Mercedes-Benz reaffirms commitment to Egypt, denies receiving dealership requests

Journalist claims Mercedes-Benz plans to exit local market; company response ensures commitment to Egypt

Mercedes-Benz Egypt stated in a press release on Monday that it had not received any new distribution and dealership requests or applications, reaffirming its commitment to the Egyptian market.
The press release comes after a famous journalist wrote an article in an Egyptian independent newspaper, claiming that the company is facing great challenges in the country, and that it is seeking a new distributor in Egypt, having already received many offers from businessmen in Egypt and the Gulf countries. He also stated that the company was planning to exit the Egyptian market, attributing his statements to an unidentified Egyptian investor.
On its part, Mercedes-Benz Egypt stated in its press release that it is a fully owned subsidiary of Daimler AG—the sole entity that is responsible for the import, wholesale, and distribution of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars in the Egyptian market. Its current network of authorised dealerships for passenger cars consists of three companies, in addition to a fourth authorised local service centre.
"In this regard, as the solely responsible entity for the local appointment of authorised local retail network and dealerships, we would like to confirm that we have not received any requests or applications of interested parties to join the Mercedes-Benz network," the company stated.
Mercedes-Benz Egypt said that it is committed to the Egyptian market, its retail network, and service centres, and is planning to further develop its presence in the market on the long-run.
The journalist alleged that although all officials in Mercedes-Benz Germany know about and admit to the company's crisis in Egypt, Mercedes-Benz Egypt had been hiding the truth and keeping silent, especially since the appointment of the company's new CEO and president Thomas Zorn. The crisis emerged when customs authorities had refused to recognise the invoices received from the mother company, after which Mercedes-Benz Egypt paid EGP 200m to the treasury of the Egyptian Customs Authority. This amount was later seized by the Ministry of Finance, the journalist explained.
The other problem that Mercedes-Benz had been facing in Egypt is the foreign currency shortage and the US dollar limit on imports set by the Central Bank of Egypt, according to the journalist.
He added that the unknown official in Stuttgart told him that the company will resume its business in Egypt, given the regional importance of the Egyptian market. However, it was seeking a new distributer by the end of next year.
The journalist added that Zorn had not issued any statement to reassure customers on the future of the company since he had been appointed six months ago.