Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
After eight months leading Germany’s sales and operations, Marius Hayler has announced today on LinkedIn that is joining Geely’s brand Polestar as a Director for the Nordic countries and managing director of the Norwegian market.
Hayler was Nio’s first country manager hired in Europe. He joined Nio in March 2021, after serving as Country Director at Jaguar Land Rover Norway.
At Nio, he led the preparations for the company’s entry into the Nordic market before transitioning in October last year to the German market after the departure of the German lead Ralph Kranz.
According to data released by the German Federal Motor Transport Association, the registration of passenger cars in Germany fell to 236,425 units in May, marking a month-over-month and year-over-year decline.
Nio entered the German market in October 2022 and registered only 35 vehicles last month, representing a decrease of 20.5 percent from the previous year. Year-to-date sales for Nio in the country reached 190 vehicles, 7.3 percent lower than registrations recorded between January and May 2023.
In April, Nio had registered 53 vehicles marking the second consecutive month of growth after selling 27 units in February and 48 in March.
On LinkedIn, Hayler mentioned on Monday his time at Nio as “several fantastic years” before saying that he decided “to move back to the place where the heart and head belongs, the Nordics, Norway and Oslo”.
“However, I would also like to inform that I will not only change my “address” but also employer. I want to thank Monika Franke and Kristian Elvefors for their trust, and I can´t wait to meet the great Nordic, as well as the Norwegian, Polestar teams and Partners. I am very much looking forward to start in my new role in August as Director Nordic and MD Norway in Polestar,” he added.
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Earlier today, the former managing director for Nio in the UK Matt Galvin, announced that took the role at Polestar of Managing Director for the UK and Ireland.
Galvin initially joined Nio in September 2022, where he was responsible in establishing and launching the brand’s UK operations, according to his LinkedIn.
By March 2023, Galvin had expanded his responsibilities to include Head of European Sales, overseeing business operations across Norway, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Germany.
Nio launched last week its flagship SUV EL8 in the five European countries opening pre-orders while deliveries are expected to start in September.
Initially launched in China in late 2022, the EL8 has been refreshed with the new Executive variant priced in Germany at €108,900 with battery included and at €87,900 with the Battery as a Service system.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
