By Miles Downard
It’s been a while since a major player in the global motor industry pulled the plug on the South African market, but today marks the first of what may turn out to be a few more.
Peugeot Citroen South Africa (PCSA) announced today that from 2017 onward their focus would lie solely with the Peugeot brand, involving a relaunch as Peugeot South Africa, a flurry of new models together with a commitment into 2018 and beyond.
“This entire plan is in line with the Push To Pass plan/strategy of the PSA Group”, commented Managing Director, Francis Harnie. “It was confirmed that South Africa is a key market in the development strategy for the Brand in the Middle East/Africa region.
The challenge lies in developing a sustainable and profitable business model for all parties involved. No easy task when the company only moved 57 passenger vehicles during November 2016. By comparison Porsche sold 125. The only major player’s that rivaled PCSA for bottom of the pile were Subaru at 50, and the Fiat Group at 64.
“We will focus all our resources on retailing the Peugeot Brand which will assist in higher brand awareness, brand image, and increased competitiveness, said Harnie.
A full after sales and parts delivery service to our Citroën and DS customers will remain a priority ensuring that those customers will not be neglected in any way.”
“With a car park of around 15 000 Citroen and DS vehicles in South Africa, these customers are important to us and we will not let them down.” he said.
