Jeep will re-engage and “re-energise” its dealer network in the UK with the launch of the new Jeep Avenger SUV, according to CEO Christian Meunier.
The 4x4 brand’s sales have plummeted in the UK (down 69% this year alone, according to SMMT figures), and it now holds just a 0.5% share of the SUV market.
Speaking to Autocar at the Paris motor show, Meunier said that he would this week meet with French dealers to explain his plan and vision for the brand, and he aims to do the same in the UK soon. At the heart of it all lies the Jeep Avenger, an on-trend small electric SUV designed, engineered and built in Europe with European customers solely in mind – a first for the company.
“The UK and France are very similar,” he said. “The UK has a brand that’s very established [Land Rover] but that’s not a problem. It’s only an opportunity, as off-roading is part of the culture. The problem when we launched Renegade and Compass is we didn’t have the right powertrains, so there was a tax issue and uncompetitive pricing.
“This degraded the image of Jeep, as our image was not seen as CO2-efficient. Now with our line-up, we are 100% electrified, and we can change the perception of the brand in the UK and France.”
Part of that change would come through Jeep giving new training and messaging to its dealers, and also a renewed marketing push and communications strategy to present a much friendlier face and image for the brand.
Meunier said: “We need to re-energise the dealer network. We’re doing it in France, and will do it in the UK. We will share the plan and our next three to four years. We need dealers to be engaged with the brand. We’re not mobility, we’re excitement, fun, passion and lifestyle. This is what sales people need to sell. You don’t sell Jeeps like Fiats.
“We need to do more work with Jeep on the marketing, make it more lifestyle-orientated and we need awareness of being electrified.
“It’s not just with money [spent on marketing] but in tone, emotion. We make products to make people happy. It’s not about price point, we need to sell the 'why' of Jeep. I don’t think we communicate well with Jeep in Europe.”
Meunier says he sees “no fundamental reason” why Jeep cannot be a success in the UK, and the brand had a “big opportunity” to succeed.
Yesterday it was announced that Stellantis UK plans to cut dealer partners which consistently under-deliver on customer service, amid a wider shake-up of its retail operations.
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