GM has made major reshuffling moves in its venerable Buick and Cadillac brands in surprising changes in leadership. One of the industry’s most highly regarded executives, Johan de Nysschen, has left Infiniti and VW/Audi to take command of Cadillac, replacing Robert Ferguson, now a GM lobbyist in Washington.
GM’s president, Dan Ammann, called de Nysschen the “perfect executive” to head Cadillac as a member of the luxury car market, including the high-rolling Audi, BMW and Mercedes brands and especially sales in China.
Buick, as GM’s senior brand in forming GM, has been confused over the years by a mixture of models-leading to image mix ups with the full size Lucerne, mid size LaCrosse and entry-level Encore, and more recently the carryover mid size Regal.
Buick loyalists exist, but only the Regal has kept its resale and CPO value on a par with Chevrolet, BMW or Jetta.
Moreover, while Cadillac is a big player in the China market, selling 50,000 cars there the past year, Buick has been bypassed in GM’s strongest global market.
To revitalize Buick, a concept Riviera sedan has been displayed at recent state fairs and auto shows in Asia.
“Better Buy Buick” was a brand slogan in the postwar market of the 1950’s. It lifted Buick to third place in sales!
