SEAT, the Spanish car brand in Ireland is set to undergo a radical overhaul of its operations and customer offering as the Company prepares to grow its market share to 3.5% by 2017.   

Armed with a €20m investment by its parent company SEAT SA, and led by a new management team in Ireland which is spearheaded by Adam Chamberlain former Head of Sales and Marketing of Volkswagen Ireland, SEAT Ireland looks set to finally step from the shadows of its bigger sibling brands within Volkswagen Group.

Following a significant review of its model range, SEAT Ireland has over the last six months withdrawn approximately 45% of its previous portfolio as it's seeks to refine its customer offering. This coupled with a series of new model launches between now and the end of 2012 including the Ibiza, Mii, Toledo and Leon will it is anticipated result in almost 90% of sales for SEAT Ireland in 2013 originating from these new models.

Key to the success of this new model range for SEAT Ireland is the introduction of a new competitive price structure. Representing an investment of approximately €4m this new pricing structure came into effect from August 1st and will be a welcome boost to SEAT Ireland's 18 dealerships around Ireland. This will result in an increased value offer for motorists of between 5% & 15% on many SEAT models through price reductions and increased specification. New SEAT customers will also benefit from 3 years warranty and roadside assistance as standard from August.    

In addition SEAT Ireland has via Volkswagen Bank access to a range of compelling finance offers based on extremely competitive interest rates enabling prospective customers complete new car purchases. To-date in 2012, SEAT customers have already accessed €3,000,000 in finance packages and with a number of new packages set to be unveiled for 2013 this figure looks set to more than double by year end. 

As part of its planning to grow its market share, SEAT Ireland is undergoing an ambitious dealership recruitment process as it intends to grow its network from 18 to 28 by 2015. Central to this process is a focus on increasing its penetration within urban areas. This expansion is already well underway with SEAT Ireland expected to announce the recruitment of four new dealerships in Limerick, Galway, Westmeath and Dublin in the coming weeks.   

Commenting SEAT Ireland Brand Director Adam Chamberlain said, "This is an exciting time for SEAT Ireland, historically the brand has always remained somewhat below the radar but now thanks to this ambitious development programme and a fantastic new range of cars, I believe that Irish motorists are going to become a lot more interested in what SEAT has to offer.  

Chamberlain continued, "Our new pricing structure and finance offer will go a long way in appealing to motorists however once customers focus on our cars they will see the real difference SEAT has to offer is the high quality of spec we provide as standard on our core models including; alloys, fog lamps, Bluetooth and multimedia connectivity. Everyone at SEAT Ireland is really looking forward to the next six months as our new model range is unveiled in particular the new Leon and Toledo which will see the Company enter a brand new market segment. Supported by SEAT SA and the Volkswagen Group we are confident the next five years will see the establishment of a more dynamic, competitive and attractive SEAT brand in Ireland."