Geely Automobile Holdings has launched direct vehicle sales through an upstart third-party digital channel.
The largest domestic Chinese car manufacturer this week began selling a compact crossover on Souche, an ecommerce website focusing on new and used vehicles.
The vehicle, the Geely-badged Binyue, is offered at a fixed price of 97,800 yuan ($13,770) on the website.
The move is part of a partnership signed with Souche.com to allow Geely to tap the website’s customer data and digital sales channels to enable direct sales, the automaker said.
Under the deal, customers place orders online for Geely vehicles, and deliveries take place offsite at a home or office.
Geely expects the deal to boost sales by complementing its franchised dealerships, company vice president Feng Qingfeng said in a statement.
The company’s sales in the first four months contracted 34 percent to 311,495, though volume rose 2 percent in April as the market showed signs of rebounding from the coronavirus outbreak.