SEAT has revealed its 'Strategy 2025'; Chairman of the Board, Dr. Francisco Javier García Sanz, and Executive Committee Chairman, Luca de Meo presented the ten-year plan. The three pillars of the strategy are; models with a high profit margin, customer satisfaction and to be the most attractive employer in the Spanish automotive industry. Four new models are set to arrive in the next two years to help deliver increased profits.
Affirming Volkswagen's commitment to its Spanish brand Dr. Francisco Javier García Sanz said: "Now is the time to act with a view to the medium and long term, regardless of recent weeks' news. The Volkswagen Group has full confidence in our plan for the future and it is perfectly integrated in their strategy. The models we have announced for the next two years will reach the market as scheduled and will contribute to SEAT's sustainable growth. And they are just the first step of this strategy".
A compact SUV, based on the Leon Cross Sport show car, is due in the first half of 2016. This model will mark SEAT's entry into the crossover sector.
An efficiency programme, LEAP, will be applied over the next two years to control operating costs. The plan includes Line 1 at SEAT's Martorell plant, where the Ibiza is produced, which will be adapted to a new platform. Around 100 temporary employees will see their contracts terminated when production is halted on Line 1.
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Further cost saving measures include reducing energy consumption, reviewing processes and revising expenditure on outsourced services, sponsorships, travels and events. The plan is to cut €100 million from the balance sheet without hitting SEAT's investment in new products.