With Peugeot now under the stewardship of newly-minted distributor, Astara, they realize the uphill struggle they’re facing; after all, the French car brand changed hands locally no less than three times since the early 2000s. However, they believe the worst is behind them, and under the leadership of their new managing director, Raoul Picello, the automaker seeks to move forward by going back to basics once more.
Picello leads a team that make up the locally-formed entity, BA Motors Philippines. The Spain-based Astara holds the majority stake—90 percent, while the previous Peugeot distributor, Eurobrands Distributors, Inc. or EDI, kept the remaining shares. BA Motors Philippines’s top management is made up of industry veterans including Maricar Parco, Peugeot Philippines Brand Head and Prudz Castillo, Peugeot Philippines Marketing and Product Director.
Besides hiring a crack team to push Peugeot in the Philippines, Picello has identified three key weaknesses of the brand; weaknesses they seek to fix moving forward. These are: brand awareness, network coverage, and customer satisfaction.
These factors may seem like something straight out of Business 101, but Picello also believes the previous distributors didn’t get the entire formula right. This was especially true in 2020 to 2021, which Picello says “were the darkest times for Peugeot in the Philippines.”
Today, thanks to a strong relationship with Stellantis, who, on their own is pushing aggressively into Southeast Asian market, Peugeot Philippines will have access to vehicles which aren’t just more competitively speced, but also give their dealers improved margins. Vehicles such as the new Peugeot 3008 and 5008, and the upcoming 2008 are all sourced from there. Picello confirmed that “80 percent” of their products will be sourced from Peugeot’s assembly plant in Gurun, Malaysia. This leaves the possibility of having one vehicle sourced from Europe or elsewhere (China, maybe?).
The improved margins, in turn, will help Peugeot attract more dealer partners to expand their network coverage. Three out of the seven dealerships expected to rise this year have already been identified: Alabang, Cebu, and Davao. In turn, Picello believes that by bringing the Peugeot brand closer to more Filipinos, this will equate to a better customer experience overall.
By the second half of the year, Astara will begin to offer a whole range of products and services going beyond ownership. These include leasing and subscription plans. In addition, they plan to lean on their robust self-developed B2B and B2C digital channels which helped them expand to 14 countries in Europe and Latin America.
I really hope brand gets more success this time around.
ReplyDeleteI hope he is referring to 308 or 508 sourced from Europe as part of the future line-up.
308 made in Malaysia is likely coming..508 is gonna be priced like a Lexus IS and BMW 3 Series if its sourced from Europe so no point selling it in the Philippine market.
DeleteI thought only the 5008, 3008 and 2008 are made in Malaysia. Good to know the 308 is included.
DeleteWhen they brought the France-sourced 3008 GT it was priced cheaper than the German counterparts with comparable specs. Its seats even came with massage function. But yeah it doesnt compete with these Germans in brand positioning. You may argue to just add a little more and get yourself a base german model but with much more "prestige".
If I am not mistaken, Peugeot is not a premium brand, hence they should price their products accordingly.
ReplyDeleteIn any case, I wish the new distrubutor the best of luck.
Peugeot competes with Volkswagen and Mazda.
DeleteIt is not a premium brand.
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