Culture|Garage
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The Detroit Free Press must have had some residual space sitting around that they needed to fill with very little intellectual content. In this brief snippet they (the Swedish government) suggest that Saab, “needs good model programs.” Oh really? That’s all it takes to be State Secretary of Industry Ministry for Sweden?
That’s what you brought to the table? Seriously. Anyone with an ounce of brand management intelligence knows that there are primarily two ways that you can differentiate your product/brand: 1) sell an innovate product that is better than the competition. OR 2) Sell your product for cheaper.
Currently, Saab is neither of those. What I want to know is what it will take to turn this once solid brand around. So it’s more than “good model programs.” I know the Saab blowhards are longing for the day the brand returns to Sweden for management, but I don’t think that is necessarily the pearly gates. There is much more work to it than that.
spotted on trollhattansaab.net
2 Responses to “Saab will survive, if it sells sexy models”
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January 14th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Well, the question really is — does Saab have problems because of GM’s mismanagement, or is it just Saab? The question is unanswerable because it is undeniably true that GM has mismanaged the brand horribly.
People forget that Audi was almost driven out the US market 20 years ago. Saab, at its worst, is selling more cars in the US than Audi did then. Now, is there some entity out there capable of bringing similar investment and long-term focus to Saab as Audi received before its renaissance?
Or is someone going to buy Saab in a burst of enthusiasm, only to realize three years later that proper management of a car company costs more than they are willing to invest?
Saab has always had a certain minimalist ethic to it, which cuts against the bling and technological excess which the premium car market demands these days.
That’s the dilemma. Saab as a brand has to pick a spot in the marketplace to survive.
January 14th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
@ Gregg Abbott. Spot on. I am waiting to see how it turns out. It’s a brand I would love to spend time working on. Challenger brands are difficult but can be fun. Here’s hoping something good happens to them.