CEO of Astana Motors anticipates “big war” in car market

According to Beknur Nessipbayev, head of Astana Motors, one of the biggest car companies in Kazakhstan, a big war in the auto market is coming, driven by an influx of newcomers. He shared this opinion during the Kursiv Auto 2024 forum held in Almaty on June 10.

«There are so many new businesses trying to enter the market. We know that about 15 more automotive brands from China want to sell their cars in Kazakhstan. We are going to bump into a big war in the market. I mean, we can already feel this. We are going to see tough competition, a bunch of new incentive programs and various discounts from dealers, which is obviously good for regular customers,» Nessipbayev highlighted.

He also commented on statistics shown by CEO of Kolesa Group Dmitriy Botanov. Speaking before Nessipbayev, Botanov said that 70% of Kazakhstanis look for cars under $11,200; about half of the Kolesa.kz website users look for cars under $22,350 and only 30% to 35% of users search for brand-new cars. Furthermore, only 6% to 7% of them call those who sell the cars.

«This is a key problem for all official car dealers in the world: people want to buy a big, comfy and reliable car under $11,500. Of course, it should be a Toyota Camry. Even though many other models range from $11,500 to $15,640 in the market, customers aren’t showing great interest in them. I believe as official dealers we have to prove to customers that these brand-new cars are much superior to any ten-year-old Camry,» Nessipbayev said.

Kursiv Auto 2024 is the first independent forum for key players of the automobile market, experts, industrial associations and regulators organized by Kursiv.media.