Infiniti is a real force in other markets. Only in Europe and especially in Germany does Nissan's premium offshoot only play a minor role. In Europe, with a market share of 0.4%, you can find yourself under “further ran”. The problem areas are clear: a lack of area coverage by dealers and, in recent years, an unstable management policy. If Fintan Knight or Christian Blank, the directors of the brand for Europe often did not stay long enough - to read the given interviews in the same position. In addition, there is a portfolio of vehicles that is widely accepted in markets such as the USA or the Far East, but not in Europe! Construction sites on construction sites. That is what François Goupil de Bouillé, Vice President by trade, wants Infiniti EMEA region, now change. Or have already changed in part.
New models, more dealers and an era change
Interview with François Goupil de Bouillé
One of the strengths of Infiniti is the cooperation with Mercedes-Benz. The Infiniti Q30 is a first result of the collaboration between the Renault-Nissan Alliance and the German premium manufacturer Mercedes-Benz. A compact model with roots in Stuttgart and Paris, yet independent and developed for the premium market in Europe. In addition to the Q30, which already accounts for a large part of Infiniti sales, the compact crossover version QX30 is still in the starting blocks. Together with the established sedan Q50, whose turbo gasoline engine and diesel engines, as well as the automatic transmission, also from Mercedes development comes, waiting for more exciting vehicles on the premium customers. The Q60 Coupe just waiting for the market launch and will be a sporty and elegant opponent for the BMW 4 Series and with one SUV Concept (QX Sports) In April, we gave an outlook on the near SUV future at Infiniti in Beijing.
mein-auto-blog met Infiniti's Vice President for the EMEA region, François Goupil de Bouillé, in Frankfurt and talked about the future of Infiniti in Europe in general and Germany in particular.
mab: What sets a Infiniti Q30 apart from an A-class with which it shares so many components?
François Goupil de Bouillé: As a first time, it is good to know that within the Renault-Nissan alliance we have a strong basis for modern developments. Working with manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz allows our developers to create fantastic models. A Q30 lives primarily from its emotional design and the special atmosphere in the interior. But of course the cooperation with Mercedes-Benz is an exciting tool to explain to customers what level a brand like Infiniti is at, but we still want to offer an automobile for people who want to differentiate themselves from the mainstream.
With the Q30 we seem to succeed very well. Units sold through 4.000 in the first quarter in Europe. 500 Q30 were sold in Germany. March was a record month for Infiniti.
mab: The biggest problem, however, seems to be the inadequate coverage of retailers. If you drive a Q30 or Q50 you are often asked about the vehicle, but people still don't know what to do with the term Infiniti. And there are too few dealers.
François Goupil de Bouillé: We have a clear plan and that also means there will be no mixed goods salesrooms. There have been a large number of inquiries from established dealerships interested in opening an Infiniti store. With the Q30 we are now also seeing a new era for us. The Q30 gives us a completely new approach, especially to the German market. We currently have 9 Infiniti Centers in Germany, we see growth to 20-30 in the near future (within 12-19 months) as feasible. Whereby it is particularly important to us to offer a continuous service and premium service. Infiniti still stands for a special exclusivity, with all wishes for growth, we have to maintain this exclusivity. There will therefore be no mixed brand experiences. An Infiniti showroom is an Infiniti showroom and when it comes to service and maintenance, we also place great value on the Infiniti experience. In the next 2 to 4 weeks, the number of service workshops should have increased to 20. The contracts for this have been signed. The goal is to have around 20 dealers and 30 service centers in the near, very near, future.
We differentiate between “stores” and “service centers” and are also pursuing a plan of so-called pop-up stores. Infiniti sales rooms that open in urban areas and skilfully implement the special Infiniti style.
mab: Some “challengers” for German premium vehicles actually only want to be represented on the German market. If success doesn't happen, it doesn't happen and some of these “challengers” accept this. Is this also Infiniti's premium strategy?
François Goupil de Bouillé: Nobody waited for Infiniti. The premium market is literally being overrun. Everyone wants to be “premium” now. It's the Germans, the English and French want it to be. We are the challengers, we have to write our very own chapter.
mab: The advertising with the F1 icon Sebastian Vettel was a very special chapter. When he was with RedBull, he drove an Infiniti engine there. What is your future marketing strategy in this area?
François Goupil de Bouillé: We continue to be the hybrid experts in Formula 1. We bring the experience on the topic of hybrids and develop the hybrid components for the Renault engines. Our Q50 Hybrid continues to be the hybrid with the strongest performance among the hybrid vehicles on the market. Here we focus on the technology. In order to communicate this focus and strengthen our own competitive position, we launched the Engineer Academy. It is like a “racing driver school”, only for highly qualified technicians and engineers.
Students from Europe and Russia are offered the opportunity of an unprecedented career within Formula One and in the field of vehicle technology through the F1 works team and the premium automobile manufacturer Infiniti.
[=” ” ]About François Goupil de Bouillé:The native Frenchman has been in the automotive industry for over 25 years and has been Infiniti's Vice President for Europe, the Middle East and Africa since 2014.
Thank you François Goupil de Bouillé for talking to us