The Mercedes star to shine again

"We're back on track", says Joachim Schmidt, director of sales and marketing of Mercedes. In the first five months of the year, sales of the brand with the star rose by 15.8% (443,400 cars) thanks to the success of its S-Class sedans and E. Faster progress than his fellow BMW (+14.1%), which remains the leading high-end segment.

The fact that Audi volumes (+ 21.7%), third in 2009, have exceeded those of the Mercedes in January-May (since it had not Smart) does not seem to affect the group in Stuttgart. "We are not trying to make the race with Audi volumes. What is important is to have the best margins, "says Le Figaro Joachim Schmidt.

After a bad year when she accused an operating deficit of 500 million euros, the car division of Daimler posted a profit of 806 million euros in the first quarter.Representing an operating margin of 7%, which could still grow in the second quarter. Audi is better (5.8% margin) and the BMW automobile industry (2.7%) on the first three months of 2010. Over the year, Mercedes is an operating profit of 2.5 to 3 billion.

To continue to accelerate, Mercedes intends to grow its "greatest asset": the strength of its brand. The manufacturer is launching a global communications campaign, which begins in France in late June, around the slogan "best or nothing," referring to its ambitions in terms of quality, style or safety. Mercedes had no motto since 2005.

Renault cooperation

It's probably in China, Eldorado for luxury cars and the first outlet of the class E, the prestige of the brand is the highest. Mercedes sales have more than doubled since January."We should exceed 100,000 units this year. And in 2015 sales goal is 300,000, which would make this country, currently our third largest market, the first, "said Joachim Schmidt.

In Europe, the German, who, like his rivals, has received almost no premium for scrap in 2009, provides volumes "stable" this year in an overall market decline. It has expand its offerings of smaller cars by launching four new models of Class A and B by 2013. Half of the corresponding volumes will be manufactured in the factory being built in Hungary.

Only downside, sales of the little Smart ball group, continue to decline (- 17.8% through May). Mercedes is counting on cooperation with Renault to make it profitable through "economies of scale," the next generation of this model to be developed on the same platform as the Twingo.

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