Renault Trucks to boost share of shrinking market

Renault Trucks is aiming to increase its market share by 1% despite predicting a tough year overall for heavy commercials, with the market declining by a third in 2009. Commercial director Nigel Butler is determined for Renault to grow its market share by 1% to 6.2% in the six-tonne-plus sector in the face of challenging market conditions.

"If you go from a market of 48,000 [above six tonnes] to 33,000, you still have the same overheads which you have to absorb over much lower volumes," he says.

The issue is compounded by a pool of excess vehicles left over from 2008. Butler feels Renault Trucks is in a better position than most regarding excess vehicles as it went to significant lengths to control the order book from its dealer network as far back as 2007 in an effort to manage wayward lead times.

The credit crunch has replaced lead times as the main concern for manufacturers, and, as last year drew to a close, sales dropped as customers lost confidence in spending. Shifting last year's stock means providing strong marketing initiatives.

"It's impossible to discount the vehicle," argues Butler. "Think of the exchange rate movements last year - the pound weakened and the exchange rate with the euro dropped from €1.45 to €1.03 before recovering to €1.13 - that's a 23% increase in costs.

"We've got the dealer network switched on to selling from stock. By April it will be  down to normal levels, but that comes back down to the customer's confidence."

With banks pulling out of asset management, Butler has been working closely with Renault Trucks Financial Services to provide packages to ease the operator's cash-flow burden.

"It's solving a temporary issue," he says. Once the stock pool approaches normal levels once more, "it will be a return to more normal marketing conditions – which will be a challenge for operators to get their minds around."


Source : transportnews