Press release: New sales directors for USA and Germany

18 thoughts on “Press release: New sales directors for USA and Germany”

1. I welcome both to the Saab team. They are much needed as both markets in Germany and USA needs a fresh boost.

2. Honda is a non-premium brand that appeals to the upper middle class. Good pick.

   • +1

   • In fact, when I bought my first Saab back in 2000 (the 9-3 hatchback), I had previously owned an Acura Integra hatchback (Honda product) and while the Integra was a great car, the 9-3 felt like a step up in quality. If Mr. Sweeting can understand and help sales communicate what makes Saab cars special, he certainly has the experience of managing sales for a successful brand in the US.

3. I would speculate that about 50% of American Saab owners were loyal GM based buyers. This includes GM employees and family members buying Saabs on the GM extended family member program and using the GM credit card rebates. I would expect some of these Saab owners will be staying with GM products. Saab needs to retain as many these owners as possible. A Saab base rebate credit card would help.

   Just a thought.

   • Interesting post. I have never actually thought of it in that way. Thanks for a new perspective on it!

     • I was concidering a Chevy Malibu but wanted a six speed manual, which Chevy wasn’t offering at the time. Then I read an article in Car and Driver making fun of the 9-3 for being built on the same platform as the Malibu (which was an award winning car, so i didn’t and don’t understand why that was a bad thing nor do I understand why that magazine is so critical of everything GM builds- let the 70’s and 80’s, they are over) anyway I bought a new 2007 9-3 in 2008 and then in 2009 traded it in with 30,000 flawless miles for a new 2008 Pepper Green Metallic Aero, XWD because 280 hp sounded fun and I liked the new body better. So there are two sales from one guy because of the GM connection… and I will buy the 9-4x next spring too. It is safe to say my business is safe with Saab.

   • Saab wasn’t eligible for the GM card rebates when I bought in 2005.

     Did they change this policy later?

4. Here’s hoping for some stability and continuity. A small firm like Saab pays a price when senior people continue to leave.

   Continuity = confidence and comfort.

5. Good thinking Batman….and you are probably right 🙂

6. Good news on both appointments. I feel as if the Geneva show, model intros and PhoeniX concept are finally building momentum for our favorite brand. Also I am seeing more advertisements on TV, on billboard and magazines. Things are looking up. Still a long way to go, but it is in the right direction.

7. Honda is a very popular vanilla car brand in the USA. Very well marketed for a mediocre vehicle (something I take very personally due to a family death involving a Honda automobile with inadequate safety features). If he can sell Hondas, he is a good pick for Saab in the USA market, where he can market truly outstanding motor vehicles.

8. Before purchasing my 2009 SAAB 9.3 XWD…I owned a 2008 Honda Civic Hybrid and a 2007 Honda Civic….I love Honda….seriously. A drunk driver hit me broadside and almost T-boned my 2007 Civic…all airbags deployed and I walked away from the crash unharmed except for a few scratches and being shook up. Honda is an excellent car. So is SAAB….SAAB/Honda are the only cars I would consider after owning both….

9. Including Acura, its so-called luxury car, Honda sold 1.23 million vehicles in the US during 2010, up from 1.15 million in 2009.

10. Not sure about how well Hondas fare in the region that Mr. Sweeting is from, but Honda in general are a perennial star in the US auto market. Their Civics and Accords are benchmarks for their segments and in upstate NY, where I am, the Pilots abound.

    I believe that Saabs are a step up from Honda in style, safety, performance and design ethos. Having said that, Honda has done well primarily due to their excellent reliability record and their resale values. In my mind, they are more like appliances, but you can not argue with success, as there are many out there who are really only interested in getting from A to B with the minimum of fuss.

    Hopefully the indoctrination and learning curve for the Saab target market and prime prospects will be absorbed quickly so that they foot traffic into the showrooms increases as the new and refreshed models come on line.

11. I think both Mr’s are well familiar with their respective countries as their former networks are well established. This means a lot of contacts out in the field. And IMHO this is a vital key to success with Saab. The cars are good as long as the people starts to believe in them. And with people I mean the ones who are selling them. You don’t need to be especially active in selling a German car to a German. The Media is doing most of the selling in form of advertising and Press coverage. Saab doesn’t have that much power. So it is up to the sales force to fill in the Media gap and make people look in a broader (independent) view.

    Welcome to the Team…!

12. Red-J;
    Nice to see you posting. Good work. Well, what can we say about Honda in the US? It’s big, and has a lot of money to spend. I remember during the Holidays the ran a special TV USA ad for the Accord hatch, with a special jingle. In Phoenix at least they ran this ad, 2000 times during the 12 days of
    Christmas. On the local Fox channel they would run it in prime time 3, 4 times an hour for days.You knew it was on even of you weren’t looking at it due to the special jingle. It was like being forced to listen to the worst song in the world. I remember thinking these guys have so much money to spend it’s amazing. Could be a culture shock for Mr. Sweeting

13. At least Sweeting has experience selling massive amounts of cars. He knows that advertising, leasing helps. And pricing. It is crucial to get pricing correct to maximize profits, and here I believe Saab needs professional help. So that’s good.

Comments are closed.