- Products from the second brand are expected to debut as early as the end of this year, a Leapmotor executive said.
- Leapmotor's current lineup consists mostly of affordable models.
Stellantis NV-backed Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Leapmotor (HKEX: 9863) confirmed it is planning to launch a second brand, following strong growth in its main brand.
During an earnings call on Friday, Leapmotor vice president Li Tengfei confirmed the plan, saying products from the new brand are expected to debut as early as the end of this year.
These new models will likely be officially launched in the middle or second half of next year, Li added.
On April 27, Chinese media outlet LatePost reported that Leapmotor plans to launch a new independent brand in 2027, focusing on models priced above 300,000 yuan ($44,050).
Currently, Leapmotor's models on sale are mainly affordable vehicles. Its existing model series cover a price range from 65,800 yuan to 269,800 yuan.
The company will establish a completely independent sales network for the new brand, separate from Leapmotor's existing sales channel system, according to the report.
Leapmotor's first-quarter financial results released earlier today showed that the company's revenue for the period reached 10.82 billion yuan, an 8.0% increase year-on-year.
The revenue performance marked its best-ever first quarter, but Leapmotor's gross margin fell to 9.4% from 14.9% a year earlier.
Net loss for the first quarter also widened to 390 million yuan from 130 million yuan in the same period last year.
Leapmotor delivered a total of 110,155 vehicles in the first quarter, up 25.8% year-on-year, but down 45.21% from the fourth quarter of last year.
Of those, overseas exports reached a record 40,901 units, becoming a key engine for business growth.
Leapmotor delivered a record 71,387 vehicles in April, with overseas exports reaching 14,225 units.
($1 = 6.8099 yuan)
