Renault pulls out the big guns for Oz

Kicking goals abroad, the French brand has struggled in Australia -- but a new team has a number of fixes in store
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Renault has gone from strength to strength in global markets, but not here in Australia.

The storied French brand built and sold 2.625 million cars games  in 2010, making it the number two brand in Europe and number one brand in light commercial vehicles. Also pointing to the company heading down the right track, Renault has posted a profit of 3.49 billion Euro, which coincides with an overall reduction in warranty claims.

Unfortunately for Renault's local management, Australia remains a market that isn't carrying its share of the weight. At least company management in France is committed to the local market, unlike years gone by when that wasn't the case.

"They believe in the Australian market," said local MD of Renault Australia, Justin Hocevar. "They know the Australian market's very important."

According to Hocevar, Renault wants to see global growth of six per cent -- and Australia needs to contribute to that. There are signs of a changing attitude towards the Renault brand locally, but those signs need some nurturing from the importer.

Hocevar, speaking during the recent launch of the new Latitude model, was pleased with the "solid launch of the Megane range" and explained to the attending media that "our order intake is increasing and our enquiry levels are the strongest on record..."

While the company is coming from a low base, Hocevar highlighted rising sales -- 259 units for March, versus 160 for March 2010 -- as one of the portents for an improving outlook.

"We know the brand carries forward some stigma from the past; we don't think that's justified anymore," he said during a Q&A session after the main presentation. Hocevar described the importer's situation as "ahead of our [sales volume] plan" and "on track" for profitability. Part of the problem for the company in the past stemmed from inappropriate pricing of the company's product range.

"Most of the product portfolio has been 'de-positioned' by about 20 per cent," Hocevar mentioned, on that point.

The Renault MD also that "about 40 per cent" of management in Renault's Dandenong HQ were new to the brand over the past 12 months. With new staff come fresh ideas and Hocevar outlined some of the company's new tactics, designed to help the company achieve a 3000-unit sales projection for 2010.

Among them was the upgrade of the passenger vehicle warranty to five years or unlimited kilometres, with roadside assistance for the duration of the warranty period. Renault is backdating the extended coverage for vehicles purchased since April 1, inclusive.

Then there was the establishment of Renault Financial Services to provide in-house finance for Renault buyers at the dealership. The new financial arm is underwritten by Nissan Financial Services.

Renault has a gap in its dealer network, in NSW and south-east Queensland -- and that's one stumbling block along the way to sales success for the brand. These two regions are currently "a major challenge for us", as Hocevar admitted. "That's an area we're investing heavily in..."

So Renault is tackling the concrete issues head on.

And the introduction of the new Latitude has to be a step in the right direction too, presumably. Given the slow sales of the Laguna the Latitude replaces, does it really matter to buyers anymore that the large sedan wearing the 'Lozenge' badge is actually built in South Korea from Japanese components?

One way of looking at the Latitude is as "a safe step into European [marques]", as Renault Marketing Director Chris Brown put it.

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