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COSTA RICA |
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Guanacaste Not So Good For New Car Sales
Following the boom in economic growth in the
province of Guanacaste, a number of car
dealerships decided to set up shot, away
from the traditional market of San José.
However, a year later, two major players,
Autostar and Purdy Motor have decided that
Guanacaste is not profitable.
The Spanish language financial newspaper, La
Republica, reports that Grupo Purdy Motors,
distributors of Toyota, Diahatsu and Lexus,
as well as AutoStar, that sells Mercedes
Benz, Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge cars, did not
see the financial results expected and have
decied to leave the province.
In the case of Purty Motors, it has
completely shut down its operations in Santa
Cruz a year after opening. The company says
that low sales did not warrant to continue
operations.
Luis Mastroeni of Purdy Motors told La
Republica that "Guanacaste is no stranger to
the economic experience of living worldwide"
and that low sales did not warrant keeping
the Santa Cruz dealership open, but will
continue operating in Liberia.
In the case of AutoStar, it decided to leave
the province due to poor sales. The company
abandoned its five year plan for the area.
Rafael Gutiérrez, director of sales for
AutoStar, said the closure is not due to any
financial problems with the company, but
rather, to the economic problems in
Guanacaste, where the number of visitors to
buy homes in the area, and thus cars, will
not be realized. Gutiérrez added that the
company may re-open in Guanacaste is the
economic conditions change.
Another auto dealer that decided to put the
brakes on its plans for Guanacaste is Autos
Xiri, distributor of Peugeot vehicles.
Manfred Xirinachs, marketing manager, did
not comment on the hold on the company's
expansion into Guanacaste.
The Guanacaste province has been hardest hit
by the world economic crisis. The province
has the highest unemployment rate in the
country, mainly due to the sharp drop in the
construction and tourism sectors in the
province.
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