Polestar is scaling back its presence in China due to weak sales and is refocusing on other markets

Polestar, the Swedish electric vehicle maker linked to Volvo and owned by the Chinese giant Geely, is going through a bittersweet stage. While it is experiencing a rebound in some markets, in China, the largest market in the world for the electric vehicle sector, the company has been forced to hit the brakes and reorient its strategy.

In recent months, Polestar has drastically reduced its presence in this Asian country, going from 36 to just 10 sales locations. To make matters worse, some reports indicate that the company has also begun dismantling its sales operations in the country. Michael Lohscheller, current CEO of Polestar, has had to address these rumors by stating that the brand is not abandoning China, but is prioritizing some more profitable markets.

The truth is that in 2024 Polestar sold just 3,120 vehicles in China, an insignificant figure in a market where 12.9 million electric vehicles were sold that same year, with local brands such as BYD, Geely, Li, XPENG, or Xiaomi as the dominant players. According to some analysts, the Chinese market has become a hostile environment for brands perceived as foreign, even though Polestar belongs to the Chinese giant Geely and its production also takes place in this Asian country.

The Chinese market has changed a great deal in recent years

Local brands, on the other hand, no longer have anything to envy from foreign ones and, today, they produce vehicles loaded with technology, with good technical specifications and, above all, lower prices. In this way, they have managed to capture the attention of the country’s customers, who until not long ago were mostly interested in vehicles from foreign brands. Given this situation, Polestar has a very tough time succeeding in the Chinese market.

Although 2024 was not a good year for Polestar in terms of global sales, 2025 has started by giving the company’s management some hope. During the first three months of the year, global sales grew by 76 percent, although China did not contribute to that momentum in the quarterly results.

It is therefore no surprise that Polestar has decided to focus on other markets that are more profitable for the company, such as the United States. Following this new strategy, the Swedish firm has already announced its intention to open 25 new sales points in the United States, going from 35 to a total of 60. To do so, the company plans to take advantage of the existing dealer network of its sister brand Volvo, in order to bring its vehicles closer to American consumers.

The Swedish firm also plans to boost sales of its new models Polestar 3 and Polestar 4, with which they hope to attract the attention of a larger number of customers. If this new strategy proves successful and Polestar manages to strengthen its position in the North American market as well as the European one, the company could offset the difficult moment it is going through in China, laying the foundations for its new path forward.