Vietnamese car brand Vinfast has cancelled its plans to expand into the UK market.
It was set to introduce two electric models, initially: the VF6 compact SUV and the larger VF8.
The move comes just weeks after the company confirmed it was closing all its European sales and service centres as part of major overhaul of its business.
Vinfast established itself with a direct sales model - similar to Tesla - but will now establish a franchised dealer network.
Up to 90% of Vinfast sales staff have been made redundant, according to German outlet Elektroauto-News.net.
The company first announced its plans to sell cars in the UK in 2022, later recruiting former Polestar and Genesis director Andrew Pilkington to establish a sales and marketing company here.
It had already begun sales in some European markets, but by the autumn of 2024 the manufacturer's plans had changed and it postponed the UK market entry, Pilkington later revealed.
It has since closed VinFast UK and cancelled its plan to compete in the UK market. As a result Pilkington's role as European sales director has ended.
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As AM editor, Tim is responsible for the media content planning and production of AM's multiple channels (AM print and digital magazines, website, social media and contributing to our events planning). He interviews and write about as many franchised dealer groups and UK divisions of motor manufacturers as possible, to explore the issues facing UK motor retail and understand what solutions dealers and suppliers are using to overcome these.
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