Maserati Grecale Folgore electric SUV / Courtesy of Maserati Korea

Maserati Korea is struggling to rev up its faltering sales here, as the brand is losing recognition amid customers' growing preference for rival luxury carmakers such as Porsche, according to data and industry officials, Monday.

In July 2024, the Italian carmaker launched the local subsidiary on hopes of attracting the strong demand for luxury vehicles here, as is shown by solid vehicle sales from major upmarket German brands.

Before launching the subsidiary, Maserati ran its local operation through a local dealership, Forza Motors Korea, but decided to launch its subsidiary last year to capitalize fully on Korea's strategic importance to luxury carmakers.

Apparently, however, the ambitious bid is not paying off. According to data from market tracker CarIsYou, the number of newly registered Maserati vehicles here stood at 252 in 2024, down 42.2 percent from the previous year.

Import car industry officials attributed Maserati's falling sales to growing demand for other luxury brands and the weakening brand positioning of the Italian carmaker.

"The brand image of Maserati is not what it used to be here, as more customers prefer to purchase other luxury vehicles, such as Porsche or other expensive supercars like Lamborghini or Ferrari," an official from the industry said.

Porsche Korea's Cayenne SUV enjoys steady popularity particularly with young customers, and vehicles from the two other supercar brands are considered symbols of prestigious status, but this is not the case for Maserati, the official noted.

According to data from the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KIDA), Maserati Korea sold 14 vehicles last month, down from 16 a year earlier, casting doubts on the brand's sales target of delivering at least 600 vehicles this year.

During the same period, Maserati's core rival Porsche delivered 644 vehicles, while Lamborghini sold 58 and Ferrari sold 32. Among brands tracked by KIDA, only Bentley with 10, Rolls-Royce with seven and Tesla with five trailed behind Maserati.