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Since Alpine returned in 2017 with the A110, the French marque has profoundly transformed its commercial network. In 2026, with 85 sales points across France, the manufacturer is moving to a new scale to support its electric offensive.
From the rebirth of the A110 to a carefully built network
When Alpine officially returned in 2017 around the A110, the challenge extended far beyond launching a new model. It also meant rebuilding a commercial network that had virtually disappeared since the end of the brand’s first industrial life.
Renault Group’s approach was deliberately measured: build a limited network made up of dedicated centres capable of embodying a premium positioning without being diluted within the group’s conventional dealership structure.
Nineteen Alpine Centres were planned from launch and gradually opened between late 2017 and 2018. These sites were established in France’s main automotive hubs, where potential A110 customers already existed: Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux, Lille, Marseille and Toulouse.
During its first years, Alpine clearly prioritised control over territorial coverage. Between 2019 and 2021, growth remained slow, with only a handful of additional openings. The French network hovered around twenty locations while the brand was still finding its commercial rhythm.
This caution is easy to understand: A110 production in Dieppe remained limited, brand equity had to be rebuilt without dilution, and Alpine was still, at that stage, a single-model manufacturer.
By 2021, the global network had reached around 100 sales points, nearly a quarter of them located in France.
From 2022 onward, Alpine was already preparing for life beyond the A110
The pace genuinely changed from 2022 onward. That year, Alpine added six new centres in France, gradually bringing its footprint to around thirty locations.
This move was far from incidental: it already reflected the brand’s industrial preparation for a range destined to extend beyond the sole Alpine A110.
January 22, 2024 marked a symbolic milestone with the opening of the 30th Alpine Centre in Rouen, attended by Pierre Gasly, who had by then become one of the most visible faces of Alpine’s modern sporting identity.
At that point, the global network had reached 147 locations. France retained a central role in this strategy, remaining by far the brand’s leading market.
By 2025, Alpine had reached 42 sales points across France. This progression came alongside a clear rise in volumes: while the brand sold around 1,500 cars in France in 2019, annual sales now exceed 5,000 units.
This shift is fundamental: Alpine is gradually moving beyond being purely an image-driven brand and entering a far more structured distribution phase.
2026: 41 new sites and a complete change of scale
On March 12, 2026, Alpine announced the largest expansion in its recent history: 41 new points of contact are being rolled out progressively across France, bringing the national total to 85 locations.
This time, the manufacturer is adopting a different approach. Alongside the historic Alpine Centres, it is now adding spaces integrated into the Renault Group network, capable of displaying several vehicles, handling the commercial relationship and providing full after-sales support.
This transformation directly accompanies the arrival of the Alpine A290 and Alpine A390, two models expected to significantly broaden the brand’s customer base.
The network is becoming more granular: Annemasse, Besançon, Brest, Chartres, Épinal, Amiens, Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Caen, Angoulême, Carcassonne, Angers, Istres and Aubagne are now joining the Alpine map, often in cities that had previously been absent from the brand’s commercial footprint.
The challenge now goes beyond simple visibility. Each new location will also service the entire Alpine line-up, including the A110, following a proximity-based logic that has become essential as volumes continue to rise.
Alpine is also adding a broader retail dimension, with merchandising, accessories, scale models and branded products, a sign that it is now shaping its presence as a fully fledged automotive brand.
In less than a decade, the manufacturer has therefore moved from 19 specialist centres to 85 points of presence.
With the expected natural ramp-up of the Alpine A290, and above all the commercial ambitions placed on the Alpine A390, Alpine had little choice but to readjust its territorial footprint. The jump from 42 to 85 sales points reflects less a simple expansion than a change of dimension imposed by the widening of the range.
The logic is as much industrial as it is commercial: a brand gradually moving beyond the status of a low-volume manufacturer must now bring its network closer to customers, strengthen its after-sales structure and make its new products visible far beyond the A110’s historic strongholds.
It remains to be seen whether this increase in scale will be fully absorbed by the market. While the Alpine A290 is gradually establishing its presence, expectations are already focused on the Alpine A390, a model expected to account for a significant share of future growth. Yet at this stage, despite dynamic qualities that have been widely praised, the first order levels recorded for the fastback remain below the ambitions initially set.
The reality is well understood within Alpine: the shift to electric power is probably the brand’s greatest challenge since its 2017 rebirth. And that industrial, commercial and cultural mountain still has to be climbed.
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Source: Alpine Cars
