• smart unveiled the smart #1 and smart #3 models, showcasing the brand’s commitment to "contemporary premium," "mindful technology," and "inspirational co-creation."
  • As part of this strategic milestone, the partnership announced a new smart Centre showroom housed in a prime location on Sheikh Zayed Road

Dubai, UAE – smart, the iconic premium intelligent all-electric auto brand, has made a bold entry into the UAE market in partnership with AW Rostamani Group, one of the UAE's leading family business groups whose automotive vertical has been servicing UAE consumers’ mobility needs for more than 50 years. The highly anticipated launch event took place on Monday 21st October 2024 at the prestigious Armani Hotel, Dubai, against the impressive backdrop of the Burj Khalifa.

The launch event is a key pillar of smart's global flagship brand introduction, establishing “open your mind” as its claim. By introducing a range of cutting-edge electric vehicles (EVs), smart and AW Rostamani Group aim to redefine the future of driving in the region, highlighting what premium means in the EV space with a key focus on modern, sustainable engineering, and exceptional customer experience

The debut of the smart #1 and smart #3 models at the event is aligned with smart’s core values of "contemporary premium," "mindful technology," and "inspirational co-creation." These brand fundamentals are embodied through the exquisite features of the EV lineup and the premium customer experience. The smart #1 and #3 models offer three trims: Pro+, Premium, and Brabus, the latter featuring performance enhancements such as the Brabus #3’s 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.7 seconds.

The smart #1 is a sport utility vehicle with a spacious, high-tech interior, while the smart #3 is a sport-utility coupe with a striking shark-nose design and sporty curves. Both models come in a variety of colours, allowing customers to enjoy the sophistication of the Brabus trim.

The strategic partnership with AW Rostamani Group, augmented by the combined strengths of Mercedes-Benz and Geely, marks an exciting chapter as smart brings these trendsetting EVs to a country that is diverse and embraces both heritage and innovation, signifying a step towards the UAE's vision of sustainable, zero-emission mobility. This presents a unique opportunity for existing Mercedes owners in UAE to complement their existing vehicles with the new product range from smart.

Michel Ayat, CEO of AWR Automotive, stated, "We are thrilled to bring smart to the UAE market at such a pivotal time for sustainable mobility. Through our partnership, we are aligning smart’s slogan “open your mind” with the UAE's green initiatives. Our shared vision of contemporary premium and mindful technology ensures that our customers experience unparalleled sleek modern design and sustainability, redefining their expectations for electric vehicles in the UAE."

Yen Fong Raad, GM of smart Mobility at AWR, added: “The smart brand has a rich heritage, coupled with the combined strengths of Mercedes Benz and Geely Group, we are positioned to take the UAE market by storm. With AW Rostamani Group’s decades of success in automotive leadership in the UAE market where diversity, culture, innovation and businesses thrive, the stars have aligned for us to open our mind to greater heights together.”

Mandy Zhang, Global CMO of smart Automobile, remarked: "smart is on a drive to achieve new heights of development. ‘open your mind’ is more than just a brand claim - it's a philosophy that guides every innovation and decision. Launching the smart #1 and #3 in Dubai, where special heritage meets cutting-edge technology, mirrors our vision perfectly. We look forward to working with AW Rostamani to help transform urban lifestyles for our customers with creativity, sustainability, and like Dubai’s architecture, a continuous push towards new heights of excellence and innovation."

As electric vehicles continue to gain traction in the UAE, smart and AWR Group are poised to accelerate the movement towards UAE’s vision for net zero emission by 2050 as well as AW Rostamani Group’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) framework.

About AW Rostamani (AWR) Group 

AW Rostamani (AWR) Group, founded in 1954 in Dubai, UAE, is one of the Middle East’s leading and most reputable conglomerates, with 3,000 employees, a turnover of over $2 billion, and a presence in the UAE, India and the United Kingdom. Its subsidiaries work across a diverse range of sectors including automotive, real estate, retail, lighting solutions, travel and logistics. Arabian Automobiles, an internationally renowned business of AWR, is the exclusive distributor of Nissan, Infiniti, and Renault across Dubai and the Northern Emirates. 

In 2023, AWR Group announced its partnership with Chery, the globally renowned Chinese automobile brand, ZEEKR and smart, global premium electric mobility technology brands in the UAE. 

AWR Group continues to enrich customers’ lives through the introduction of innovative products, services and sustainable solutions into the marketplace. 

For more information, please visit https://www.awrostamani.com.

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About smart

Since the birth of the brand in the 90s, smart has always maintained the vision of exploring the best solutions for future urban mobility. In 2019, smart Automobile Co., Ltd. was officially established. With a forward-looking "China-Europe dual-home" global development strategy, smart is committed to developing into a world-leading, new-premium, intelligent and all-electric auto brand.

In 2020, Mercedes-Benz and Zhejiang Geely Holding Group announced that the two global automotive groups have formed a joint venture for the smart brand, headquartered in Hangzhou Bay, Ningbo.Geely’s global R&D network is responsible for the engineering and development of the new models, with production plant in China.