IT’S been another spectacular year for Nissan in the UK and I’d like to begin by expressing my thanks to you all for a job well done.
While 2014 saw an avalanche of exciting new model launches and gave us our freshest and most competitive ever product range, 2015 was all about consolidation and making the most of our opportunities.
The whole network rose to this challenge magnificently and the result, yet again, was increased volumes, rising market share and further strides towards our medium-term objective of establishing ourselves as the number one Asian brand.
And while terrific things were happening at dealer level, great progress was also being made here at NMGB, improving our communications with our retail partners and, importantly, boosting network profitability.
All-in-all then, it was another outstanding 12 months for the brand, leaving us in an even stronger position than we had hoped and forecast.
Let’s just take a minute to look at some of the numbers.
During the calendar year, we sold in excess of 75,000 vehicles, giving us a retail market share of 5.93%. It was a similar story in fleet, where we achieved close to 73,000 sales,while in aftersales performance and used car sales we made big gains too.
Impressively, Qashqai sales continued to grow despite the emergence of new competitors and the model finished the year with 33,000 sales and as the nation’s 5th most popular car.
We also, let’s not forget, unveiled the brilliant all-new NP300 Navara and the 30kWh LEAF with extended range in the last quarter. Both of these vehicles will strengthen the Nissan proposition even more as we move into 2016.
The NP300 Navara – already named International Pick-up of the Year – will put us right back to the top of this important but competitive market segment with a best-in-class product.
And the new LEAF, with its extended range of 155 miles, will give the model further impetus and ensure Nissan retains its pure EV market leadership.
As ever, the year ahead will bring with it a fresh set of challenges but we are well equipped to meet them head on and I am confident we’ll get off to a flying start with the launch of NP300 Navara and will have another barnstorming year.
May I take this opportunity to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Let’s take this time to savour our collective successes with our families and loved ones and come back in 2016 with a renewed enthusiasm to take Nissan to the next level.