NISSAN GOES FOR GROWTH IN EUROPE
Innovative products, locally produced, help the company grow despite industry's downward trend
- Record market share in 2012 in a declining market
- Qashqai remains the most popular Nissan
- Nissan number one Asian brand in Spain
- More investment and new models planned for Europe's plants
- More than 10 million Nissans built in Europe since 1986
In achieving a record market share in Europe in 2012, Nissan's performance bucked the general downward trend in a market severely depressed by the global economic climate.
Nissan's share of the European market rose to 3.9 per cent despite an overall market slide of 6 per cent, which saw total sales fall to 17.6 million vehicles, its lowest figure since 1979.
The company's sales for the year totalled 665,756 vehicles with significant year-on-year growth in its two key markets, the UK and Russia, of 10 and 12 per cent respectively.
Nissan is now the best selling Asian brand in Spain, while no fewer than 22 European countries posted higher market shares in 2012. The firm's best selling model, accounting for one in three sales, was the Qashqai crossover.
Nissan's European manufacturing story is equally strong. Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK (NMUK) - the company's main European plant in Sunderland, England - produced more than 500,000 units in the year, the first time any UK car plant has achieved this milestone.
And at the end of January it had passed another milestone: since operations started at the plant in September 1986, more than 7 million units have been produced at the factory.
With a further 3.2 million vehicles having been produced at the company's plants in Spain and an additional 178,000 built at its newest factory, in St Petersburg, Russia, Nissan has now built almost 10.4 million cars, crossovers, SUVs and light commercials in Europe.
"Our success in a shrinking market is down to a number of factors, the most important of which is our continued investment in manufacturing in the region," said Paul Willcox, senior vice president, sales & marketing, Nissan Europe.
"With more than 80 per cent of sales in Europe being built in Europe, it is clear we are creating innovative products totally in tune with customers demands and expectations," he added.
Thanks to continued investment in Europe, that position is not about to change. In 2012, Nissan pledged more than €0.5 billion of investment in new models to be built in Spain, Russia and the UK.
The Geneva Show stand displays two of the latest models to be produced in Sunderland - Note and LEAF - while a recent announcement confirmed that a forthcoming passenger car will be built in Barcelona in Spain. This new car will boost annual production at the plant by 80,000 units.
At the same time, production of Nissan's 1-ton Pick-up at the plant has been increased by an additional 24,000 units annually while Barcelona will also be assembling the gearbox for the LEAF and e-NV200 electric vehicles. Together, the three announcements represent an investment of €130 million at Barcelona and will create more than 4,000 jobs for the factory and local suppliers.
Expansion in Russia is not restricted to demand-led growth at the St Petersburg facility, but also at Togliatti where a newly installed line - the result of a cooperation between between the Renault-Nissan Alliance and AVTOVAZ - is producing the new Nissan Almera for the Russian market.
Russia will also see the return of the Datsun brand over the next few years, while over at Infiniti, a new compact model created specifically for Europe is already in development and will be built at NMUK.
"Although we are a global brand and employ and enjoy the economies of scale that brings, we are also aware that different markets have different needs.
"By investing so much in local facilities we are able to offer our own unique models to European customers at the same time as benefiting from global platform and engineering development," said Willcox.
Sales success is also down to Nissan's ability to innovate and its willingness to challenge convention. Whether on the mountain roads of Switzerland, the congested streets of Europe's cities or even on the Le Mans racetrack, Nissan products are refreshingly different.
Nissan created the crossover segment with the Qashqai and in 2012 -some six years after its launch - sold more than a quarter of a million examples, bettering its 2011 sales achievement in the process.
That success looks like being repeated by Nissan Juke, the world's first compact crossover, which saw sales rise by 13 per cent in 2012.
Nissan is the global leader in the emerging electric vehicle segment, with the multi-award winning Nissan LEAF being by far and away the most successful electric car in the world.
Two years after its launch, an updated model will be built in Sunderland. With more than 100 minor changes - many inspired by customer feedback - Nissan LEAF is even more in tune with the needs of European drivers.
Much of the technology behind LEAF has been adopted for e-NV200, an electric version of Nissan's award winning light commercial vehicle and people carrier due for launch in 2014.
Nissan's commitment to the environment extends beyond the cars and vans, however. The company is actively working with governments, local authorities, energy companies and infrastructure providers to accelerate the provision of Quick Charging networks across Europe.
By ensuring EV drivers can ‘refuel' their vehicles as easily as drivers of conventional cars are able, the most frequently mentioned concern about owning an electric vehicle can be removed.
Nissan's commitment to innovation also extends to the new Note, which is built alongside Juke, Qashqai and LEAF at Sunderland and which goes on sale in Europe in October. Note embodies Nissan's determination to reduce accidents and by launching advanced technology on a mass-market small car, the company is redefining how manufacturers bring important safety concepts to market.
Excitement is an integral part of Nissan's innovative make-up, too - found in the powerful Nismo models, the first two of which - Juke Nismo and 370Z Nismo - have been launched in Europe.
"Innovation, excitement and a desire to provide something different are the bedrock on which Nissan's success is built. This success comes at a difficult time for the industry but reflects how Nissan can quickly adapt to changing trading conditions at the same time as appealing to new segments with our range of crossovers, EVs and advanced small cars like Note."
"Our ambition to be the best selling Asian brand in Europe remains stronger than ever. We are on track to achieve this thanks to the breadth of our expanding model range, through our growth in new and established markets, through local manufacturing and through our relentless drive to innovate," said Willcox.
