Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010 - 44

Automotive News Europe | Chevy’s Big Ambitions

Chevrolet's Brannon hopes selling U.S. models such as the Corvette C6 convertible, shown, will boost the brand in Europe.

European dreams
Chevrolet wants to be a serious player
C
hevrolet hopes an expanded product lineup including U.S.-built halo cars and volume models designed for the first time with European buyers in mind will enable the brand to grow sales in western Europe, especially in the lowcost segment where consumers increasingly are turning to lower-priced models. “We are still a very nascent brand,” Brannon said in an interview last month. “In most of western Europe we have been running very low market shares because we have been selling the legacy portfolio.” But with seven new models coming next year, the brand’s European lineup will consist of “Chevys designed from the ground up to be Chevys,” Brannon said. Chevrolet’s European product offensive will roll out at the Paris auto show along with celebrations to mark the 100th anniversary of the General Motors Co. unit’s 1911 founding by Louis Chevrolet, a Swiss national who emigrated to the United States. Key new models debuting in Paris will be the seven-passenger Orlando minivan, which is a first in Europe for Chevrolet, a near-production Cruze hatchback and an updated version of the Aveo subcompact, the brand’s second best-selling car in Europe after the Spark/Matiz. Chevrolet has long been strong in central and eastern Europe, where low-cost cars are popular, but Brannon now also sees growth opportunities in western Europe, where financially squeezed consumers in wealthier markets such as Germany are turning to lowpriced models in growing numbers. Detroit-born Brannon, a 55-year-old GM sales and marketing veteran, has led Chevrolet Europe since 2006. He sees Chevrolet in Europe as a rival to Kia, Hyundai, Skoda and Seat rather than brands such as GM sister marque Opel or Volkswagen, which are positioned at the higher end of the mass market. The five-door Cruze hatchback will be a crucial launch as it will compete in Europe’s secondlargest segment, which is led by the VW Golf. Hatchbacks account for 65 percent of compact car sales in Europe and the Cruze hatchback will help the brand be “taken seriously” as a mainstream player, Brannon said. Brannon said Chevrolet is raising the quality of its cars but will remain positioned as an affordable, value-for-money brand in Europe. The brand has suffered due to a lack of growth in its product line – which previously consisted mainly of rebadged Daewoo vehicles from Korea – and a lack of brand awareness. Brannon hopes that U.S. models such as the Corvette will boost brand recognition and sales. He expects about 65 percent of Chevrolet’s European dealers to sell the sporty Camaro coupe and 10 percent to sell the Corvette sports car, although sales volume for both vehicles will be low. Industry watchers warn that the mix of sporty cars and budget, mass-market vehicles might confuse buyers. “Chevrolet in Europe is a low-end, low-price brand,” said Christoph Stuermer, IHS Automotive’s strategic analysis director in Frankfurt. The automaker “may need to hire an agency to find an elegant way of rebranding so people understand there are really two types of Chevrolet,” he said. Brannon admits that marketing will be a challenge. Chevrolet has a marketing budget that is significantly less than many of its competitors. The message will be that Chevrolet offers two cars connected to American pop culture, the Camaro and Corvette, and practical cars that are the right size and have good fuel economy. Said Brannon: “We will have to be creative, and we have some unique ideas. We are hopeful that we will be able to make a dent.” Rick Kranz/Paul McVeigh

We will have to be creative, and we have some unique ideas. We are hopeful that we will be able to make a dent.
WAYNE BRANNON

Chevrolet still has a long way to go to win over European buyers in large numbers, especially in western Europe where the brand’s market share was just 1.2 percent in the first eight months on new-car sales of about 104,800, down 7.1 percent on the year before, according to ACEA, the European automakers association. Skoda sold more than twice as many cars as Chevrolet during the same period at nearly 228,700 while Seat’s sales were way ahead at nearly 201,300. Hyundai, with about 215,500 units sold, and Kia, with sales of about 149,500, were also far in front.

44
ANE Executive Edition Sept. 22, 2010. Volume 1, Issue 1

Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive News Europe - September 22, 2010