GWM ORA UK has officially handed over its 1,000th ORA Funky Cat to a customer in Exeter who chose a ‘First Edition+’ variant through one of the brands retail sites, City West Country.
The customer, having previously owned an electric car, was drawn to ORA Funky Cat’s retro-futuristic styling, capable electric range and high levels of specification. Characteristics that helped it recently achieve a ‘Which? Best Buy’ in the medium sized car category.
Speaking about their ORA Funky Cat First Edition+ purchase, Lawrence commented: “As a designer it was the design and flare of the car that initially attracted me to ORA Funky Cat. I was delighted this autumn when I learnt about the First Edition+ model as it had all of the features that I was looking for at an affordable price point. Especially considering the 63kWh battery and the added features like panoramic sunroof, heated seats and heated steering wheel.”
All variants of ORA Funky Cat feature wireless phone charging, facial recognition, electric front seats, app integration and ‘Hello ORA’ intelligent voice assistance. ORA Funky Cat First Edition+ adds additional comfort features like heated, cooled and massage front seats, heated steering-wheel, panoramic sunroof, automatic tailgate and automatic parking assistance.
Toby Marshall, Managing Director, GWM ORA UK said: “We are thrilled to kick off 2024 by celebrating a significant sales milestone, with 1,000 ORA Funky Cats now on UK roads. Having launched just over one year ago with a single model variant in our line-up, we’re delighted with our progress so far. In 2024, we will continue with our ambitious growth plans, scaling core retail infrastructure and introducing new products to the UK market.”
Having started sales in late November 2022, GWM ORA has predominantly focused on creating a strong network of trusted retailers in its first year of operations. So far, the brand has established 30 points of representation across the UK with many well-known and trusted retail partners now on-board. GWM ORA plans to open one new retail site a month on average in 2024, which will help support steady volume growth and increase brand awareness.
In the meantime, ORA Funky Cat First Edition continues to offer exceptional value for money, with business and personal leasing customers able to drive away from just £199 and £239 per month respectively. This makes ORA Funky Cat one of the best value ‘family sized’ BEV’s currently available in the UK leasing market.
Great Wall Motor (GWM), parent company to GWM ORA, has also posted strong sales growth across global markets, with 1,230,704 vehicles sold in 2023. This represents a 15.29% YoY growth, with the brand exceeding 1,000,000 units sold annually for eight years in a row. Overseas market sales reached a record high for GWM, with 316,018 units sold, returning a YoY growth of 82.48%.
Additionally, Great Wall Motor (GMW), has recently announced a strategy update for its automotive subsidiaries across Europe, evolving from a ‘house of brands’ to a ‘branded house’ architecture. In the UK market, GWM will adopt a phased approach to the implementation of its new brand strategy, with a focus on introducing a new naming convention for GWM ORA products initially. GWM ORA’s launch model, ORA Funky Cat, will adopt the model name ‘ORA 03’ from mid-January 2024, with additional models to follow this same convention.
