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NEWS
Alfa Romeo on the march
There's been some pain but a lot of gain since Chrysler began distributing Fiat and Alfa Romeo in OzWhat a difference a year makes.
2012 was a period of transition for the Fiat and Alfa Romeo brands in Australia, as Chrysler took over distribution of the Italian marques from previous distributor Ateco Automotive.
The official handover, during the month of May 2012, created a sales vacuum. Ateco had run out almost all stock of Fiat and Alfa Romeo during the months before, and Chrysler kicked off with very little stock available to cover the needs of all aspiring buyers.
Add to that the legacy of Ateco's product planning decisions and market positioning, and Chrysler was left with two nominal semi-prestige brands and zero stock of the right specification for each product.
Since then, there have been sweeping changes – and it hasn't always been pretty.
According to Karla Leach, Director of Corporate Communications at Fiat Chrysler Group, some dealers carried over from the Ateco days didn't have their contracts renewed with Chrysler. And according to Ms Leach, the move from 'prestige' to volume branding for Fiat and Alfa Romeo in Australia has involved changing "a bit of a mindset" at retail level.
But the changes are proving worthwhile, it seems. Total sales in 2012 were 906 for Alfa Romeo and 513 for Fiat. By the end of 2013, sales had picked up to the tune of 2373 for Alfa and 3854 for Fiat (passenger cars only). Somewhat astonishingly, Fiat sold 758 cars in the one month last year: December. In contrast the company had sold just 70 units for the same month in 2012. As a percentage, Fiat's year-on-year sales for December had risen by nearly 983 per cent. Full year sales for Fiat had improved by 651 per cent.
Alfa Romeo didn't achieve the stellar sales success of Fiat, but still increased sales by 162 per cent for the full year – mostly on the back of the Giulietta small car, which sold 1949 units last year. The Giulietta has already been through Chrysler's repositioning program, and the benefits of that are obvious, with the small car adding nearly 220 per cent to its 2012 sales volume.
And Alfa Romeo will likely see further sales growth this year, with the MiTo now adjusted to pricing levels more acceptable to buyers in this market segment. Don't expect a diesel variant to join the range though. According to the distributor's Senior Manager for Product Strategy, Zack Loo, 99.3 per cent of the light-car segment in Australia is petrol-powered. Furthermore, fluctuating currency exchange rates don't help the argument for importing the diesel MiTo.
For the most part, however, things are looking up for Alfa Romeo, which is sold alongside Fiat in dealerships around the nation. Karla Leach predicts Fiat/Alfa dealers in Australia will number 60 by around the middle of this year. Barely six months ago the distributor had just appointed number 46.
Ms Leach also said that at head office level, she could see "greater collaboration between Turin and Detroit," but the Aussie distributor was "operating as Fiat Chrysler already."
"It's probably going to keep the beancounters happier, because they've only got to do one spreadsheet instead of two."
Lines of communication could be better still, Ms Leach observed, but the prospects for the Fiat Chrysler brands in Australia are improving.
The impending arrival of the Alfa 4C will serve to boost the Alfa Romeo brand locally, as a halo model. A far cry from Alfa sports cars sold here in recent times – it's mid-engined and rear-wheel drive for a start – the 4C is due here late in Q2 or early Q3, with right-hand drive production scheduled to start within a matter of weeks. Not since the Montreal from over 40 years ago has Alfa Romeo offered a car so focused.
It may confuse the volume-selling Alfa Romeo brand image Fiat Chrysler is trying convey however, but buyers probably won't take much convincing the 4C is something other than a small family hatch.
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Written byKen Gratton
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