Automakers used to have a much simpler relationship with their dealers in Europe.
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“There was only one direction of communication,” Ton van Soest, CEO of Dutch-based dealer group Kroymans Corp., told the Automotive News Europe Congress in Barcelona. “The dealer could just do as he was told.”
That was supposed to change when new rules for auto retailing in Europe took effect on October 1, 2003, but van Soest said that after decades of being dictated to by automakers, some dealers are confused by their new freedom.
Van Soest’s advice to fellow dealers is simple: Tell auto manufacturers what you want and how you want it.
Van Soest, whose company is the exclusive distributor for the Cadillac, Corvette and Hummer in Europe, took part in a panel discussion on auto retailing in Europe.
He said that there is more and more co-operation between the automakers and dealers today, but “agreeing is one thing, the execution is another.”
Trevor Finn, CEO of Pendragon, the UK’s largest auto retailer, said senior managers at the automakers’ headquarters are willing to collaborate more with the dealers, but executives further down the chain of command, such as those in the national sales operation, are not always so co-operative.
He said the challenge is to prevent the two sides from doing things that hurt each other’s businesses.
As an example, he said that his company’s attempt to persuade previous customers to buy a new car was hindered because the manufacturer had a campaign going at the same time promoting extended warranties.
Jonathan Browning, General Motors Europe’s vice president of sales, marketing and aftersales, said automakers are struggling to get comfortable with their new role. He said GM Europe is trying to properly tailor its approach because some of its retail partners need more support than others.
Lars-Henner Santelmann, Seat’s executive vice president of sales and marketing, said his company faces the same challenge.
“The retailer is our customer,” he said, “so we have to provide them the tools they need to do a good job.”
