[dZired]

Former Skoda India head, Thomas Kuehl, has been appointed as the President of Nissan India. He will be taking charge of the said role from October 1, 2017 and will be responsible for the marketing, sales, manufacturing and R&D operations of Nissan and Datsun brands in India.

Thomas Kuehl's return to the Indian market comes around four and a half years after he left Skoda's Indian division to join the Volkswagen Group's international operations. It was earlier being speculated the Kuehl will be designated as Volkswagen India's head to replace Thierry Lespiaucq. However, he has exited the Volkswagen Automotive Group (VAG) and will be taking over the reign of the Nissan brand instead.

Thomas Kuehl has an automotive-related experience of over 22 years and has served in different countries and different areas of value chain. He is also well versed with the challenges of the Indian car market, thanks to his tenure as Brand Head of Skoda Auto India and Executive Director Corporate Strategy for Volkswagen Group, India.

Kuehl will be operating from the Nissan India headquarters in Gurgaon. He will be replacing Guillaume Sicard, who has resigned from Nissan India to take a new role in Renault, as Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Asia Pacific and Managing Director, South Asia.

Link to Team-BHP News

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by dZired

He is also well versed with the challenges of the Indian car market, thanks to his tenure as Brand Head of Skoda Auto India and Executive Director Corporate Strategy for Volkswagen Group, India.

Wasn't his tenure really bad for Skoda?

His replacement - Sudhir Rao primarily spent his efforts on stopping the fall the company had managed to place itself into, and addressing the concerns around service and reliability that had plagued the brand during the previous years.

Not sure if he is really the person needed to head Nissan India, with its current position of not having any best seller products or a very competent service network to sell them.

Originally Posted by dZired

It was earlier being speculated the Kuehl will be designated as Volkswagen India's head to replace Thierry Lespiaucq. However, he has exited the Volkswagen Automotive Group (VAG) and will be taking over the reign of the Nissan brand instead.

Not surprising that he quit VW group. He spent a lot of his time in Korea last year appearing in courts, facing travel bans and being investigated for his involvement in the emission scandal.

[PetrolRider]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Wasn't his tenure really bad for Skoda?

He may be the best guy for Nissan exit strategy . I wonder what would be Nissan selling after 2019, as they have no plan to bring new Micra. Will they anyway survive selling a 2 cror sports car and a bulky petrol SUV.

[dark.knight]

Originally Posted by dZired

Former Skoda India head, Thomas Kuehl, has been appointed as the President of Nissan India. He will be taking charge of the said role from October 1, 2017 and will be responsible for the marketing, sales, manufacturing and R&D operations of Nissan and Datsun brands in India.

Marketing the same old products which have no scope for higher "sales" (despite massive price-cuts like with Sunny), manufacturing and R&D for what? There are no new products in the pipeline at all (unless I'm missing something).

His main responsibility should be to ensure strong sales+service support.. give generous warranty terms and ensure that perceptions change regarding Nissan. Also this must be accompanied by strong brand positioning and new products.. Micra and Sunny are only doing duty as cab cars today.

Unless Nissan has a trump card they have no chance in India with Hyundai around.. I say bring in the Versa Note as a Jazz rival, new Micra as an i20 rival and then the 2018 Leaf as its signature eco-friendly car. We need more sub 4m cars which are lightweight, frugal and spacious - made for Indian roads.

[GTO]

Must say, the man has a knack for choosing the 'gems' in the Indian auto industry .

Don't know how he's going to handle any future volume products (Nissan's current line-up has zero potential). At Skoda, he at least had competent luxury cars like the Superb & Laura. Nissan doesn't even have any such high-end cars. Period.

Thanks to their own mistakes (including lazily outsourcing the dealer network to Hover), Nissan is an incredibly damaged brand in India. It's not impossible, yet damn difficult to resurrect it.

Or just continue exporting?

[jetti]

Originally Posted by GTO

Must say, the man has a knack for choosing the 'gems' in the Indian auto industry .

Or, could be that the "gems" having a death-wish have a knack for choosing him
...

Thanks to their own mistakes (including lazily outsourcing the dealer network to Hover), Nissan is an incredibly damaged brand in India. It's not impossible, yet damn difficult to resurrect it.

Or just continue exporting?

Not having their skin in the game is something that has made Nissan service reputation it's weakest point. However, under Kuehl, Skoda service reputation had reached its depths. For Nissan, it's not even a case of lost reputation. Nissan in this country didn't have any to start with, so it's a case of building from scratch.

Add to that the fact that the product line-up, existing or planned, has little excitement.

Overall, an arduous task for Mr. Kuehl.

[ajmat]

Did Nissan do a reference check on this guy's achievements?

[arunramaswamy]

Is Nissan India in a position to do a reference check as such for attracting talent? They have messed up their product line royally and they are now gambling on some cheap CMF-A architecture. I feel like Skoda and VW, Nissan should target the premium segments. Neither of them will find any success for sure in mass market unless there is a perceived change in their after sales.

[TusharK]

Nissan India has announced a reshuffle of its senior management team with Arun Malhotra, who currently holds the post of Managing Director at Nissan Motor India Pvt. Ltd. (NMIPL) taking over as Corporate Advisor.



He will oversee the brand's network expansion and future growth goals. He will report to Peyman Kargar, Chairman of Nissan's Africa, Middle East and India (AMI) region. Mr. Kargar is also the acting president of Nissan India Operations before Thomas Kuehl takes over that portfolio.



Besides that, the current vice president of marketing and Datsun Business Unit, NMIPL - Jerome Saigot will be handling sales and marketing for both Nissan and Datsun brands. Mr. Saigot will be reporting to Thomas Kuehl and will be based at NMIPL's Gurgaon office.



Furthermore, Peter Clissold, who is General Manager, Marketing for the AMI region will be taking over the role of Vice President, Marketing at Nissan Motor India Pvt. Ltd. and will oversee both Nissan and Datsun brands. Mr. Clissold will also be based in Gurgaon and will report to Jerome Saigot. All the administrative changes will be effective from October 1, 2017.

[crashoverride9x]

Did anyone notice there is no Skoda India MD now. They are keeping it vacant.
Anyone know any top level management, or is it all on auto-pilot

[GTO]

Thomas Kuehl quits (sinking) Nissan India. Did the failure of the Kicks do him in? The company has a new boss now.

Nissan today announced the appointment of Sinan Özkök as the President of its Indian operations.

Sinan, who will be based at Nissan Motor India Private Ltd. in Gurgaon, will have responsibility for all functions in India including Sales and Marketing, Research and Development and Manufacturing, for both Nissan and Datsun brands.

Sinan joins India from Nissan Otomotiv A.Ş. (NOAS), Nissan’s national sales company in Turkey, where he has been managing director since 2015.

Sinan, 49, has overseen a significant growth in Turkey for Nissan and brings with him 26 years’ experience of working within the automotive industry.

Sinan’s career started in 1993 in Renault, where he held senior positions across Marketing, Dealer Network Management, Retail Operation and Sales. He joined Nissan in 2015.

Nissan chairman of the Africa, Middle East and India region, Peyman Kargar, commented: “I am delighted that Sinan will be driving Nissan’s business forward in India. Not only does he bring vast experience of working within the industry over many years, he has a proven track record.”

Sinan said: “I am looking forward to working in one of the most dynamic and important auto markets in the world. Nissan and Datsun offer a broad and compelling line-up for customers and I will be working to develop the full potential of both brands in India.”

Sinan replaces Thomas Kuehl who was appointed president, India operations in 2017.

[KARAN.CARGURU]

Originally Posted by GTO

Thomas Kuehl quits (sinking) Nissan India. Did the failure of the Kicks do him in? The company has a new boss now.

Nissan had more MDs than product launches


Since 2014, I have seen 7 different MDs (heads) in past 5 years

1.GM Singh(HAI)
2.Ajay Raghuvanshi
3.Arun Malhotra
4.Guillaume Sicard(interim MD)
5.Jerom Saigot
6.Thomas Kuehl
7.Sinan Ozkok(now)

They have lowest turnovers as compared to any OEM i.e approx 72crores(Excluding GST)

Few dealers within a Tier 3 cities have better turnovrs than that of Nissan.

I believe they are the ENDGAME for INDIA

[deehunk]

Originally Posted by KARAN.CARGURU

Nissan had more MDs than product launches

Since 2014, I have seen 7 different MDs (heads) in past 5 years

I believe they are the ENDGAME for INDIA

Every one of these MDs brought in vast industrial experience, they were all welcomed with the same statement. After a year they quit realising Indian experience was not their type. This must be the reason why Nissan has not launched any facelifts or new vehicles(leave aside KICKS) for India. I feel sorry for the employees of Nissan for undergoing so many reshuffle of top management.

[KARAN.CARGURU]

This morning I received the quote from few Ex-Nissan Dealers.


"Before I proceed further I would like to tell you a brief of Nissan’s India business operations. As a new entrant, Nissan in 2010 demanded in terms of dealership Infrastructure and size massive setups. It seemed more than required from the start of business, rather than going for a step by step expansion as and when required. No study was undertaken for market effectiveness of products and Indian entrepreneur’s hard-earned money was misused for such lavish setups as a case of market test and study for this entrant. All businesses were setup at costs between 6 Crore to 20 Crore depending on size and type of the city.



As Nissan, being one of the three largest manufacturers in world, the appointed dealers didn’t blink before setting up huge businesses on their promises of a massive onslaught of products and capture of Market Share which never happened (Failed promises and delivery of inferior products no wonder they currently reside second from bottom in sales).



It is important to bear in mind that our country has no franchise law like that of other countries, leaving dealers completely on the whims and fancies of the manufacturer with agreement & contracts being almost one sided or as the legal community calls it dotted contracts (which Nissan has put to the greatest of use). There is no proper representation at the govt. level or in ministries to address issues about the SME business.



Although it is true that the decision of doing and investing in the business is one’s own choice, but once money is invested one quietly accepts all the unfair terms without choice which could be equated to modern day colonization from Nissan.



In the eight year of Nissan being in business in India more than 85 dealerships have been shut down almost becoming bankrupt. In-numerous family’s wealth and fortunes ruined for life. You won’t be surprised to hear the amount in hundreds of crores. No other industry player in automobile has managed to treat the Indian businessman and get away as Nissan has. The point Nissan hasn't been able to justify investments into setups and seeks to close dealers who question intent based on factors such as these and appoint alternate smaller set up dealers so that questioning stops ! This is known as the Project Phoenix. Smaller investments more viability...



No one comes into business to make a loss but loss of dignity and well-being is beyond what many aspiring entrepreneurs signed up for. These affected people have lost everything including substantial time of their lives, mental health and money running Nissan’s dealership operations due to the trap.



I am also sharing my personal story which resonates with the rest of the people who are still quiet as they are in auto dealership businesses and fear that if they talk out, other manufacturers might take it the wrong way.



This side of the business story needs to be told.



Ruining Young Entrepreneurs like mine's life who was working in UK with a decent job but chose to come to India and only felt betrayed by the system. I have initiated arbitration proceedings against Nissan and hope for a positive end to this 8 years of misery.



They might fool you by saying that we are serious about the Indian market by launching Kicks, but it has been launched because Captur has been launched and investments already made... If you will look there was a similar story with Terrano and Duster.



With the product seeming to have no takers because of negative publicity (CEO in jail, closures, unrest in network etc.) it cannot be a surprise that Nissan can be the next GM in India and opt for an exit. This scenario is highly plausible as sales diminish with market share at 0.78%. They cant find dealers in cities to take up their franchisee now.



Nissan's exit is easy as Renault can be handed over service responsibilities & Renault wants the Indians market for itself."

[blackwasp]

Originally Posted by KARAN.CARGURU

This morning I received the quote from few Ex-Nissan Dealers.

Thanks for sharing this. Sadly, this is due to the general nature of business being conducted in India. The larger entity (in this case the Nissan) always strong-arms the smaller one (dealers). Having worked in the dealership background, this situation is the same across all manufactures - be it Maruti or Mercedes. Only saving grace is the sales volume keeping the dealers alive.

Once you get into a contract, exiting is very very difficult on good terms unless you are well connected with the higher managements of the carmaker. Imagine this, investing the initial amounts some car makers ask as investments would get you better returns had it been put in mutual funds + real estate combo. Most of the dealers either have deep pockets or entered very early in this business at time of low investments. Just check how many new dealers have been appointed by car companies with no prior experience in automobile sales.