The showroom and office at 93 O’Riordan Street – which coincidentally was last century an MG sales centre – covers an 1100-square-metre area and has been leased by the distributor to trial new concepts while more closely following the retail business.

The dealership, to be called Sydney City MG and expected to be opened in the third quarter of this year, does not replace MG Motor Australia’s headquarters at 100 William Street in the city.

MG Motor Australia CEO Peter Ciao said: “Through this new location we will be operating in close proximity to our inner-city customers, striving to improve service levels, and continuously working with our owners to provide the best MG Motor experience for all.

“The Alexandria showroom is a key investment for the business, contributing towards continued confidence in the MG Motor brand, and raising its profile here in Australia.

“Integral to this is building trust in the market with respected dealer partners, providing positive customer care to our owners and offering a strong and attractive product range,” Mr Ciao said.

MG Motor Australia has appointed Kim Nguyen as dealer principal of Sydney City MG.

“This new space offers an exciting opportunity for MG Motor, trialling a new retail experience concept, and testing this through direct ownership of the Alexandria dealership,” Ms Nguyen said.

“This new showroom allows us to be a part of the customer journey, while also offering a prime retail position for positive brand exposure.”

The building has been leased through Colliers International and the interior design is being undertaken by international design retail consultant, Greater Group.

Greater Group’s design director for Australia, Chris Smith, said: “The MG marque has fantastic nostalgic value for the Australian public and we wanted the space to respectfully acknowledge the brand’s history, while firmly focusing on new technology and the modern ‘Fun Motoring’ face of MG.

“The next few years will be an exciting time for developments in automotive technology and the MG Motor flagship store will be ready to showcase and educate the customer as these products keep evolving.”

MG Motor Australia was recently awarded the best market for sales growth for 2018 by MG parent company, SAIC Motor.

Werribee MG, part of the Werribee Automotive Group, was also honoured as the leading five-star dealership in Australia.

MG sales in Australia are up 321.8 per cent to the end of May this year with 2704 unit sales.

It was also up 177.5 per cent in May while the total vehicle market fell 8.1 per cent. The brand is currently outselling Jeep and Skoda, among others.

By Neil Dowling

Image source: Google