8:36 am, July 29, 2024
Stellantis is prepared to shut down or sell underperforming brands with the future appearing particularly unclear for Maserati.
That is according to senior executives at the European carmaker, who have been reacting to the outfit’s poor start to the financial year.
Car Dealer reported last week that Stellantis saw its profits nosedive by 47% in the first half of 2024, with several brands failing to meet expectations.
In response to the poor showing, which also saw turnover plummet, Stellantis boss Carlos Tavares has told journalists that the company will not hesitate to discard brands which fail to make money.
He said: ‘If they don’t make money, we will shut them down. We cannot afford to have brands that do not make money.
‘That’s very simple, because we are talking about a very difficult transition period where we cannot afford to have brands that do not make money.’
The threat would appear to be especially prominent when it comes to Maserati, with the luxury Italian brand performing woefully in H1.
The luxury outfit saw its global sales fall by 50% to just 6,500 units in the first half of 2024, with an operating loss of €82m (£69.22m).
As a result, directors now concede that Stellantis could look to sell off the struggling firm as part of its streamlining operations, Automotive News Europe reports.
Natalie Knight, chief financial officer at Stellantis, told reporters: ‘The future is about how we maintain best value.
The latest poor results come after Maserati ended production of the Ghibli, Quattroporte and Levante in recent months.
The brand has also been hit by dwindling demand for its most popular model – the Grecale SUV – which saw its European sales slump by 42% in the six months to the end of June.
Earlier this month, Car Dealer spoke to Stellantis’s UK boss Maria Grazia Davino, who admitted that changes needed to be made.
In a wide-ranging interview, the boss threatened to pull production from the UK if the automotive industry isn’t helped by the government.
You can watch the full chat on the Car Dealer YouTube channel.
