 percent, representing 13,290 units.
