[prokinetic]

Originally Posted by Motard_Blr

The same discussion is going on at GM India and I had proposed that the smaller manufacturers face reality and accept that they will have to share dealers, showrooms and service centres.

Didn't fiat do this many years ago with tata? The sharing was badly executed though.

[Motard_Blr]

Originally Posted by prokinetic

Didn't fiat do this many years ago with tata? The sharing was badly executed though.

Yes, they did and the results were bad for Fiat. This agreement/joint-venture was done at the boardroom level.

My belief is that is that this sort of manufacturer led agreements don't work because the dealer doesn't have any say in the decision - he would be forced to sell and support 2 weak brands with insufficient incentive. My thinking is that the Indian market should graduate to a approach like that in the US or EU - single dealer and showroom selling many brands of vehicles. This is how appliances are sold in India now, though without after-sales services.

Most car sales are in urban India and the some of the most common issues that businesses encounter are the high cost of rental property, high salaries, difficulty in finding skilled workers, power cuts requiring high investments in backup power, etc. The break even level is rising continuously so for a car dealership to be viable the increase in sales and profits must keep up with the increase in costs.

Poor selling brands like GM, Fiat, Nissan must accept that in this economic context, nobody is going to invest crores to setup a new showroom and workshop exclusively for each brand. These companies must either find dealers willing to invest in multi-brand dealerships and workshops for them or form multilateral partnerships between themselves to setup the infrastructure.

The mass market car business needs deep pockets and those players who can't afford it must have to leave.

The thing that annoys me about Fiat is that they have great products in both Europe and South America and some of them would surely be attractive to customers in India, but for some reason they seem to be paralysed in their decisions! I wonder if the blame must be directed at the Indian management or the parent company's management. What a shame!

[KiloAlpha]

Sometimes, I get into a cynical mood. In just such a mood, was thinking about FIAT and its inexplicable India strategy.

Looking at the Vitara Brezza bookings, and the unassailable position at the top of their respective segments of other Maruti models (Swift/DZire, Ciaz, Ertiga), FIAT is in a very happy position just supplying engines. And I am quite sure they will be making a pretty packet on each engine sold. Adding up to a nice profit.

They might be setting off these huge engine supply profits against the losses generated by their car manufacturing division in order to lower the net profit on paper.

[DriveOnceMore]

It looks like Fiat will setup very few 'Jeep' only showrooms and rest of the Fiat showrooms will be upgraded to FCA showrooms which will sell Fiat, Jeep and Abarths.
Is it a good or bad decision?

Today, ask a layman and majority of them might be rarely knowing that Jeep is owned by Fiat now.
By setting up this showrooms, Fiat is establishing that link openly.
Don't know how well that will go down the people's throat.

Source: ET

[Lij]

FCA appoints Nipun Mahajan as its new head of sales and network development. Source

Speaking on Nipun’s appointment, Kevin Flynn, president and managing director, FCA India, said, “I am pleased to welcome Nipun to the FCA India team… His experience and energy will contribute to FCA’s planned growth and development in India for both Fiat and Jeep businesses.”

So this I believe quashes the rumour that FIAT is winding up its operations in India.

[Moto_Hill]

Originally Posted by DriveOnceMore

It looks like Fiat will setup very few 'Jeep' only showrooms and rest of the Fiat showrooms will be upgraded to FCA showrooms which will sell Fiat, Jeep and Abarths.
Is it a good or bad decision?

Is this was the case, then I'm wondering why Jay Vijay-pune, is shutting fiat operations. Reason, I believe was FCA not giving Jeep dealership under same roof, and wanted a separate setup for Jeeps.

[k_ajay]

I feel its about time this thread is renamed to 'Fiat's lack of India Strategy revealed'. Fiat has hardly anything to get the market excited, forget making prospects walk-in and buy something.

* not a hater.

[neoonwheels]

Originally Posted by DriveOnceMore

It looks like Fiat will setup very few 'Jeep' only showrooms and rest of the Fiat showrooms will be upgraded to FCA showrooms which will sell Fiat, Jeep and Abarths.
Is it a good or bad decision?

Are you sure that JV is shutting down? It will leave only a single dealer in Pune then

I had heard a rumour that Pandit is again in talks with FIAT but I dont think that its gonna be a case!

[DriveOnceMore]

Originally Posted by neoonwheels

Are you sure that JV is shutting down? It will leave only a single dealer in Pune then

I had heard a rumour that Pandit is again in talks with FIAT but I dont think that its gonna be a case!

Yes.
Sales have already been stopped and service will be shut down, probably by the end of this month.

[Williams_f1]

Hi,
Even I was saddened to hear that Jay-Vijay were closing down, as I had bought my Evo from them last year, at that time it looked like they would be the main dealers for Fiat as they were investing a lot, they had multiple puntos for td etc.
When I had my car serviced in July this year, the manager told me that they were getting converted into a Jeep showroom, later he said it would be multi brand showroom, selling Jeeps, Fiats, Chryslers and Abarths as well.
Then in August came to know that they are shutting down, was told by a SA at Sky Moto, on calling Jay Vijay, it was confirmed that they were shutting shop, leaving Sky Moto as the only dealers in the city. In September first week, was trying to see what deals were available form Fiat as a colleague was in interested in the Punto, just called Jay Vijay if any deals were there on the old stock, the person on the other side told me right now they can just arrange a car on order but no cars in stock and service center is still operating, on probing further he said they would reopen in a month's time but under what brand he was not willing to divulge, so I have feeling they will reopen as a Jeep dealership selling all FCA cars and servicing them too.

[DriveOnceMore]

Originally Posted by Williams_f1

.. he said they would reopen in a month's time but under what brand he was not willing to divulge, so I have feeling they will reopen as a Jeep dealership selling all FCA cars and servicing them too.

If this turns out to be true, then we have no reason to worry.
I've also heard that Fiat is in talks with Pandit Auto to resurrect their service shop, if not a complete dealership.

[Williams_f1]

Hi, just spoke to a senior mechanic at Jay-Vijay, they are indeed closing down, sorry for the flip-flop information. Still hopeful that they wont close down. Having only one dealership and service center for the whole of Pune city is going to make it challenging for the sales team to reach people and for the service team to cater to so many cars.
Sky Moto has already started absorbing Jay-Vijay people, this was mentioned by a SA at Sky Moto to my colleague who is picking up at Punto soon. Also the SA mentioned that Sky Moto will be selling Jeeps too, this bit of news made me think and to call the mechanic at Jay-Vijay.

[nikhil0405]

Pandit might have a multibrand showroom. Things will be clear only next year. Until then all of us in Pune will be stuck with Sky Moto.

[Moto_Hill]

In September first week, was trying to see what deals were available form Fiat as a colleague was in interested in the Punto, just called Jay Vijay if any deals were there on the old stock

Not in punto but, they had a 2014 Linea T-Jet emotion variant, when I visited two weeks back. The car was used as a TD and had run 4k kms.

so I have feeling they will reopen as a Jeep dealership selling all FCA cars and servicing them too.

Hope so, very unlikely to happen though. From what I know, it will be a VW dealership. Their current adjacent VW showroom will be extended to Fiat setup.

[arunphilip]

Fiat's Global Strategy for 2014 - 2018
As part of the FCA Group's investor day meetings conducted in May 2014, Olivier François - head of the Fiat Brand - presented the attached slide deck. A key point there is the following timeline:

Earlier this year in January 2016, FCA stated that "May 2014 Business Plan key initiatives remain intact", so hopefully the above timeline should hopefully be broadly intact (yes, we've not heard hide nor hair of the "Ottimo" or "Ottimo Cross").

In that deck, one page that caught my eye for sentimental reasons is this one:

Source: fcagroup.com

I've attached the slide deck that has the above information.