Polestar’s stock price has reflected the brand’s recent struggles. While the stock hit a high of $15 in November 2021, it closed at just 63 cents on August 7, 2024. “We have been trading below $1 for quite some time,” Ansgar said during an earnings call. The company has until early next year to address this issue, or it risks being delisted from stock exchanges.

Still, Ansgar remains optimistic, stating that increased deliveries of Polestar 3 and Polestar 4, combined with positive customer feedback, should help the stock price rebound. However, with growing losses and market competition heating up, Lohscheller and Mady have their work cut out for them to turn things around.

Sales Targets and Struggles

Polestar missed its 2023 sales target of 60,000 vehicles, managing to deliver only 54,600 units, the majority of which were the China-made Polestar 2. The company’s revenue dropped by 26% in the second quarter of this year, due to lower global sales and the need for higher discounts in an increasingly competitive EV market.

Palmer argues that while having a designer like Ingenlath as CEO was an interesting experiment, it may not have been the right move for a brand struggling to make money. “I don’t know if appointing accountants is automatically the right answer,” Palmer says, “but having executives with car industry experience that understand both financing and manufacturing is critical.”

A Shifting EV Market

With EV sales slowing globally, the challenges facing Polestar are not unique to the brand. Wells, the Cardiff University professor, points out that Polestar is just one of many premium EV brands struggling to find its footing in a saturated market. “There’s a lot of pressure in the premium EV space,” Wells says, predicting that many brands won’t survive the current downturn.

One of Polestar’s main struggles is its lack of brand differentiation from Volvo. According to Wells, “Consumers don’t know what Polestar is supposed to represent or how it differs from Volvo.” The design similarities between Polestar and Volvo models, such as the EX90 and the Polestar 3, have led to confusion among consumers. Polestar needed to establish a more distinct identity, with visual and performance differences that set it apart from Volvo.

The Road Ahead

Polestar’s new production plant in South Carolina should help it avoid tariffs imposed on China-made vehicles, as the brand seeks to boost its US sales with the launch of the Polestar 3 SUV. The plant will manufacture Polestar’s US-bound vehicles, allowing the brand to better compete in a crucial market.

Dominic Vergine, CEO of British EV startup Monumo, believes that technological advances in AI and battery technology will eventually lower production costs for EVs, which could provide an opportunity for brands like Polestar. However, Vergine cautions that time may not be on Polestar’s side, given the current market challenges.

Can Polestar Survive as a Stand-Alone Brand?

As Polestar works to navigate the evolving EV market, the question of whether it will remain a stand-alone brand looms large. Both Palmer and Wells agree that Polestar could benefit from closer integration with Volvo, given the high costs of maintaining a separate brand identity. “In a growing market, there’s room to make mistakes,” says Wells. “But in today’s depressed market, the pressure to be profitable is immense.”

While Lohscheller and Mady are tasked with stabilising Polestar, it remains to be seen whether their efforts will be enough to secure the brand’s long-term future. As Polestar gears up for the launch of new models, including the Polestar 4 SUV coupé, the coming months will be critical in determining whether the brand can carve out a place for itself in the competitive EV landscape—or if it will eventually fold back into Volvo’s fold.