The boss of the big Stellantis automotive group says he’ll shut down those brands that aren’t making money.
“If they don’t make money, we’ll shut them down,” Tavares told reporters in Europe. “We cannot afford to have brands that do not make money.”
The Stellantis financial performance hasn’t been great in the first half of 2024 and shares are down 10 per cent. Stellantis is still making money, it reported a net profit of €5.6 billion ($AU9B), but it was a 48 per cent decrease from 2023. Maserati didn’t help things, which reported an €82 million euro operating loss in the first half of 2024.
“The Company’s performance in the first half of 2024 fell short of our expectations, reflecting both a challenging industry context as well as our own operational issues,” a media release stated.
Stellantis has a crowded portfolio with 15 car makes at last count. Some of those include Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroen, Fiat, Jeep, Maserati, Opel, Peugeot and Ram.
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Media speculation suggests Maserati could be sold, while niche brands like DS and Lancia could simply be axed.
All brands were put on notice shortly after the formation of the new group with each given 10 years to prove themselves as financially viable.
“We’re giving each [company] a chance, giving each a time window of 10 years [until 2031] and giving funding for 10 years to do a core model strategy – the CEOs need to be clear in brand promise, customers, targets and brand communications.”
But if the financials don’t improve soon, perhaps that time line will be shortened and the axe sharpened sooner than expected.
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