Swedish electric vehicle (EV) maker Polestar is to align its reporting methodology with industry standards by recording retail sales based on cars delivered to final customers rather than when they are invoiced.
Polestar UK last announced it was giving its retail partners more ability to deal with car buyers at their ‘Polestar Space’ showrooms under its new non-genuine agency (NGA) contracts. Polestar dealerships are now able to target customers and actively sell to them.
In 2020 Polestar began sales of its electric cars in the UK with all transactions conducted directly with Polestar UK on its online platform, even those completed in or after a customer visited one of the Polestar outlets which are manned by staff employed by its agents, most of which are AM100 franchised dealer groups which also represent Volvo Cars, which has a stake in Polestar.
The car maker on Thursday reported promising gains in fourth-quarter retail sales and order intake. Retail sales climbed to 12,256 vehicles, up from 11,640 a year earlier, while order intake surged by 37%, providing reassurance to jittery investors concerned about demand for the brand’s higher-priced, luxury EV models.
“The changes being made to our commercial operations are clearly having a positive impact,” said Michael Lohscheller, Polestar’s CEO.
Over the past year, the company has grappled with delays in quarterly financial reports, cost management issues, and leadership shakeups.
Polestar embarked on a turnaround strategy under Lohscheller, who assumed the CEO role in October. He immediately launched a strategic review and reshuffled the leadership team, with changes to key board-level roles.
Lohscheller is set to outline Polestar’s updated business strategy and present its delayed third-quarter financial results on January 16. Investors will be watching closely for details on how the company plans to achieve its goal of break-even cash flow by the end of 2025.
