Citroen Begins Its India Story

L-R: Linda Jackson, Roland Bouchara, Emmanuel Delay, and Carlos Tavares

Groupe PSA has announced the launch of the Citroen brand in India. During the presentation of FY2018 financial results of Groupe PSA and the second phase of its strategic plan Push to Pass for the period 2019-2021, Citroen brand was announced for the Indian market.

Carlos Tavares, Chairman of the Managing Board, Groupe PSA, Linda Jackson, Chief Executive Officer, Citroen Brand, Groupe PSA and Emmanuel Delay, Executive Vice President & Head of India-Pacific, Groupe PSA, Roland Bouchara, Senior Vice President Sales & Marketing, Citroen India, were present at the event.

The flagship vehicle, Citroen C5 Aircross SUV, was also showcased at the event, which will be the first product from the Citroen brand for the Indian customers, being launched before the end of 2020. It was also announced that Citroen plans to bring in a range of products after the Citroen C5 Aircross SUV that will be made and launched in India before being introduced in other parts of the world. With one new launch every year from 2021 after the New Citroen C5 Aircross SUV the new range of products will be launched in India before the rest of the world.

This new programme to be launched in India will come under the name of C Cubed, standing for Cool, Comfort and Clever. Cool to illustrate Citroen’s unique and bold designs, Comfort to highlight our approach of a global well-being to make all Citroen easy to use working on ergonomics and connectivity and Clever to be at the heart of the market, developing international highly localised cars to meet customer expectations. This would be backed by launch of a disruptive and seamless digital customer experience and a phygital distribution network.

Present at the brand launch, Carlos Tavares, Chairman of the Managing Board, Groupe PSA, said, “India is an important next step for Groupe PSA, as part of the Push to Pass plan to increase our international footprint and revenues. With the introduction of Citroën, our aim is to ‘be Indian in India’ and our association with the CK Birla Group, will be important to become a major player in the Indian automotive market. Globally, we have been successful in Europe and in other parts of the world because of our unique automotive experiences and delivering mobility solutions to meet our customer expectations. We really believe that India is a strong opportunity for growth and our commitment, professionalism and agility of our teams, combined with the pursuit of operational excellence, will sustainably drive our performance and increase the satisfaction of our future customers in the country.”

Speaking about the brand, Linda Jackson, Chief Executive Officer, Citroen Brand, Groupe PSA, said, “We are celebrating Citroen’s Centenary, 100 years of a brand which has constantly looked to the future of the automotive industry, by offering innovative solutions in line with the needs of each era. Globally, Citron’s success is based on unique design, and benchmark comfort. The India automotive market is very dynamic with a high potential. We believe we have the right positioning to meet the expectations of the Indian customers. I am confident that the new Citroen C5 Aircross SUV will set a benchmark in style, comfort and innovation in its segment in India.”

Sharing his thoughts on the brand and region, Emmanuel Delay, Executive Vice President & Head of India-Pacific, Groupe PSA, said, “New technologies, modern production techniques and innovative designs have played a crucial role in developing the brand for which Citroën is known. As a new player in the Indian automotive market, we will stick to remaining committed to our philosophy of constantly looking to the future and setting high standards of innovation while continuing to build on the brand attributes. Our India story will play a crucial role in making the Citroën brand more international. We are on track to meet our objective of introducing our innovative range, starting from the new Citroën C5 Aircross SUV, which will be the first of many differentiating products from the brand from our vehicle manufacturing JV between the PSA Groupe & the CK Birla Group located at Tiruvallur, Tamil Nadu. Production of Powertrains from our PSA – AVTEC Powertrain JV at Hosur, Tamil Nadu is also on track and will support our local and global requirements.”

Sharing his views on building the brand in India, Roland Bouchara, Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Citroën India, said, “Citroen brand in India is here and here to make a difference. India is important to Citroen and this is evident as we plan to bring in a new range of products, after the new Citroen C5 Aircross SUV that will be made and launched in India first before being rolled out globally.”

He also added, “India is a unique market and Indians are adopting new technologies at a very rapid pace. To support our range of unique new products and our in-depth study of the Indian market, we have planned for a unique customer experience, which will enable us to be the new digital reference for a seamless customer experience in the Indian automotive market. We are planning to introduce a unique digitally disruptive, omni-channel customer journey to deliver ATAWADAC ((AnyTime AnyWhere AnyDevice AnyContent) experience to customers. Our Network focus will be to develop lean & phygital (physical + digital) formats with a ‘brick to click’ orientation. This seamless experience will be brought alive by personalized digital sales and service processes for our customers.” He also announced, “We are pleased to go live with our India website http://www.citroen.in which marks the beginning of our partnership with potential dealers in India leading to the Citroen Dealer Partner Live Tour in India from 1st of July, 2019.”