Quote:
Originally Posted by Hatterasguy
Since when do you compare the sales volume of high end niche companies to, companies that mass produce?
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As far as I know, MBUSA is a "high end, niche company" because that MB's USA marketing strategy. They EPA and DOT certify, and import, mostly the high end of their product line, and keep their prices up by having lower volume. Worldwide, MB has a lot more "bread-and-butter" offerings we don't see here.
Anyhow, can we agree that MBUSA is smaller than Ford's Lincoln-Mercury Division? This could help explain how Ford may have more problems, since they face more competition from "Japanese" brands in a larger market. Of course, MB, selling their cars through MBUSA as a US niche specialty, has to worry about Lexus and Infiniti, but nobody has speculated that MB will be going out of business soon. That might be a topic for another thread.
Perhaps an explanation of the problem is that GM, Chrysler and Ford are really, really big companies that sell most of their product here in the USA! They have been manufacturing and selling in this market longer, so they have a workforce history that goes back generations. They are not in position to turn around over night, and they won't just fold up their tents and disappear.
So, back On Topic.
Can Detroit Stop Its Slide in 2008? I guess we'll have to watch the financial pages to find out for sure, won't we.
01-05-2008, 04:45 PM
Hybrid Mode
