INTERVIEW
The startup with a century of experience: Inside the Leapmotor logic
Tianshu Xin, chief executive officer of Leapmotor International, explains how a 100-year safety net and vertical integration offer a long-term solution for fleet managers. By Simon Harris.
In the crowded landscape of global vehicle electrification, the arrival of another new brand from China can often feel like white noise. With hundreds of marques vying for attention, the ‘startup fatigue’ among UK fleet managers is palpable. However, as Tianshu Xin explains, his company isn’t just another Chinese brand on a choice list. It is a one-year-old business with a hundred-year-old safety net.
The ‘safety net’ in question is Stellantis – an automotive giant that owns some of the oldest car brands in the world. In a unique 51/49 joint venture, the European automotive giant has effectively adopted Leapmotor, providing the nascent brand with immediate access to a world-class distribution, parts and service infrastructure. For Xin, a man who describes himself as a ‘spy’ between the agile world of Chinese tech and the established structures of automotive, this partnership is the antidote to the ‘burn’ many investors and fleet operators have felt with previous new entrants.
To understand where Leapmotor is going, you have to understand its technical obsession. Unlike many brands that act as ‘integrators’ – buying in components from third-party suppliers – Leapmotor develops 65% of its vehicle value in-house.
“The founder [of Leapmotor, Zhu Jiangming] is an electronics engineer,” Xin explains. “He decided to do this all in-house, even the printed circuit boards. We design and manufacture the very basic stuff. We went from buy to make.”
This vertical integration is more than merely a point of pride; it’s a strategic hedge against the costs and weight penalties that plague modern EVs. By designing the architecture, power electronics and lighting from a blank sheet of paper, Leapmotor has been able to pioneer ‘cell-to-chassis’ (C2C) technology. By integrating the battery cells directly into the vehicle structure, it has reduced the thickness of the battery pack, resulting in significantly more interior ‘roominess’ for the driver and passengers without increasing the car’s external footprint.
For a customer, this efficiency translates into two things: lower production costs and a more practical vehicle for the end-user. But as Xin is quick to point out, a clever car is useless if it’s sat in a workshop waiting for a sensor to arrive from Hangzhou.
The Achilles’ heel of many new entrants into the UK market has been aftersales. Anecdotes of cars being off the road for six months due to a lack of spare parts have soured the reputation of some brands. Xin is acutely aware of this ‘pain point’ and dedicated his first summer as chief executive officer personally overseeing the integration of Leapmotor’s logistics into the Stellantis warehouse network.
“I spent my whole summer at the port in Europe and in the parts warehouses,” he says. “We made sure every single part was integrated into the Stellantis system before we launched. Our objective was 98% parts availability in the region on day one.”
By leveraging the ‘plug-and-play’ nature of the Stellantis ecosystem, Leapmotor dealers in the UK don’t need to invest in new CRM systems, diagnostic tools or separate logistics chains. It is, quite simply, another tab on their existing screen. This infrastructure allowed the brand to grow from zero to 70 UK points of sale by the end of last year, with a target to exceed 100 in 2026.
In a market currently obsessed with registration figures, Leapmotor is taking a refreshingly disciplined approach to volume. Xin is adamant that the brand will not engage in the “dodgy” tactics of self-registration or aggressive B2B discounting that can decimate residual values.
“We are not looking for short-term gain,” Xin insists. “More than 70% of our mix is B2C. We don’t do self-registrations or push discounting significantly on B2Bs. Long term, that will hurt you. We want to build the brand and the market position gradually.”
This focus on a healthy channel mix is intended to reassure fleet operators that their investment won’t evaporate the moment the car leaves the forecourt. By prioritising long-term brand health over ‘vanity’ registration numbers, Leapmotor aims to distance itself from the ‘disposable’ image that has dogged other startups.
Perhaps the most startling aspect of Leapmotor’s domestic operation is the speed of its engineering. While a traditional European manufacturer might take four years to bring a new model from concept to production, Leapmotor operates on a 24-month cycle – half the time of a traditional OEM.
“This power remains unchanged,” says Xin. “The environment cycle in China is significantly faster. But we also look for synergies between the two shareholders. The potential to synergise parts and components obviously exists; that was one of the rationales for the partnership.”
“We made sure every single part was integrated into the Stellantis system before we launched”
Tianshu Xin, chief executive officer, Leapmotor International
One of the most significant challenges for any global brand is ‘localisation’ – the fine art of ensuring a car designed for Shanghai feels right on a rain-soaked A-road in the Midlands. Chinese driving habits tend towards soft suspension and light steering, prioritising low-speed comfort over high-speed poise.
Xin admits that the first feedback from European testers was clear: the cars needed to be ‘firmer’ and more communicative. This is where the ‘parents’ of the joint venture collaborate. Stellantis engineers have been heavily involved in chassis tuning, ensuring that models such as the B10 feel ‘European’ from behind the wheel.
“The steering setup and configuration for our European models are now much more adaptable to the driving behaviour here,” Xin says. “And because every car we produce has over-the-air (OTA) update capability, we can constantly refine these parameters. If we find a better steering calibration, we can push it to the existing fleet overnight, just like a mobile phone update.”
This adaptability extends beyond just steering feel. Xin points to the Middle East, where the brand had to swap in larger air-conditioning compressors to meet local demands for ‘cabin cooldown’ speeds that aren’t required in the domestic Chinese market. It is this marriage of Leapmotor’s ‘toddler-like’ agility and Stellantis’s ‘centenarian’ knowledge of local markets that Xin believes will be the brand’s winning formula.
Looking to the future, the ambition is clear: volume doubling. Having seen significant growth through 2024, the goal for 2025 and 2026 is to continue that trajectory by expanding the product line-up.
While competitors such as IM, which stands for Intelligent Motors and is owned by SAIC, have chosen to use established names like MG to ‘hide’ their newness, Leapmotor is committed to building its own identity.
“It is very expensive and takes many years for a customer to realise and remember a brand,” Xin acknowledges. “But right now, the most wise way is to focus on the Leapmotor name and do it successfully.”
While the brand remains an independent entity in China, its international fate is now inextricably linked with the Stellantis family. For the UK fleet manager, the proposition is unique: a startup that offers the rapid innovation and ‘vertical’ cost-savings of a Chinese tech firm, but with the warranty, parts and professional support of an automotive giant.
As the brand matures within the UK market, the industry will be watching to see if this ‘perfect match’ of parentage can truly deliver on its promise. If Xin’s ‘long-term win-win’ philosophy holds true, Leapmotor may well be the one to break the ‘startup fatigue’ for good.
