Shanghai (ZXZC)- Li Auto expects the total number of its direct-sale retail stores to surpass 200 by the end of 2021 and its monthly sales to exceed 10,000 units in this year's September, Li Xiang, founder, chairman, and CEO of the EV startup, said last week via his Sina Weibo account.

2021 Li ONE; photo credit: Li Auto

On May 29, the company announced the business start of eight direct-sale retail shops in China, which are located in Ningbo, Chongqing, Wuhan, Tianjin, Ganzhou, Qinhuangdao, Zhengzhou, and Tai'an respectively.

At the same time, the 2021 Li ONE became available for sale in Li Auto’s total 82 retail centers countrywide. The refreshed model was formally launched on May 25, boasting a combined range of up to 1,080km under NEDC testing cycle. 

The expansion plan for sales network came with the rapidly growing sales volume. In April 2021, Li Auto delivered 5,539 Li ONEs, posting a 111.3% year-on-year increase and resulting in the cumulative deliveries of 51,715 units.

As of April 30, 2021, the company had 73 retail stores covering 53 cities, and 143 servicing centers and Li Auto-authorized body and paint shops operating in 105 cities.

Aside from the efforts to expand retail network, Li Auto also works hard on increasing production capacity to shore up sales growth. Shen Yanan, President of Li Auto, said at a recent quarterly earning call that the company's Changzhou factory, with two shifts already ready, can now produce 500 vehicles per day. Its monthly capacity is expected to surpass 10,000 units starting from September this year.