Incoming SEAT chairman Jurgen Stackmann (pictured) has arguably landed at the Spanish VW Group division at the right time. The company is going through an extensive revision of the core of the range and, importantly for IFW readers, sharpening up its fleet act.

It may be a European-based company, but there is a realisation that just as Volkswagen and Audi have developed internationally, SEAT needs a wider market than Europe. SEAT has taken its first steps into the American market and Mr Stackmann says that feedback from the first customer group of journalists and experts has been very positive.

‘The cars have given the brand a lot of profile and a lot of credibility,’ he says.

In Europe, SEAT grew 9.4% in the January to August period in a market that was down 6%.

‘We’re growing even faster outside Europe,’ said Mr Stackmann. ‘The global volume is up 11.4% driven by overseas increases, mainly around the Mediterranean region. We have a fantastic momentum in Algeria.It’s one of the markets that you probably only hear of from the French manufacturers, but it’s now our seventh biggest market globally and it’s followed by Turkey and Israel. So we already have three stand posts around the Mediterranean area, which is becoming an area of focus and strength for the SEAT brand.’

SEAT has been present in the Mexican market since the early 2000s. There are no plans to expand north into the US; American business will be centred on Mexico and possibly further south. Mr Stackmann says that the company continues to grow in Mexico, based around Ibiza sales: ‘It’s basically a brand built on Ibiza and we are focussing our energy in that region now on Leon as well, to create a second pillar for the brand.

‘That actually describes well what our strategy is for this year and the next two years,’ he continues. ‘We want to create a second strong business pillar for SEAT, called Leon. We are currently heavily relying on Ibiza and Europe and we want to build a better balance for the brand, with Leon, Ibiza and Europe. Europe will remain the main focus of our attention.

'So the work this year has been Leon five-door and SC, with good success and the next big door-opener for us is our Sports Tourer.

‘It is especially opening the fleet market for the first time. Many fleet customers do not really consider SEAT as a partner for them. There are obviously some Ibiza sales, but many fleets look for more functional cars and we can offer that now, in a great shape. We think this car will open the door to many fleet customers in North-Western Europe. The big fleet markets are UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Sweden. So this is the current emphasis of our work.

‘We will have two more years of innovation around Leon. Obviously as a next step we are looking into the next generation Cupra. It will be the pinnacle of the performance wing of the Seat brand. The core of the brand is perfectly described by the Leon five-door FR, which we think is the perfect expression of what SEAT is and what SEAT will be.

'Basically it’s a car you can own for 10 years and feel great about it and the design should help to rejuvenate the driver, make them feel younger.

‘We want to take that concept in any further vehicle development, so don’t go to the extremes, don’t compromise functionality because anything that should suggest we are niche or small or radical will not lead to further growth of the brand, we’re really convinced of that. Many people, probably because they are used to it, have expected a signal of radical change, of revolution and new direction and the big surprise is that’s definitely not coming from me. I see myself in the role of focussing on implementation and continuity and direction. Great brands need continuity and they need continuity with the same idea executed well enough over long enough time periods. So news from SEAT should not be expected from directions of strategy. It should be expected from good implementation and a focus on that.’

As Mr Stackmann has said, the brand is reliant on Europe and the European market is still quite weak, despite signs of stabilisation across the region. How much will Leon need to grow for the company? ‘In many countries, we’re very small. There is so much to be gained, rather than much to be lost,’ he says. ‘In many countries we are not relevant to consumers because they think of us as being only Ibiza, or too sporty, or for their sons. Many customers don’t think about us being one of the relevant main stream challengers to any car they may consider. So I do think there is a lot of ground to be recovered.

‘I think the strategy is to have an equal volume for Ibiza and Leon, at whatever maximum volume we can get up to. In the current European environment, depending on the statistics, being at a 25-30 year low, obviously this will be quite a challenge. I think that we are all optimistic enough to say that one day Europe will recover to whatever strength. Our position is still to make sure that our starting position for that moment of recovery is the best possible, which is about share. We need to get our share up in what we call the A-segment. That’s the biggest challenge.’

If Mr Stackmann has targets for this market share, he wasn’t going to share them with us. ‘The easiest target to remember is if you have an equal volume weight of Ibiza family and Leon family you have a much better business.’