CEO of luxury car retailer Wearnes on how it’s moving up to speed with S’pore’s EV transition

With the Singapore government pushing to phase out Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles (ICEVs) by 2040, many industries have been making changes to adapt to the new policy. Electric Vehicle (EV) adoption is naturally expected to rise, and businesses have started to take notice of this.

EV manufacturers like Tesla have already set up dealerships here in Singapore, and its rival Nio has just been listed on Singapore’s stock exchange as well as announced plans for an upcoming R&D centre in Singapore, focused on artificial intelligence and autonomous driving.

Old companies have had to adapt to this change as well, and Wearnes Automotive Singapore, with over 100 years of history in Singapore, is no exception.

What is Wearnes?

Many of us likely would not know a Wearnes vehicle if we ever saw one, even though they have quite a presence in Singapore, both for EVs and ICEVs.

That is likely because unlike other companies like Nissan and Chevrolet, Wearnes does not produce its own vehicles.

Instead, it is a distributor — it partners with manufacturers in other countries, and imports vehicles for domestic distribution. Some of the brands that they have franchises for include Bentley, Jaguar, and Volvo.

With rapidly developing economies and increasing wealth in Southeast Asia, Wearnes Automotive has focused on building a stable of reputable brands from premium to luxury marques in order to meet the growing demand for such vehicles.

Wearnes Automotive aims to bring a wide selection of high-end makes to meet the needs of customers, while offering exclusive and premium customer service – something that Southeast Asian customers are becoming more discerning over.

More recently, Wearnes Automotive secured an agreement that made it the official and sole distributor of Polestar vehicles in Singapore.

Polestar is a manufacturer of high performance electric engines and cars, and is owned by Volvo. Its offerings include both the hybrid Polestar 1 and the fully electric Polestar 2.

Adapting to Singapore’s EV transition

The Polestar 2 is just one of the EVs that Wearnes distributes — they also distribute EVs from Renault, Volvo, and Jaguar.

“As a Swedish electric performance car brand, Polestar is at the forefront of the EV automotive trend. And as the first market in Southeast Asia to launch Polestar, we have seen strong interest and expect this to propel sales figures in the near future, especially as EV adoption picks up in Singapore,” said Andre.

This latest release by Wearnes is part of their drive to be the dealer group with the most number of EV makes in their stable of brands.

Wearnes seems to be on track to reach that goal. It recently reported that its showroom sees “very healthy interest” during a time when the overall car market was weak.

Wearnes is not just helping Singapore’s EV transition by bringing EVs to Singapore. They also partnered with OCBC and Charge+ last year to offer free charging and preferential interest rates for Wearnes’ Jaguar EV buyers.

Preparing for Singapore’s green future

The Polestar 2 is not the last EV that Wearnes hopes to bring onboard as part of its group. They are already working to bring in more EV offerings, with the goal of becoming the go-to dealer for all premium EVs. 

Whether you are looking for an entry premium EV, or have your sights set on a luxury marque like Bentley, there is an EV for everyone. Wearnes Automotive is driving the change to sustainable mobility by working closely with OEMs to bring in a range of EVs for each marque it represents.

In line with the SG Green Plan and the aim to phase out all diesel and petrol cars by 2040, it will only be a matter of time that EVs become the default choice of vehicle for all drivers.

As Singapore moves towards its sustainability goals, businesses have been adapting to the new and coming reality that EVs must eventually replace ICEVs in Singapore. 

While companies like SMRT and SBS Transit have made moves towards electrifying their vehicle fleets, coordination for them is far simpler. These companies enjoy economies of scale and a hierarchical structure. 

Wearnes’ moves towards encouraging EV adoption in Singapore is more complicated. It has to convince a myriad of customers, with varying tastes and preferences, to buy EVs, one at a time. 

And yet, they have been bringing EVs to consumers, through a steady increase in partnerships, providing ever more choices to consumers on which EV they wish to switch to from ICEVs.

Featured Image Credit: Wearnes Automotive Singapore