This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on November 26, 2015.

KOTA KINABALU: Hap Seng Star Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Hap Seng Consolidated Bhd and the authorised dealer for Mercedes-Benz in Malaysia, expects a 35% to 40% year-on-year rise in sales of the luxury marque’s vehicles from Sabah and Sarawak in 2015.

Chief executive Harald Behrend said the group had seen a positive economic development in Sabah and Sarawak over the last one year, and the introduction of new Mercedes-Benz models had helped fuel the growth of vehicle sales under the brand.

“We have committed to investing RM30 million to expand our presence in East Malaysia, as we are confident of the market and see higher potential for sales in the coming years,” Behrend told reporters after the launch of the RM2 million Mercedes-Benz Hap Seng Star Kota Kinabalu (HSS Kota Kinabalu) Autohaus showroom yesterday with Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Sdn Bhd.

Behrend is also the group chief operating officer of Hap Seng Consolidated. The HSS Kota Kinabalu Autohaus is the second such facility in Sabah and Sarawak, and the seventh autohaus under Hap Seng Star, which has invested more than RM160 million so far in all seven autohauses nationwide.

He added that up to the second quarter of 2015, the automobile segment contributed 29% to Hap Seng Consolidated’s total revenue, and 6% to the group’s overall net profit.

Besides HSS Kota Kinabalu, Behrend said the RM30 million investment in Sabah and Sarawak is for a new Autohaus showroom in Miri, the upgrading of its workshop in Inaman, Kota Kinabalu, as well as an upcoming Autohaus showroom in Kuching by end-2016.