Volvo counts on new models to shift into higher gear - Charleston Post Courier
“Our new car business has been a little soft without new models,” said Tom Ditzig, general manager of Rick Hendrick Imports and Volvo Cars of Charleston. It’s just the inventory has some age on it. Customers have seen our cars for a little while is probably the best way to put it. ”. Lex Kerssemakers, president and CEO of Volvo Cars North America, hopes to change that. Kerssemakers said he realizes Volvo’s brand has become stale, with some product designs a decade or more old. So, one of his first moves after taking over the top job in January was to announce a bold plan calling for 14 new Volvo designs to be rolled out over the next five years. That includes new cars to be built at Volvo’s first North American manufacturing facility, which will start construction in Berkeley County later this year. With new products,” Kerssemakers said after a May 28 ceremony at Charles Towne Landing to announce the new factory. “You can advertise what you want, you can do what you want, but if you don’t have the products supporting that journey, it won’t work. New entries It’s an ambitious undertaking, but something Volvo absolutely must do to survive in the U. S. , said journalist Robert Sorokanich, who covers the automobile industry for CarAndDriver. “Volvo has been making cars in the luxury price range, but they don’t carry the same prestige as a Mercedes-Benz or a BMW,” Sorokanich said. Source: www.postandcourier.com
