Ford dealerships across Europe can expect to see renewed focus from the brand on competitive recent cars in the longer term.
Jim Farley, Ford’s chief executive and the leader who in 2016 drove Ford’s European operations to record profitability, record margins and increased sales while he was then execitive vp of Ford Europe, has reportedly told its major franchisees that he’s keen to restart development of latest cars tailored to Europe’s customers.
Strong consumer demand for stylish SUVs, which generally also had higher margins for manufacturers than saloons and hatchbacks, plus the necessity to secure profitability and efficiency through global products, combined to guide Ford to cull its B-segment Fiesta, once the UK’s biggest-selling recent automotive, and other models similar to Mondeo and S-Max.
Ford dealerships across Europe can expect to see renewed focus from the brand on competitive recent cars in the longer term.
Jim Farley, Ford’s chief executive and the leader who in 2016 drove Ford’s European operations to record profitability, record margins and increased sales while he was then execitive vp of Ford Europe, has reportedly told its major franchisees that he’s keen to restart development of latest cars tailored to Europe’s customers.
Strong consumer demand for stylish SUVs, which generally also had higher margins for manufacturers than saloons and hatchbacks, plus the necessity to secure profitability and efficiency through global products, combined to guide Ford to cull its B-segment Fiesta, once the UK’s biggest-selling recent automotive, and other models similar to Mondeo and S-Max.
Ford can be playing catch-up in the electrical vehicle market, where Volkswagen, Tesla, Cupra, Skoda, Hyundai and Kia have won considerable market share.
Its recent EV launches, the Explorer and Capri, each built on Volkswagen’s MEB platform, are still finding their place but are under considerable pressure from Chinese brand rivals similar to BYD and Omoda who’re targeting fleets.
In 2024 Ford’s UK recent automotive market share dropped to five.6%, with 110,000 registrations, which is only a third of its automotive sales volume a decade ago.
Putting that into context, it sold 133,434 Fiestas alone in 2015.
The decline in recent automotive sales has led Ford to downsize its dealer network. Within the UK it culled its retail dealers, and its network of FordStores, lots of which represented multi-million pound investments for franchisees lower than a decade ago, has also reduced.
Its strength in business vehicle sales has been its success story, nevertheless, with the 115-site Transit Centre network within the UK continuing to guide the market.
In 2024 Ford achieved almost 113,000 recent light business vehicle registrations, plus 3,375 heavy van registrations. That’s ahead of a decade ago – it achieved 106,000 in 2015.
A few of its remaining Ford automotive dealerships are actually sharing locations, even rooftops, with other brands including the ambitious Chinese recent entrants.
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