Supplier Spotlight: How Kymco UK is making strides in the mobility sector
THIIS chats to Mark Hermolle, Managing Director of Kymco UK, about how the firm’s collaborative approach to developing products has helped it to stay ahead of the game…
Taiwanese mobility firm Kymco has been supplying mobility scooters and powered wheelchairs for over 20 years. The firm has grown a lot since then, establishing its UK division and growing its range of mobility scooters, all while taking pride in designing products with customer-centric features and excellent service…
Can you tell us a little bit about your story with Kymco?
MH: “My story with Kymco first began when I joined Days Mobility Aids later known as Days Healthcare. I joined as their head of mobility but one month after joining Days, the whole legal process started over the Shoprider exclusive agency. Days needed a new range of scooters and Kymco Taiwan were targeted as a top-quality, mass producer of high-quality vehicles.
“Kymco were already known to have been in close cooperation with some very large, high-end companies such as Honda, BMW and Kawasaki. An agreement was signed, and I started the design process with the Kymco R&D team. The brand-new Strider range of scooters were launched in 2001/2002, and Kymco quickly became recognised as the high-quality, premium player for mobility scooters.
“In 2007 I left Days Healthcare to pursue other interests, but during that transition I was approached by Kymco’s CEO, Mr C P Ko, who asked me if I would consider joining Kymco and set up their first wholly owned mobility subsidiary, Kymco Healthcare UK. Needless to say I was delighted at the opportunity and the challenge, particularly as I had worked so closely with the team at Kymco Taiwan and had a very strong belief in their ethics, quality, product development and design capabilities. Kymco UK was formed in 2008.
“I could also see a lot of synergy at Kymco regarding their route to market, their strong values for dealerships and a true partnership approach. Kymco showed a strong collaborative approach to the development of its products and to its customer base, not just the buyer/supplier relationships I had seen at other businesses in the industry.”
Kymco has been established for over 15 years now. What do you think is key to its success?
MH: “Kymco is now celebrating its 60th year of successful business and Kymco UK celebrates 15 years. We believe our success is mainly down to us offering high-quality products, superior designs, our strong professional dealer network and an unrivalled customer service and after-sales service, providing first-class spare parts support.”
What are the latest products to be released from Kymco recently?
MH: “In 2021 we launched a fantastic range of folding scooters, K-lite folding (F and FE). They have some amazing unique features, which have been very well received by our dealers.
“These folding models have been a real success, even though it was launched during a very difficult time. These folding scooters are selling very well and are proving to be a top seller.
“Our premium Midi to Maxi type scooters have dominated the market for years and have been a main product on the UK Motability scheme. We take great pride in always designing customer-centric features that offer users benefits that take their needs and everyday life into account during the design process.”
How are Kymco UK products distributed in the UK?
MH: “All of our products are sold through our dealer network who assess the needs of end users to ensure the correct mobility solution is always provided to the customer. Unlike some organisations in the industry, we believe this to be the credible and safest route to market for our vulnerable customers.
“Kymco strives to continue to develop and supply the very best products for its customers. The mobility scooter business is a key part of Kymco’s focus and remains a huge part of the UK operation!”
Is Kymco looking to expand its UK partner network?
MH: “We are always looking for good credible dealers to help us to offer the very best national coverage.
“We pride ourselves in having an excellent network of highly skilled and professional dealers, and we are very happy with them and this route to market.
“However, there is always room to grow in areas where there is less Kymco dealer coverage, so we always welcome any new top-quality dealers and always give them full consideration to any open points we may have.
“We would invite any high-quality dealers to please contact us if interested. Contact our National Sales Manager Neil Keeble, in the first instance, with your interest. Neil can be contacted via email on nkeeble@kymcouk.co.uk or via telephone on 07718 479613.”
What do you think is the main challenge for suppliers in the industry with regards the use of lithium batteries?
MH: “Lithium batteries, all-be-them very lightweight, and customers do love them, are extremely difficult to transport now due to the fact that they are deemed to be “hazardous cargo”.
“The British Healthcare Trades Association (BHTA) informed members about this, and we at Kymco took this 100 per cent onboard and employed a specialist company, at extra expense, to deal with lithium battery transportation and collection.
“We decided that we must adhere to these safety rules, but many dealers are complaining about the extra delivery costs that we had to add and state that other companies are in breach of this important set of rules. They keep asking why it is that only Kymco are complying to this regulation.
“We have asked BHTA to intervene here in a more meaningful way at the last section meeting.”
What’s next for Kymco UK in the coming months?
MH: “We are always developing our portfolio of products to support our dealers and will be attending events to promote these launches in the future.
“We recently carried out a series of Technical Service Training events at our head office in Bridgend, which were amazingly well received. We will continue to support our dealers with this.
“Neil Keeble is currently working on an exciting new floor stocking plan with a well-known finance provider, which should help our dealers to stock our full range of mobility products, thus supporting end users to experience all of Kymco’s range.
“Check out Kymco’s social media channels for any product news, developments and future dealer training.”
www.kymco.co.uk/mobility-range
