Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Automobilwoche
  • Automotive News Canada
  • Automotive News Mexico
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Login
  • HOME
  • News
    • Photos
    • Automakers
    • Suppliers
    • Sales By Market
    • Environment/Emissions
    • Latest Launches
    • Sales and Retail
    • Car Cutaways
    • On The Move
    • Citroen says Ami One two-seater is a new concept for affordable mobility
      EU, Japan back automatic braking regulation
      German auto jobs at risk from hard Brexit
      Aston Martin to preview SUV for revived Lagonda nameplate at Geneva show
    • Faurecia hopes to outperform uncertain market
      Plastic Omnium posts strong results despite global production slump
      Sweden's Veoneer forecasts flat sales in 2019
      Ionity boss has plan for stations across Europe; he just needs an EV boom
    • Porsche, Alfa Romeo and Nissan take big hits as European sales fall 5% in January
      Russia sales rise nearly 1% in January despite VAT increase
      Audi, Fiat, BMW among losers as Spanish sales fall 8% in January
      Volvo, VW gain sales in UK market down nearly 2% in January as diesel plunge continues
    • Volvo blurs the wagon/SUV line with the V60 Cross Country
      view gallery
      7 photos
      New Range Rover Evoque designed for the 'urban jungle'
      Range Rover Evoque gets hybrid tech to cut emissions
      Tarraco gives Seat a flagship SUV to help retain wealthy buyers
    • Ferrari will unveil V-8 hybrid supercar this year
      Mercedes outsold Audi in China last month on sedan demand
      Tesla's Musk visits Norway to review delivery delays
      Europe's minicar segment to shrink as VW, PSA mull axing their smallest cars
    • Suppliers to the new Porsche Panamera
      Suppliers to the new Peugeot 5008
      Suppliers to the new Seat Ibiza
      Suppliers to the new VW Touareg
    • Daimler appoints Airbus exec as finance chief
      VW China CEO to join VW brand's management board
      Mini USA names marketing veteran McKenna head of product planning
      Dyson hires former Infiniti chief to head its electric-car business
    • Geneva Photo Gallery
    • Beijing Photo Gallery
    • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
    • Paris Photo Gallery
    • Shanghai Photo Gallery
  • Auto Shows
    • Geneva Auto Show
    • Frankfurt Auto Show
    • Paris Auto Show
    • Beijing Auto Show
    • Shanghai Auto Show
    • Citroen says Ami One two-seater is a new concept for affordable mobility
      China EV startup Aiways will launch SUV in Europe
      Bentley revs up Bentayga with Speed variant
      Skoda will debut first EV at Geneva show
    • Bugatti considers four-door model for 2024
      Frankfurt photo booth
      Frankfurt's best and wurst
      Merkel says German car industry must work to rebuild trust
    • Vietnam's first automaker now has names for first sedan, SUV
      Bugatti mulls SUV as part of broader model range
      Ferrari Monza supercars will earn $755 million in revenue
      China's GAC likely to debut in Europe with an EV
    • VW will launch SOL EV brand in China with subcompact crossover
      view gallery
      9 photos
      BMW's iX3 concept heralds electric expansion
      view gallery
      9 photos
      BMW will export iX3 electric SUV to Europe, U.S. from China
      view gallery
      15 photos
      Mercedes-Maybach is betting on a hybrid SUV-sedan look
    • view gallery
      7 photos
      Jeep finds green groove with plug-in hybrid SUV concept
      Ferrari, Aston Martin, Maserati sales soar in China as rich snub austerity push
      China's luxury market to grow to 3M a year, Audi, Mercedes predict
      view gallery
      10 photos
      Mercedes hints at new styling with sedan concept
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Luca Ciferri
    • Douglas A. Bolduc
    • Paul McVeigh
    • Ford's 'redesign' for Europe emphasizes SUVs, LCVs
      Russia's Google, Yandex, impresses with its self-driving tech
      Renault Twizy gets new life in Korea as motorcycle replacement
      Why the car is no longer the ticket to freedom
    • Ford's 'redesign' for Europe emphasizes SUVs, LCVs
      Russia's Google, Yandex, impresses with its self-driving tech
      Renault Twizy gets new life in Korea as motorcycle replacement
      Why the car is no longer the ticket to freedom
    • Ford's 'redesign' for Europe emphasizes SUVs, LCVs
      Russia's Google, Yandex, impresses with its self-driving tech
      Renault Twizy gets new life in Korea as motorcycle replacement
      Why the car is no longer the ticket to freedom
    • Ford's 'redesign' for Europe emphasizes SUVs, LCVs
      Russia's Google, Yandex, impresses with its self-driving tech
      Renault Twizy gets new life in Korea as motorcycle replacement
      Why the car is no longer the ticket to freedom
  • Maps
    • E-Car & Component Map of Europe
    • Powertrain Map of Europe
    • Assembly Plant Map of Europe
  • Supplements
    • Connected Car
    • Talk From The Top
    • BMW 100
    • Car Cutaways
  • EVENTS & AWARDS
    • Automotive News Europe Congress
    • Rising Stars
    • Eurostars
    • Leading Women
  • E-MAGAZINE
    • Read the latest issue
    • Download the app
    • Subscribe
  • More
    • E-Magazine
    • Contact Us
    • 2019 Media Kit
    • About Us
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Automotive News Europe
September 12, 2011 01:00 AM

Tata Motors forced to search for CEO as Jaguar sales plunge

Siddharth Philip
Steven Rothwell
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    LONDON (Bloomberg) -- Tata Motors Ltd., three years after buying the Jaguar and Land Rover brands from Ford Motor Co., is being forced to search for a new CEO as it struggles to revive sales of luxury cars amid a worsening debt crisis in Europe.

    Carl-Peter Forster, 57, who helped the Jaguar Land Rover unit turn to profit in the year ended March 31, quit on Sept. 9 after less than two years as the global head of India's biggest automaker citing "unavoidable personal circumstances."

    Forster's replacement will face the challenge of reversing six straight months of declining sales at Jaguar as economies in Europe stall. Tata Motors, which last year got 35 percent of its revenue from the U.S. and Europe, needs to find a head for the company soon to avoid derailing a plan to invest $2.4 billion annually in new models and expanding into China, according to Deepesh Rathore, managing director for IHS Automotive.

    "They are going to be left wondering who is going to replace him," said Andrew Jackson, an analyst at research firm Datamonitor in London. "This is a big blow really for Jaguar Land Rover. He signed off on a very bold change in direction for the company."

    Tata Motors' shares have dropped 44 percent this year, making it the worst performing stock in the BSE India Sensitive Index.

    Credit to management

    "The credit for the turnaround of Jaguar Land Rover goes to the management team and workforce of the company," Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Motors, said in an e-mailed statement today. "No single person can or should take credit for the improvement in the company's operations."

    Prakash Telang, managing director of the company's Indian operations, and Ralf Speth, CEO of Jaguar Land Rover, will represent their respective units on Tata Motors' board, according to an e-mailed statement on Sept. 9.

    Forster presided over a 20-fold jump in Jaguar Land Rover's profit before tax in the year ended March 31. He also led Tata Motors plan to tap China, Asia's largest economy.

    China is the No. 1 growth market for Jaguar Land Rover, Forster said in a Bloomberg TV interview in May. Tata Motors is looking for a local partner in China to set up assembly operations in the country, and the company has shortlisted manufacturers, Forster said in a separate interview the same month, without naming any of the potential partners.

    'Difficult to replace'

    Forster helped by "pulling Jaguar and Land Rover out of the mud and making them profitable," said Peter Schmidt, managing director of Warwick, England-based Automotive Industry Data. "It will be very, very difficult to replace him in the short term, and possibly in the long term."

    The Jaguar Land Rover unit, based in Gaydon, England, generated 57 percent of Tata Motors' revenue for the year ended March 31, up from 53 percent a year earlier.

    The division's pretax profit surged 20-fold to 1.12 billion pounds for the fiscal year. Jaguar aims to challenge BMW AG with a hybrid supercar and an entry-level sedan to compete with the 3-Series.

    The new models are part of Tata's plans to invest 1.5 billion pounds ($2.4 billion) annually in product development at Jaguar and Land Rover over the next five years. The spending will include 40 new vehicles or upgrades, including the Range Rover Evoque, for which the company has begun deliveries.

    Concept cars

    Jaguar will unveil its C-X16 concept car at the Frankfurt Motor Show tomorrow, according to the company's Web site. The 186 miles (299 kilometers) per hour two-seater sports car is the company's smallest car in more than fifty years. Land Rover also intends to introduce a new Defender model in 2015 and will show the Land Rover DC100, its concept for a potential successor.

    Europe's debt crisis drove a 23 percent decline in Jaguar sales to 4,372 in July, according to a company statement. Almost 25 percent of Jaguar and Land Rover sales come from the U.K., where the economy grew at the slowest pace in the second quarter since it contracted in the first three months of 2010. North America and Europe account for about 22 percent each of sales, according to a company presentation.

    Forster, who was hired in February 2010, will remain as a non-executive member on the company's board, Mumbai-based Tata Motors said in the statement. The company recruited Forster from General Motors Co. where he was head of European operations.

    Nano sales

    Passenger-vehicle sales at Tata Motors slumped 33 percent in August from a year earlier after India's central bank raised its benchmark interest rate to 8 percent in July, the highest among Asia's biggest economies.

    Deliveries of the Nano, the world's cheapest car, plunged 85 percent to 1,202 units in August, Tata Motors said in a statement on Sept. 1. The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers said last week it may cut the industry's sales forecast after economic growth slowed to the lowest in six quarters in the three months ended June.

    "I would expect Forster's position to be filled up in the next two to three months if the company wants to keep their plans on track," said Rathore.

    Tata Motors bought Jaguar Land Rover from Ford in 2008 for $2.5 billion.

    Monthly E-Magazine
    Thumbnail
    View latest issue
    See our archive
    Sign up for free newsletters
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up and get the best of Automotive News Europe delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Automotive News Europe Monthly E-Magazine

    Sign up to receive your free link to each monthly issue of Automotive News Europe as soon as it's published.

    GET THE E-MAGAZINE
    Connect with Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram

    Founded in 1996, Automotive News Europe is the preferred information source for decision-makers and opinion leaders operating in Europe.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI  48207-2997
    Tel: +1 877-812-1584


    Email Us

    Resources
    • About us
    • Contact Us
    • 2019 Media Kit
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Awards
    • Rising Stars
    • Eurostars
    • Leading Women
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    Copyright © 1996-2019. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HOME
    • News
      • Photos
        • Geneva Photo Gallery
        • Beijing Photo Gallery
        • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
        • Paris Photo Gallery
        • Shanghai Photo Gallery
      • Automakers
      • Suppliers
      • Sales By Market
      • Environment/Emissions
      • Latest Launches
      • Sales and Retail
      • Car Cutaways
      • On The Move
    • Auto Shows
      • Geneva Auto Show
      • Frankfurt Auto Show
      • Paris Auto Show
      • Beijing Auto Show
      • Shanghai Auto Show
    • Opinion
      • Blogs
      • Luca Ciferri
      • Douglas A. Bolduc
      • Paul McVeigh
    • Maps
      • E-Car & Component Map of Europe
      • Powertrain Map of Europe
      • Assembly Plant Map of Europe
    • Supplements
      • Connected Car
      • Talk From The Top
      • BMW 100
      • Car Cutaways
    • EVENTS & AWARDS
      • Automotive News Europe Congress
      • Rising Stars
      • Eurostars
      • Leading Women
    • E-MAGAZINE
      • Read the latest issue
      • Download the app
      • Subscribe
    • More
      • E-Magazine
      • Contact Us
      • 2019 Media Kit
      • About Us