German brand Opel has conceded it would like to have sold more cars in its first five months on sale in Australia, but is confidently predicting record sales in February.
Opel launched with the Astra, Corsa and Insignia passenger cars in September with Volkswagen its direct target. It was credited with 174 registrations by VFACTS that month, but to the end of January was averaging 130 registrations per month.
It introduced a 24-hour test drive program in early January and late in the month added drive-away pricing across the range for February, slashing thousands from the price of its most popular model, the Astra .
Opel Australia Managing Director Bill Mott confirmed at this week’s OPC launch that these tactical campaigns helped lift awareness and sales rates and predicted the up-tick would be ongoing.
“The response has been very positive and we expect February to be our best sales month by quite some margin,� he said. “I believe we have many reasons to be optimistic that our sales growth will be ongoing.�
Rather than being an omission of retailing failure, Mr Mott said the move to drive-away pricing simply reflected “reality� in the cut-throat Australian market.
“When we launched the brand we already had some thoughts and plans as to what we would be doing in 2013 and they included promotions and campaigns and that reflects simply how the market works.
“We are simply following through on the plans we always had.�
Mr Mott said Opel’s Australian launch was hit by a “tactical firestorm� as importers capitalised on the high Aussie dollar and cut transaction prices. He said Opel immediately had to choose whether to join the discounting free-for-all then, or stick to the plan of establishing the brand.
“For us the choice was the obvious - we spent the lion’s share of our advertising and promotion in 2012 on building brand awareness, forsaking the temptation of a short-term focus,� he said.
Mr Mott argued that strategy had paid off, citing research showing 75 per cent of Australians were now at least aware of Opel.
However, he said the 15,000 annual sales target set for the brand by former global CEO Karl-Friedrich Stracke would take “an awfully long time to achieve�.
“We are going to be a niche brand for some time and we are going to take some time to get traction and visibility. When it starts coming together then it will be a positive momentum and we are starting to see that happen.�
Mr Mott also reaffirmed Opel’s long-term commitment to the Australian market despite the General Motors’ subsidiary’s much-publicised financial losses in the depressed European market.
According to an Automotive News report, Opel has forecast a $US1.8 billion loss for 2012. However, GM has consistently rejected reports of plans to sell the brand, instead announcing a 10-year ‘Opel Drive 2022’ turnaround plan.
“Opel came here with a very sober consideration of what it would take,� Mr Mott said. “We are all in. We’ve got a lot more products up our sleeve that we will bring to bear to the marketplace, so this is a long-term full commitment to having Opel work in Australia.�
Apart from the OPCs, that product roll-out seems certain to include the Mokka mini-SUV and Cascada Cabrio, while the Zafira people-mover has been certified – but not confirmed – for Australian sale.
Plenty more should be on the way, as Opel intends to roll out 23 new models and 13 new engines between 2012 and 2016.
Mr Mott also said that the existing line-up of Astra and Insignia wagons should also contribute increased sales to Opel’s results. While the load-luggers were expected to account for 20 per cent of each model’s sales, the Astra is at just 13 per cent and the Insignia 16 per cent.
“That’s really on the radar for quarter two to look at what can we do to build the awareness that Opel has this range of wagons,� Mr Mott said. “People walk into an Opel showroom and are pleasantly surprised to find wagons.�
Mr Mott said new dealerships would open in Cairns, Townsville, the Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba, Port Macquarie and Newcastle by mid-year, taking the national total to 23.
He said that one trend the dealer group was detecting was that Opel was not being shopped against fellow GM brand Holden. Instead, Mazda, Honda and European brands were the most common adversaries.
Holden sold a variety of Opel models under its badge – the Astra most successfully – until it elected to swap sourcing to GM’s Korean division. It now shares most of its cars with Chevrolet, including a V8 version of the VF Commodore, which will be sold in North American as the SS.
Read the latest news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site…
Published : Thursday, 14 February 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment