Zeekr plots bold course for Australia as premium EV momentum builds

Premium Chinese EV brand Zeekr is laying the groundwork for long-term success in Australia, with General Manager William Zhou revealing to carsales the company's priorities for the second half of 2025 and beyond.

Zeekr only officially launched in Australia in October 2024, but its growth trajectory is already turning heads. The brand has recorded 384 sales of the Zeekr X small SUV and 66 of the ultra-premium Zeekr 009 people mover in the first half of 2025.

Zhou says the team is “satisfied” with early results especially as they were laying the foundations for the whole operation.

“For H2 (2025) we’ll still continue to focus on sales and growth of the brand, promotion and brand building and preparing for 7X (mid-size SUV). 7X is coming this year so it’s a big opportunity and potential for us here in Australia,” Zhou told carsales.

One of Zeekr’s biggest opportunities and challenges lies in introducing itself to Australian consumers who may be unfamiliar with the brand despite its growing global presence under parent company Geely Holding Group, which encompasses Geely, Volvo and Polestar.

“We need to build more brand awareness… once they know about our brand they are willing to come to our showroom, to come have a look at the products, that’s half of the win. And also, to make people understand that we're a technology-oriented premium EV brand,” Zhou said.

Zeekr is positioning itself as a technology-driven, premium alternative in the electric space, with styling and hardware intended to stand out. The design studio is based in Sweden and led by former Audi and Bentley designer, Stefan Sielaff, while R&D and manufacturing is backed by the Geely group globally.

Interestingly, Zhou noted that many of their Australian EV buyers are already well informed.

“They’re more knowledgeable than we expected. They don’t have too much concern about range… and have charging at home, so they choose to buy an EV. They’re choosing to know more about Zeekr because they already get that EV concept, the mindset,” he said.

Zeekr Australia is seeing that 50 per cent of customers are existing EV owners, while the other half are first-time EV buyers. To sweeten the ownership experience, Zeekr has offered buyers perks like free EV charging network subscriptions and bonus charger hardware, incentives that Zhou says have resonated strongly.

The brand is also listening closely to customer feedback with Zhou stating that when a customer has an issue or suggestion, it gets passed on directly to R&D to fix it quickly through over-the-air (OTA) updates.

One example of local responsiveness is suspension tuning. Unlike Zeekr’s softer ride in other markets, Australian versions receive a firmer, European-style tune to better suit local road conditions and driver preferences.

With new model arrivals and a clear commitment to customer service, localised engineering and premium design, Zeekr is aiming to carve out a distinct niche in Australia’s increasingly crowded EV space.

“The key tasks for the next 12 months (are)… Success with our new products, grow awareness and exposure and treat our customers well,” Zhou said.

Zeekr currently has 11 dealerships and pop-up locations across Australia including the newly opened showroom in Chatswood on Sydney’s North Shore.

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