Renovating Renault

Renault sold fewer than 2000 cars last year. Compare that with over 3000 for Citroen and a fairly whopping 8807 units for Peugeot and it's plain there's a problem selling Renaults in Australia.

The French importer's local honchos are aware of the brand's relatively poor showing. Currently, Renault is positioned -- along with the two French competitors already mentioned -- somewhere between the premium German marques above and the premium Japanese marques below.

"I don't think there's too much confusion when you buy Renault, Peugeot, Citroen," says Christophe Di-Perna, Renault's Director of Marketing in Australia.

"People are pretty savvy when they are buying this range. I believe we are right between the Germans and the most 'European' Japanese like Honda or even Mazda, Subarus.

"Our image is still not very clear, but it's getting clear for people who know our niche products."

Part of the problem with the brand's image relates to the scattergun way in which Renault products compete within the market.

"Because we are a multitude of niche products, with products like the Megane RS or Clio RS -- which are very specific -- you can go from Subaru WRX or even the Foresters, against the Scenic, because they are the same family wagon or 'monospace'," says Di-Perna.

"We are not competing in traditional segments, we are competing in niche pockets and consequently then, you change competitors wherever you are.

"Scenic has virtually no competitors this side of Mercedes B-Class. Take the Megane sedan and suddenly we are competing against the Mazda3 and the Honda Civic.

"The marketing we apply has to be really targeted and we make sure what is in people's mind, what their shopping list is all about."

Those people Di-Perna wishes to target tend to be tertiary-educated, value-oriented, brand-aware but not status-oriented. They tend to know their product -- often more than the salesperson attempting to sell them the car -- and will visit the dealership up to four times before making the final decision.

"Rather than spread the awareness to every Australian, we just want at least for the people we are targeting to put us in the shopping list, because our product has good merit," says Di-Perna.

"Ultimately, we just want to be in competition, so that people can make their own call.

Targeting the right people is not as easy as it sounds. Renault has to get the right product; the company admits that Australians didn't take to the controversial rear end of the Megane hatch, for example.

Lines of communication with the head office in France needed to improve -- and according to Di-Perna, they have. Australia is now part of the Asia/Africa region in the Renault world. Instead of putting the views of a tiny outpost directly to Renault in France, Australia staff can effectively lobby the head office with the louder voice of the whole region -- one that is developing rapidly.

"The whole of the world was divided into three parts; Renault was France, Europe, the rest of the world," explains Di-Perna.

"The rest of the world was miniscule in the scheme of the things. Now they have shared the world in [five regions]; Americas, still France alone, Europe, Euromed -- which is North Africa and so on -- and then you have [Asia-Africa].

"So they all have equal power in term of 'voice'. Of course, in term of volume, some of them are the old Europe, so we know the market [there] will remain pretty steady. But we know also that Africa is where the growth is -- and South America as well. It's a good balance between 'existings' and 'potentials'."

This means fewer and less-protracted product planning arguments. Di-Perna told the Carsales Network that the up to two-year delay in launching 'new' models in the past was as often as not a problem associated with product planning philosophies, rather than converting the cars to right-hand drive or validating HVAC and plastics for a hot-weather climate.

"It's very much a consultation which is probably 24 months before the car is announced, even in Europe," says Di-Perna, explaining the new status quo.

"So if we bring Australia inside the overall Renault process -- we have an expression in French -- by putting the church back in the centre of the village, then you start to really talk business with them and you start to be more committed than what you are. Then they start to take consideration of what's your potential and what are your capabilities."

Australia is beginning to take on more importance to Renault. Di-Perna's colleague and MD for Renault in Australia is Rudi Koenig. Koenig draws together the importance of this new-found cooperation between the Australian office and the head office with the way the brand is perceived locally.

"It's natural we're getting product quicker -- and Koleos is an example," he says

"We're a big SUV market -- one of the biggest in the world. They're launching that product in France this month and we're going to launch it in three months' time.

"There's an example of the importance of this market and our growing input into the product planning process -- up front.

"We have arguments about whether we're going to get it or not two years before launch, rather than six months before."

"...[or six months] after," Di-Perna corrects him.

But the brand loyalty that Renault hopes to reestablish is a capricious commodity.

"Things can collapse overnight," says Di-Perna.

"So this loyalty that customers are looking for -- customers are not that loyal, because with 61 brands and 310 models, their loyalty is also pretty much at stake."

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