KUALA LUMPUR: Stellantis is changing gears in its Asean strategy. Instead of farming out the distribution and sales of Peugeot, it wants to have a direct hand in handling the brand.
In line with the strategic change, Stellantis said today it will set up a National Sales Company (NSC) in Malaysia within the first quarter of 2024.
Bermaz Auto Alliance (BAA), a 55% owned subsidiary of Bermaz Auto Berhad (Bermaz Auto) and the current distributor for Peugeot in Malaysia, will in the meantime continue to work with Stellantis for vehicle sales and aftersales through its own network.
Gonzalez (left) and Morais.
The NSC will be the official Stellantis entity directing and managing the sale and distribution of the automaker’s vehicles and brands in Malaysia.
The change in business strategy is part of Stellantis' growth ambitions in the Asean region, in line with its electrification plans and the company’s global "Dare Forward 2030" strategy.
Stellantis chief operating officer for Asean & general distributors Daniel Gonzalez said the new business strategy would serve the Malaysian market with more products and services under the NSC structure.
"This includes the future introduction of new brands to Malaysia under the Stellantis portfolio.”
The Malaysia NSC will be led by Jamie Francis Morais, who is the current aftersales head for the Asean & general distributors operations for Stellantis.
Morais has 19 years of experience in the automotive industry, having worked for Toyota, BMW, Nissan and Proton. His leadership background spans across different operations including aftersales, network, customer service, quality, sales and training.
Gonzalez expressed his appreciation for Bermaz Auto, emphasising its role in building up the Peugeot brand in Malaysia in the last three years.
“Bermaz Auto is a valued partner and has built a solid foundation for the Peugeot brand in Malaysia since December 2020, which will greatly help our transition to the NSC structure.
Bermaz Auto executive chairman Tan Sri Ben Yeoh said his team is supportive of Stellantis’ global ambition.
“From the onset of our partnership, we adopted the role of being the custodian of the Peugeot brand in Malaysia, as we are passionate in building brands.
"Hence, we gladly accepted the challenge in 2020 and together with the Stellantis team, we worked diligently to further develop the brand in Malaysia. Today, we are proud to be able to steer it in the direction where Stellantis is ready to take it further."
Stellantis’ new direction and strategy for the Asean region includes its electrification ambitions, evaluating the potential of the Gurun plant in Kedah as a regional manufacturing hub to produce battery electric vehicles (BEVs) for both domestic and export markets in Asean, and driving consumer adoption of BEVs in the region.
The automaker is investing over RM2 billion to introduce the STLA Medium platform to the Asean region, and enable the local manufacture of cars from Stellantis’ multiple brands such as Jeep and Citroën.
The modular platform enables Stellantis to produce vehicles using various energy sources. In other words, the platform can be used to make internal combustion engine vehicles, mild hybrid vehicles and battery electric vehicles.
READ MORE: Daniel Gonzalez talks to CarSifu about Stellantis plans for Malaysia and Asean
