JEDDAH, 16 December 2005 — Jeddah now has the “world’s largest” Ford facility. Al Jazirah Vehicles Agencies Co. (AJVA), the Ford and Lincoln importer-dealer in Saudi Arabia, made the claim at the launch of its new, dedicated facility on Madinah Road on Tuesday night. Nearly SR100 million has been invested in the state-of-the-art buildings that feature fully integrated showrooms, service, parts centers, and central vehicles compound for the Ford and Lincoln brands.
Measuring 7,685 square meters, it comprises a 3,725-square meter showroom, coupled with a 600 square-meter air-conditioned service area with 46 service bays and a vehicle delivery area. A dedicated, on-site parts warehouse “guarantees genuine” Ford and Lincoln spare parts around the clock.
Top Ford executives from Worldwide Direct Market Operations (WDMO) and the Middle East and AJVA were among those attending the inauguration of the facility. AJVA’s senior executives described their new dealership facility as the latest in a string of new launches that include cities like Hail and Dammam. The company plans to dedicate an additional facility in Abha shortly. “The new showroom, service and parts facilities, are designed to demonstrate our efforts to extend our reach to customers, and complement the new developments we launched in the recent past,” AJVA President Abdullah ibn Fahad Al-Kraidees said.
“AJVA is working closely with us to ensure we’ve strong representation throughout the Kingdom, and they’re making a significant investment in the Ford brand throughout the Kingdom,” Ford WDMO’s Director John Fitzpatrick said.
“Their commitment is evidenced by these modern facilities and their dedication to continuously improve and provide the highest customer satisfaction levels and ownership experience of a Ford or Lincoln vehicle,” Fitzpatrick said.
Ford dealers across the region have built state-of-the-art facilities representing a total investment of more than SR375 million in the past two years alone. “Our expansion in the Western Province is a clear example of our relentless efforts to bring the Ford and Lincoln products and experiences closer to our customers. We’ve made extensive investment sin providing a team of professionals dedicated to provide the highest levels of sales and after-sales support to complement the world-class products we offer. And with new additional launches planned in the next two years, we’re confident that our reach will grow to accommodate customers wherever they are in the region,” Nabeel Al-Hussayen, AJVA’s general manager for the Western Province said.”
AJVA now runs 10 Ford-Lincoln facilities across the Kingdom and three quality care service centers. Two more integrated showroom, service and parts centers are to open in Jeddah in the next two years.
Meanwhile, Ford Middle East has announced that the Ford, Lincoln and Mercury lineups would see dramatic changes and freshening over the next two years with more than 20 all-new models coming to the region’s dealerships, Ford Middle East announced yesterday.
“Customers are in for a pleasant surprise at our dealership showroom floors as they witness a dramatic freshening of our lineup across the Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brands,” Ford Middle East Managing Director Jim Benintende said in Dubai
Source : Arab News
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