The CEO of Porsche, Oliver Blume, he is convinced that Covid has not been a total disgrace for the company he directs. Certainly the pandemic was tragic for many people, and even within Porsche, changes could not be avoided to allow people to heal, isolate themselves and protect themselves from the virus. At the same time, the car manufacturer has ‘taken advantage’ of the situation to rethink its general economic management, going to intervene on fixed expenses.
Thanks to the health of the luxury car market, which was not too badly damaged by the pandemic, Porsche eventually achieved excellent results. “In all respects, the coronavirus and semiconductor shortage will continue to pose significant challenges for us this year. However, we have become even more focused on our work during this time. By paying close attention to our fixed costs since the start of the pandemic, we have further reduced the break-even point. We have become even stronger on the financial sidewith the clear goal of maintaining our ambitious 15% margin target set for 2022 as well.We have improved the cost structure and at the same time the delivery figures look good so I feel pretty relaxedBlume told the German newspaper Handelsblatt.
Blume also acknowledged that Porsche could not currently achieve the results without Volkswagen’s input, even if his words seem to betray that the challenge of traveling ‘alone’ would be interesting for the brand. “In terms of financial strength, our cash flow speaks for itself. Basically, we need strong partners for the electrical transition. We cannot and do not want to do everything alone. We are always looking for suitable partners. For some areas, the Volkswagen Group is helping us. We are obviously seeing great interest from the public and the markets. The decisions relating to stock exchange transactions are the sole responsibility of the Volkswagen Group. So we cannot make any statements about it. What emerges from the figures is that our company is very well positioned and resilient to crises“.
The electric theme is as important to Porsche as the forms of hybridization and the use of synthetic fuels. From this point of view, the German company seeks a pioneering approach, trying to stay ahead of the competition. This can lead to reliability issues, as is the case with the Taycan suffering from software glitches and occasionally battery problems. Blume explained Porsche’s position as follows: “Every new product faces big challenges in the beginning. Especially with innovations and new technologies. As a general rule, when problems arise, we look at them very carefully. We also investigate the rumors …“
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