According to DS Automobiles’ UK managing director Alain Descat, the French premium brand will look to solidify its market position before launching any new models, and it all starts with raising brand awareness.
DS has registered just 1,146 cars in the UK this year, which is less than 10% of what Citroen achieved, and around 2% of Mercedes’ numbers. In France however, DS’s market share has grown to more than 10%, reports Autocar.
“We’re at 0.14% market share [for the UK], which makes us a small challenger. We know it will take time, maybe 20-30 years, to be up with the premium brands. The UK is one of the most competitive markets in Europe for premium cars,” said Descat.
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“We need to lower the threshold for customers to discover who we are. We need to explain where we’re from and the uniqueness of our proposition and explain our product,” he added.
On a more positive note, DS recently became Europe’s first premium carmaker to already meet stringent CO2 targets for 2021. The carmaker is currently selling the DS 3 Crossback and DS 7 Crossback with Euro 6 ICE units and plug-in hybrid options, but also a fully electric DS 3 Crossback E-Tense. Meanwhile, the upcoming DS 9 saloon, a future BMW 5-Series / Audi A6 rival, will also be available as a plug-in hybrid.
Descat described the DS 9 as “not a volume car but important in proving our integrity.”
DS plans on only offering electrified powertrains by the year 2025, in a bid to further reduce CO2 emissions.
