Polestar marks UK expansion with new London site

Electric vehicle firm Polestar is ramping up its presence in London with the opening of its second dealership in Elstree.

The site – the first suburban location in the UK – aims to be one of the most sustainable car dealerships in the country complete with rainwater harvesting and solar panels. It will showcase the updated Polestar 2 MY24 as well as the new luxury electric SUV Polestar 3.

The site, its sixth in the UK, will be operated by retail partner Endeavour.

Jonathan Goodman, Head of Polestar UK, said: “Endeavour has a hugely knowledgeable team at the Space ready to help visitors on all things Polestar.” He added that the showroom would be “a friendly environment that continues to change the face of automotive retail in the UK.”

Polestar saw a 63% jump in revenue to £268 million in the UK in 2022 in signs it was benefitting from a mass consumer switch to EVs. One in six cars sold in the UK in November 2023 was a battery-electric vehicle, according to SMMT data.

Polestar, which was developed by Volvo, is based in Sweden but incorporated in the UK and listed in New York with manufacturing facilities in China.

Much of the company’s research and development team is based in Bicester, Oxfordshire, at which it also has a customer test drive hub.

The firm delivered more than 50,000 vehicles worldwide in 2022. It expects to deliver around 60,000 cars this year, down from an earlier forecast of 80,000, with the forecast cut prompting a sharp drop in its share price.

But its fortunes may yet be turned around by a hotly-anticipated new model, the Polestar 5, which promises to deliver a 100-mile charge in five minutes.