Jun. 26 – Italy’s Piaggo is opening a new US$30 million Vespa factory in Vietnam to manufacture their 125 and 150 cc scooters.
Piaggio is Europe’s biggest maker of two-wheeled vehicles and the fourth largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world. The plant is forecast to produce 100,000 scooters to be sold in the country and exported in Asia, as well as employ 350 workers.
The choice to expand in the country is only natural for a company famous for making its classically designed Vespa. Vietnamese streets are busy and full of zipping motorbikes and scooters, where it remains to be a popular mode of transportation for the masses.
“We consider Vietnam as an important market with high GDP growth, young generations and the number of scooters is one of the biggest in the world,” Roberto Colaninno, Piaggio Group president, told the AP.
A Vietnam-made Vespa is expected to cost US$1,500 less compared to the US$5,000 European made one.
According to government statistics, the country has more than 20 million motorbikes, from its population of 85 million.
