Audi of America: One on one with Johan de Nysschen

AIADA, the American International Automobile Dealers Association, has a great interview with Audi of America’s new boss Johan de Nysschen.
For all of you who want to know where Audi is heading in the US, this is a must read!

MB: Success in the car business always begins with the product, doesn’t it?

JdN: Yes. And product is our passion. With that great product offensive we saw our sales come back, it enabled our dealers to have the confidence to invest in the Audi brand again. They invested significant funds in improving dealer facilities, training people, and benefited from market development conditions. We had a bit of wind at our back -- had rapid growth in sales volume and in perceptions of the brand. And today, thankfully, we are at that stage where we have a well established customer base, ever increasing customer loyalty, a dealer network that is able to present to customers the true DNA of Audi.

MB: What has been the input of Audi AG in the American branch?

JdN: Audi’s current chairman, Dr. Martin Winterkorn, has a fanatical commitment to product quality and reliability. He has brought another important change to Audi. In a market environment such as the US, where Consumer Reports and the J D Powers Surveys play an important role in the buying decision, I believe we are well poised to capitalize on incremental gains the engineers have put into the latest generation of product. (MB note: Audi was ranked 8th in the latest J. D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Study in the United States, up 3 places from its 11th rank in 2004 but behind rivals 3rd ranked BMW and 5th Mercedes-Benz.)