RMA Cambodia confirmed yesterday it had taken over from rival firm Envotech as the Kingdom’s only authorised dealer of Land Rover and Jaguar vehicles.

Envotech will have held the authorised dealer rights for two years when it closes its Phnom Penh dealership on March 26.

RMA, whic distributes Fords and owns rights to other global brands in Cambodia, will sell the UK-made vehicles (owned by Tata Motors) from a temporary showroom on Russian Boulevard before moving to a new location by the end of the year.

Seng Voeung, general manager of RMA’s automotive division, said obtaining the dealer rights bolsters the company’s effort to tap into Cambodia’s growing appetite for luxury vehicles.

He told reporters yesterday that Cambodia’s rapid economic growth over the last decade had resulted in increased demand for the two models, which fetch a price tag of at least $80,000 a pop.

“The new brands [Jaguar and Land Rover] compliment our existing Ford vehicle market,” he said, adding that he expects the cars to attract Mercedes Benz, BMW or Audi buyers.

Steve Martin, regional business manager of Guava International, Jaguar and Land Rover’s sole global distributor, declined to give details on why the dealer rights had been reassigned.

“Everybody agreed that it was time for change. That is why we started the process to look for new dealer and we chose RMA Cambodia,” he said.

According to Martin, the Land Rover brand has been in Cambodia for more than a decade, but only rose to popularity over the last five years.

Martin estimates there are 1,000 Land Rovers on Cambodian roads, equaling about 0.25 per cent of all 400,000 registered cars.