I WENT to change some Pounds into Euros this week and had a shock. Even from a Bureau de Change, I was offered a rate of €1.20 to the pound. Not so long ago it was almost one for one.
The reason I’ll be able to afford an extra Toblerone in the duty free can be seen in every newspaper. The South of Europe’s economy is in trouble. Some of the more alarmist media are reporting imminent economic Armageddon in Greece, Spain and Italy.
I have many colleagues who work in these countries and I truly feel for them. But their cloud could be our silver lining; and I don’t just mean when we buy that holiday cerveza.
The UK economy is comparatively stable and the strength of our Nissan’s offering means that we are maintaining a healthy retail order take. In fact it’s our best ever, despite the economic turmoil going on outside the showroom doors.
This hasn’t gone unnoticed at Nissan’s global headquarters and after some lobbying, they’ve agreed to let us have the production which was originally earmarked for Southern Europe.
It’ll mean we have more cars coming our way throughout the year, including the Qashqais and Jukes I know you want. With lower waiting times you’ll be able to close more deals and stop customers straying to other franchises.
So my message is to fill your boots and keep the orders coming. The Greek cloud has a silver lining for us.