Stellantis’ U.S. dealership network executives have expressed concern about the rapid decline of the company’s brands, criticizing CEO Carlos Tavares for decisions deemed short-term. They have also called for increased spending to clear obsolete inventory from their lots. The national dealer council emphasized that recent strategies, aimed at increasing profits and CEO compensation, have instead resulted in a decrease in market share and damage to the Group’s American brands such as Jeep, Ram, Dodge, and Chrysler.
The Stellantis U.S. national dealer council accuses CEO Carlos Tavares
Carlos Tavares has cut jobs and reduced capacity in American factories since a sales slump in the United States nearly halved first-half profits. Stellantis has taken steps to reduce vehicle inventories, including cutting prices and reinstating incentives. But these measures have not been sufficient as the company seeks to protect its valuable profit margins, according to dealers.
“For over two years, the Stellantis U.S. National Dealer Council has been sounding this alarm to your U.S. executive team, warning them that the path you had set Stellantis on would be a long-term disaster,” reads the letter. “A disaster not just for us, but for all stakeholders, and now that disaster has arrived.”
Stellantis said in a statement that dialogue and problem-solving with dealers fall within regular monthly meetings, not in letters containing “public personal attacks” against its CEO Carlos Tavares. “We take absolute exception to the letter sent by Stellantis National Dealer Council (NDC) Chairman Kevin Farrish,” Stellantis said in the statement, sent by spokesperson Shawn Morgan. “Last month we introduced an action plan developed with the dealer body that has already shown results. August sales increased 21% compared to July, market share increased by 0.7 points, and dealer inventory has been reduced for two consecutive months by 42,000 units, or about 10 percent in total.”
Stellantis added that it has “begun a journey that will prove successful and we will continue to work with our dealers to avoid any public dispute that may delay our ability to deliver results.”