More dealers and models key to Skoda's success Down Under

Barely six months into its resurrection Down Under, Skoda says it's optimistic it will have new models and up to 24 dealers operating by the end of 2008. That's the viewpoint of the Czech brand's local boss, Matthew Wiesner.

The Carsales Network caught up with Wiesner at last week's Melbourne International Motor Show (MIMS). According to the ex-VW exec, the brand's first half-year has been above his expectations, in terms of cars sold, but especially in customer and dealer interest.

"We've been extremely pleased with Skoda's entry into the Australian market to date," Wiesner told the Carsales Network.

"It's very early days and we have an enormous amount of work to do, but we've been very encouraged by the visibility of the brand and the quality of enquiry we've received."

Skoda launched with seven dealers but has quickly expanded its network. Wiesner confirmed Skoda's entry into the Wollongong market last month and said it would open its latest dealership, in Richmond (Victoria), later this month. The start-ups take to 14 Skoda's network Down Under.

According to Wiesner, the VW Group brand's plans see it increasing that number to 16 by mid-year and to have the network at between 20-24 dealers by the end of 2008.

"We have good customer enquiry, but increasing the number of dealers to an appropriate and sustainable level is key to our growth. We need to be somewhere around 20-24 dealers by the start of next year," Wiesner opined.

As few as 40 per cent of the Skoda dealers will also be Volkswagen dealers, Wiesner revealed. He admitted the strength of VW's growth Down Under could potentially handicap Skoda.

"We [Skoda] have the potential to get lost within a VW [focussed] dealership. We anticipate more of our dealers will be Audi rather than VW dealers, but a significant number will be new to the [Volkswagen-Audi] Group," he said.

"The Audi and Skoda ranges are a good fit. We give Audi [dealers] something under $50K to work with," he said.

Wiesner is equally conscious that the brand needs to fast-track some key models Down Under.

Skoda currently sells the Roomster hatch/wagon/MPV and a seemingly endless number of Octavia variants locally. The new Passat-plus sized Superb (due to be launched at the Geneva motor show this week) will join the range around the end of the first quarter of 2009, Wiesner said. However, the important Fabia entry-level hatch and wagon are further away, says Wiesner.

"We're still working on pricing. We've got to be able to start under $20K [with Fabia] and offer a strong range including Combi [wagon] in the $20-26,000 price range.

"There's something there... We're still working through the numbers but it [Fabia] may not arrive realistically until the second half of next year," he explained.

Such timing would probably see Skoda debut the facelifted Fabia, rather than the current model which has been on sale in Europe for around 18 months. Octavia too is due for freshening in 2009.

Skoda will, however, have at least one new model for 2008 Down Under -- the high-riding all-wheel-drive wagon version of Octavia, called Scout.

"We'll definitely launch Scout this year," Wiesner confirmed. "At this stage we're looking at May/June production which means first deliveries to customers in September," he said.

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