Polestar makes the Polestar 3 in a South Carolina manufacturing facility, and final yr warned that any gross sales ban “shuts down the operations of a lawfully organized US firm with substantial US investments.”
“The US is a crucial marketplace for us,” Kim Palmer, Polestar head of PR, tells WIRED. Suggesting the speccing of non-Chinese language software program and different supplies, Palmer provides: “We’re in superior phases to adapt our future fashions to ensure they adjust to the regulation when it comes to {hardware}, software program, and suppliers.”
However, Lohscheller could should ask the Trump administration for dispensation to promote its US-manufactured vehicles within the US. Trump’s antipathy towards EVs is well-known, however it’s unclear how a lot of America’s EV coverage can be influenced by Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
“It’s an uncommon battle of curiosity to see the CEO of Tesla in any manner concerned with EV coverage for your complete nation,” stated Peter Wells, a enterprise professor and director of the Centre for Automotive Trade Analysis at Cardiff College in Wales, UK. “There’s an infinite potential for Musk to rewrite the principles to swimsuit Tesla’s finest pursuits.”
If this proves to be the case, it may very well be mighty arduous for Polestar to get dispensation. Maybe that’s why, in his presentation, Lohscheller burdened Polestar’s pivot into France. A trademark dispute with Citroen—the corporate claimed the Polestar brand was too just like its personal—beforehand prevented Polestar from promoting within the French market.
Nonetheless, there’s a possible snafu. Would-be Polestar purchasers don’t but qualify for France’s EV subsidy. “Polestar is just not on the listing of firms which have been accredited by France to have certified for his or her ecological bonus,” says Wells. “That’s to not say they couldn’t be on it sooner or later, but when they’ll’t get certified for that scheme, they’ve obtained an incentive drawback.”
Lochscheller stated that 2024 had been a transition yr for Polestar, and that now the corporate would revert to a extra conventional dealership-based gross sales mannequin.
“A whole lot of issues want to alter,” stated Lochscheller, “beginning with gross sales and distribution. I name it from exhibiting to lively promoting. The corporate has finished a very good job establishing the direct-to-consumer baseline, now the important thing process is ensuring that the lively promoting by way of retail companions is bettering.” Extra showrooms, then, and fewer reliance on on-line gross sales—old-school pondering.
“Our [retail] footprint is rising,” stated Lochscheller, citing the truth that there are actually 25 Polestar showrooms in Sweden, 20 greater than final yr, and 20 showrooms within the UK, up from eight final yr.
“By increasing dealership gross sales, Polestar can attain extra clients, thereby rising general gross sales quantity,” Stephanie Valdez Streaty, director of trade insights for Cox Automotive, writer of the Kelley Blue E book automobile valuer, tells WIRED. “Clients usually tend to spend money on a model they’ll work together with and depend on,” she says.
Wells agrees: “Polestar, below new management, is now lastly going to give attention to being higher at retail, and being higher at bringing the revenues in. They’re going again to the standard [automotive] gross sales mannequin and presenting themselves to shoppers in a much less unique manner.”
Lochscheller, Wells says, is instilling in Polestar a “sense of conservatism, an try to chop prices, drive up volumes, undertake a extra conventional advertising and marketing technique, and generate sufficient income to outlive.”
Polestar vehicles can be found in 27 international locations. Manufacturing of the Polestar 4 will begin in South Korea within the second half of 2025. Polestar 5, a Porsche Taycan-rivaling GT, is because of go on sale later this yr and is constructed on the model’s first bespoke EV structure. The proposed Polestar 7 might do nicely within the US, claims Streaty. “Creating a automobile within the premium compact SUV phase is a brilliant transfer,” she says.
With break-even nonetheless a minimum of two years away, Polestar will seemingly want extra financing to see it by way of to profitability. However Polestar—reliant on help from its final Chinese language proprietor—could not have two years, claims Wells. “The Chinese language EV market is booming, however there’s a number of competitors, with rampant worth reducing. The chance for Polestar is that their monetary help could not final. Polestar would possibly turn into an extravagance too far for Geely. Market circumstances are transferring quicker than firm strategic plans.”