Antolin CEO Ramon Sotomayor speaks at the Shanghai auto show held from April 18 to 27, 2023. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Antolin, one of the world’s largest manufacturers in the car interiors market, has shown its technologies and resolve to grow its presence in China at the Shanghai auto show.
The Spanish company is showcasing a number of exhibits including its ITACA concept car, the vehicle access system as well as the smart sliding floor console at the biennial event that runs from April 18 to 27.
“I want to give you a fact that is interesting. 40 percent of the electric vehicles produced in 2022 worldwide had some Antolin products. So Antolin is part of the new technology, of the new electric mobility in the world,” said CEO Ramon Sotomayor.
Antolin entered the Chinese market in 2003 and has since expanded its local footprint.
It now has 25 plants and three technical centers in the country, employing over 3600 people.
“I think we can do more in China. We will invest more in China. We will strengthen our position in China, not only with our production footprint, which we will, but also with our engineering capabilities,” said Sotomayor.
He said Asia now accounts for 16 percent of its global revenue and the company expects to scale up the figure to 20 percent, adding that China is key to that growth.
“We want to double our presence in terms of sales in China. And we think we can do that because the market is growing significantly, because we have a strong position that allow us to be close to all the manufacturing OEMs in China,” he said.
Speaking of the Shanghai auto show, Sotomayor said Antolin has come here with a learning attitude.
“There’s a lot of things that are happening here these days that give us a lot of new information that we can couple with our long history in the automotive industry,” he said.
“I think we also need to learn more about what is happening in the Chinese market and the Shanghai Auto Show help us a lot. Everybody is here sharing their vision of the market and their needs for the future, so we are very happy to be here.”