Jowett Motor Group has confirmed a brand-new, purpose-built site at the Essendon Fields automotive precinct which will be home to Chery Essendon and Lepas Essendon.

Set to open the doors at the end of 2027, this will be its third Chery franchise and first Lepas dealership. 

Lepas is new to Australia and is positioned as a youth-focused premium brand under the Chery umbrella and Jowett Motor Group (JMG) will be one of its earliest retail partners in the country.

The two Chinese brands will bring Jowett Motor Group’s (JMG) showroom count to 21 and become its first Lepas outlet.

JMG COO Chris Jowett told GoAutoNews Premium that the greenfields development for Essendon Fields strengthens Chery’s presence in Victoria and reflects the commitment to growth by his dealer group.

Chris Jowett

He said that JMG has taken one of the last available sites in the precinct for its brand-new dealership. The precinct is regarded as the biggest single-site collection of car dealerships in the southern hemisphere and recorded more than 21,000 vehicle sales for the fourth consecutive year in 2025.

“It’s exciting for us to enter Essendon Fields and the location really suits a brand like Chery that is a top-10 brand, and outperforms a lot of rival brands in the precinct,” he said.

Artist Impression: Chery and Lepas Essendon Fields opening in 2027 (Jowett Motor Group)

“It will be a high-volume site for us with a purpose-built showroom and workshop, so it’s very exciting.“It really strengthens our presence in Victoria being in one of the state’s busiest automotive hubs.”

Work on the site is expected to start within a couple of months and to be completed by the end of 2027. 

“The showroom design follows the latest CI of Chery, the same as we launched at Chery Doncaster when we recently did the first new CI for the brand in Australia,” Mr Jowett said.

Artist Impression: Chery and Lepas Essendon Fields opening in 2027 (Jowett Motor Group)

“The new dealership at Essendon Fields will be built to the same standard as that, but to a much larger scale.”

“There’ll be a 10-bay workshop, with the showroom having space for 10 vehicles and the adjoining Lepas with room for six vehicles. The showroom is open so there’s flow between the two. There will also be a used-car vehicle display and dedicated customer parking.”

Mr Jowett said: “The Chery brand is definitely a force to be reckoned with and already has significant market share, which we believe will only continue to rise.”

“We’re always looking for new opportunities, and we know that brands like Chery will only continue to grow their presence in Australia –and that’s something we are watching closely.”

Jowett Motor Group is a family-owned automotive retailer with dealerships in Victoria, South Australia and the ACT. It represents brands including BMW, Motorrad, Mini Garage, Audi, Honda, Chery and Geely.