Is this the end of a Chinese electric car brand? New entrant Zeekr eats its stablemate Lynk & Co as the giant Geely group looks to get more competitive

Chinese giant Geely has decided 10 separate car brands is too many.

The automaker has decided to merge the Zeekr and Lynk & Co car brands, with Zeekr to take the lead.

Geely corporate structure is confusing with multiple sub brands listed on overseas stock markets requiring them to act as independent companies.

There is plenty of crossover among Geely’s stablemate of brands including Polestar, Volvo, Zeekr, Lotus and Smart.

They often use the same electric vehicle platforms and are pitched at similar price points with near identical mechanical specifications. Exterior and interior design is often the only obvious differentiator, but Zeekr and Lynk & Co cars wear similar styles.

According to Reuters, Geely boss Gui Shengyue, said the integration would make the company more competitive.

"If we don't integrate (Zeekr and Lynk), we must face issues such as internal competition ... and redundant investments in many aspects such as R&D, sales, which is stupid," he said according to Reuters.

"If we don't do it, the overall competitiveness of Geely definitely would not be improved."

The deal likely ends the chances of Lynk & Co vehicles arriving in Australia, as Zeekr has just launched its X compact electric SUV and 009 electric people mover Down Under.

Lynk & Co was confirmed to arrive in Australia in 2021, but no further progress has been made since then.

2025 Zeekr 009

Geely has instead launched Zeekr and Smart and is preparing to bring its own Geely-branded cars here next year.

This is on top of its continuing investment in Lotus, Polestar and Volvo.

In Europe, Lynk & Co is trialling a subscription model, where customers pay a monthly fee for use. The flat fee includes insurance, registration and roadside assistance. 

This approach would give it a different market in Australia but car subscription services have failed to take off here in the past.

Last week, Jason Clarke, head of electric car importer TrueEV that brings Xpeng vehicles here, said not all Chinese electric car brands would survive.

“There’s more like 200 [EV brands in China], and the chairman of Xpeng said only seven will survive. So, he clearly thinks he’s going to be one of them,” he said.

Lynk & Co could be the first domino in the Chinese electric carmaker contraction.