AntwerpClassic garages with a showroom full of shiny cars and smooth salespeople are disappearing. Instead there will be ‘Clubs’ where only one car is in the shop window. You can have a drink, buy clothes or coffee and rest in the hanging garden. The Lynk & Co Club near the Vrijdagmarkt in Antwerp is the first hip garage in our country. The club’s showpiece is the Chinese car 01, which can be rented for 500 euros per month or for sale for 39,000 euros.
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The classic garages are disappearing from the streetscape. Major car brands such as Citroën, Opel, Fiat, Opel and Peugeot are pruning their dealer network. For example, in 2018, 20 of the 54 Opel garages in Belgium were already closed. The Stellantis group (Fiat, Jeep, Chrysler) has also informed about eighty dealers that they will lose their sales rights from 2023. The big players prefer to sell directly to the customer.
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In the Antwerp city center, the classic garages have virtually disappeared, except for the Mercedes garage on the Plantin Moretuslei. New, stylized showrooms are popping up in its place. For example, the Polestar brand has a sales point on the corner of Hopland, near Theaterplein.
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fire station
Lynk & Co Club in Antwerp will open to the general public on Saturday. “The Lynk & Co Clubs offer an innovative view of the experience in the automotive industry,” the press release states. Lynk & Co is a subsidiary brand of the Chinese car group Geely, which works closely with Volvo. The car brand has taken up residence in the Drukkerijstraat, in a building that used to be a fire station in the distant past.
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In the center there is a cafe and lounge area with an industrial look. All around there are outlets for clothing, coffee and accessories from Antwerp brands such as Ôksqin, AR.M, House Raccoon, Conscious Antwerp, Dead Artist Society and Serax. You will also find a hanging garden with seat swings. The interior is designed by Lynk & Co and New Order Arkitektur.
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Monthly terminable
There is only one car in the garage: the 01. A car built on the body of a Volvo XC40. The 01 is a plug-in hybrid (three-cylinder petrol engine with 180 hp + electric motor). The car is for sale at 39,000 euros, but Lynk & Co mainly aims at the ‘members’ in its Club. For 500 euros per month you are a member and you can freely dispose of your Lynk & Co 01. There is no choice stress. The cars are either black or dark blue and almost all options are standard on board.
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Lynk & Co aims with the rental formula at a young public that is familiar with the sharing economy. If you rent an 01 but don’t use it, you can rent it out to an acquaintance. You arrange the rate yourself. You are also not tied to a lease contract for four or five years. If you’re tired of the car, just cancel the rent.
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You are welcome for a test drive in Lynk & Co, Drukkerijstraat 20-22, 2000 Antwerp. Opening hours are Monday to Sunday: 10am to 6.30pm. And also every first Sunday of the month: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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