Saab company Archives - Page 7 of 12

Additional information regarding Swedish Automobile NV supervisory board remuneration

Further to information we circulated last week concerning reports in Swedish media:

Last Thursday, we commented on the media headlines about raised remuneration to members of the Swedish Automobile Supervisory Board. In addition to what was said then, we can now clarify further:

The board members have not received any compensation since January 1, 2010. The new fee will not be paid until Saab Automobile has the entire business up and running again. An independent company was hired to make sure that the remuneration is appropriate and in line with what other similar companies provide their board members.

Related story: Saab Comments on recent media (related to board remuneration).

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Wars of Perception

I was talking earlier this week with a prominent Saab person (a non-employee) about the situation Saab is in right now.

He opined that there were two ‘Saab’ entities going around at the moment. One is the Saab that’s constantly the subject of automotive news reports, a company in desperate need of resources and constantly struggling to get to the next safe-point in its existence. The other is a car company that has great new vehicles, some brilliant engineers and designers, a rich history, a great philosophy behind what it does and lots of promising technology.

I tend to agree. I try and write as much as I can about that second Saab because it’s the one that I always wanted to work for, the one that I represent now and the one that excites me when I think of the future.

But of course, the two are inextricably linked. The first cannot operate without the second and right now, the second is very busy getting its house in order. When that happens, we’re going to be very busy rebuilding the confidence of our stakeholders – our customers, dealers, suppliers and others. And this is just another area where we’re going to have a battle to fight.

Continue reading Wars of Perception

Saab comments on recent media

Earlier today we saw media headlines about raised remuneration to members of the Swedish Automobile supervisory board. These reports contain a number of factual flaws.< Firstly, the reports claiming that Mr Hugenholtz is the only person remaining on the supervisory board of Swedish Automobile are not correct. The three members (Hugenholtz, La Noce and Roepers) are all in place and continue working to secure the future of Saab Automobile. Secondly, when Spyker Cars NV (now Swedish Automobile, SWAN) acquired Saab Automobile AB, the company became much larger and the responsibilities of the board members increased significantly. Because of this, and as there was already an imbalance in fees between various members of the board, the issue was on the agenda for the Annual General Meeting on May 19 this year. At that meeting, a decision was taken to regulate the fees to make them more in line with each other and also to adjust them to reflect the extended responsibilities caused by the acquisition of Saab. These kinds of fees are paid retroactively for the work done since Saab was acquired by Spyker (now Swan). It is important to note that remuneration decisions of this kind can only be taken with the support of a majority of shareholders and timing for the Annual General Meeting for May 2011 was set well in advance of the meeting taking place.

Brief comment on recent events regarding debt enforcement

For various reasons – legality and confidentiality – we can’t comment in detail on proceedings that are taking place from today via the Kronofogden enforcement agency here in Sweden.

All I can do for the moment is simply repeat what I wrote earlier this week in an editorial on this site – The Deal and the Future:

There are now day-by-day accounts of the legal mechanisms that are in place for our stakeholders in this situation. Those mechanisms are a matter of procedural fact. We’re aware of them and the deadlines they involve, we address them as best we can, as methodically as we can, as the various situations arise. We want nothing more than to be rid of them, to re-establish normal relations with our stakeholders. This is why we’re negotiating The Deal with such vigour.

A process is in place. The core focus for us, whilst we fully cooperate with this process, is to do the right deal to get our business back on track. That’s the one solution to address this issue, and other issues as well.

Saab decision on Frankfurt Motor Show

Saab has decided that the company will not be present at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show.

Presence at the show requires resources that Saab are currently allocating towards the restart of production in Trollhattan. Whilst it would be desireable to be at the show to help further Saab’s global presence, it is not considered an appropriate use of resources at this time.

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And some thoughts to add some context…..

There will be some consternation and hand-wringing over this announcement. Of course, it’s quite regrettable that we can’t be at Frankfurt. It would be great to be there and show our vehicles off to the world’s press and visitors to the show. We do have new vehicles to show there, too, cars that will be significant for us in various markets around the world (more on those here).

Right now, though, an exhibition at Frankfurt is just not doable and out of respect for our various stakeholders, it would have been very irresponsible to allocate resources in this direction at this particular time.

We need to get back to being a car company first, which is what we’re doing. There are a number of motor shows coming up in quick succession after Frankfurt and we can get back on that wagon pretty quickly when circumstances allow it.

Press Release: Swedish Automobile Issues Subscription Notice Under GEM Facility

Trollhättan, Sweden: Swedish Automobile N.V. (Swan) announces today that it issued a subscription notice for 4 million shares under the current EUR 150 million equity facility between Swan and GEM Global Yield Fund Limited. The exact number of shares to be issued and the price thereof will depend on the pricing period which commences today.

Swan and Saab Automobile AB continue their discussions with parties to obtain further short-term funding to be able to restart and sustain production.

A quick note from dealer-land

There are plenty of media outlets willing to write Saab off at the moment. I’ve contended several times on this website that the long-term future for Saab is very bright and it’s just a short-term cash crisis we have to concern ourselves with right now.

Any time you’ve got great people, a great plant, a great brand and most importantly, new product, then you’ve got something that people will be interested in.

AJ Murphy from Just Saab, Ohio (two outlets) left the following double-barrel story in comments last night and I think it speaks to the potential lying dormant in this brand. Of course, everything hinges on the production re-start, but once we get to re-launch this company again, there’s so much that we can achieve…..

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My first point:

Tonight we had a couple in looking at new Saabs. They own a new Cadillac SRX. They came to the store surprised that Saab still existed…Admittedly they fell prey to the media’s coverage of ‘GM’s shedding of brands’ ending when Saturn, Hummer, Pontiac and Saab were announced as the brands they’ll extract from their portfolio (another story).

They loved the ‘new’ Saab styling i.e. NG 9-5, 9-4x, and 9-3 sedan. They even gushed over the styling of the 9-4x. Particularly when I told them it shared architecture with their SRX. He admitted he liked Saab’s styling better…said the lines were more ‘natural’…as he pointed to his tail lights. 🙂

They left pleasantly surprised at what Saab had to offer. They were equally as baffled by why the message wasn’t being communicated (more effectively) that we’re not dead and that our product portfolio is so impressive (these folks were comparing us with the cream of the Euro crop: Merc, BMW, Audi, etc).

My second point:

We’re seeing increasing interest in the 9-4x. Sales are starting off far better than the new 9-5 did. The challenge is inventory…we have just 2 in Dayton and only one in Cincinnati. We’re having to buy from other dealers.

Despite all the forces pulling us down, people are still buying Saabs. And not just bargain-basement, giveaway-priced Saabs, either. 9-4s are selling at little discount off sticker which is a product of ‘right-pricing’, the Aero 9-5 is the best selling 9-5 in our store and the 9-5 is outselling the 9-3 combi, convertible and sedan…combined.

A good sign, right?

So, simply (<--tongue-in-cheek) get the news going in the right direction, re-start production, get us the inventory of 9-4's, and I assure you the North American dealers will get this train back on track. AJ Murphy Just Saab

Yeah, I’m a believer….

There was an interesting quote in one of the Swedish newspapers today. This is just a Google translation so you’ll have to forgive me if part of the context is lost, but I believe it should come through OK.

Wickelgren says that [Saab employees’] loyalty is in a class by itself.

– They have some kind of fist in the pocket, we will take the world by surprise, just give us a chance. For many of us who do not find ourselves on the inside it’s a bit hard to understand how one can be inspired by something that obviously could have such problems.

I think he’s expressing some wonder at the resilience of Saab employees who stay with the company……. despite the precarious positions described by the news reports…… despite the problems Saab has had in the last two months making salary payments, etc.

I have a colleague here at Saab. He recently finished his studies and Saab is the one company that he had his sights set on working for. He joined the company in the midst of our current situation. Now he’s here, and he recently wrote on a Saab enthusiast site that he’s working on the new 9-3, and will continue to do so regardless of current events, until his access key doesn’t work anymore (should that ever come to pass). That’s the kind of passion that this company can inspire, and this is not an atypical example.

Continue reading Yeah, I’m a believer….

Press Release: SWEDISH AUTOMOBILE ISSUES SUBSCRIPTION NOTICE UNDER GEM FACILITY

Zeewolde, The Netherlands, 3 August 2011 – Swedish Automobile N.V. (Swan) announces today that it issued a subscription notice for 5 million shares under the current EUR 150 million equity facility between Swan and GEM Global Yield Fund Limited. The exact number of shares to be issued and the price thereof will depend on a 10 day pricing period, which commences today.

Saab Automobile AB (Saab Automobile) expects to be able to pay the wages of its white-collar workers still this week. Swan and Saab Automobile continue their discussions with parties to obtain further short-term funding to be able to restart and sustain production.

Saabosphere – Saab links we liked this week

I do not know if this is real.

I suspect that it isn’t.

But it’s nice.

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Sometimes ‘the social space’ can be tough to deal with. Consumers have a voice through social media and much of the time, they use it to voice complaints or opinions that companies need to address, either to solve an issue or to correct a misconception. That’s OK, we deal with it.

Occasionally you get a social story that shows the way this new medium can be used for good.

Susan Scrupski runs a website called ITS Insider, where she tracks various IT Services industry issues and trends. She’s a heavy-hitter in this space, too, being named one of Fast Company’s most influential women in technology for 2010, and with thousands of Twitter followers, Facebook friends and Google+ listings.

Roger Beasley Saab in Austin, Texas, probably knew none of this when Susan walked into their dealership last weekend to take a look at a car from Saab’s Pre-Owned program. But when they gave her fantastic service and a finance deal that suited her needs (rather than theirs) they won her praise.

I came across Susan’s story from her Twitter feed. She has over 7,000 followers and many of them will have read about it as well. Susan detailed her experience on her personal blog and you can read the whole story there (and I recommend that you do).

Amazing car buying experience at Roger Beasley Saab this weekend – Taking It Personal.

The lessons:

for customers – it’s OK to use your voice for the power of good.
for dealers – you never know who’s walking into your showroom. Always provide the best service you can for the good of the customer.
for Roger Beasley Saab – Continue to look after Susan, just as she’s looked after you.

Congratulations to Roger Beasley Saab for earning the shout-out and to Susan on the acquisition of the new-to-her Saab 9-5.

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Most of us will have been to car shows in our local areas. Given that this is a Saab website, I imagine most of you would have been to shows where Saabs figure prominently, perhaps alongside many other makes that originate in your country.

When “your country” is Russia, that makes for an exhibition of vehicles that many of us don’t get to see too often.

Yes, there’s a Saab in there, and plenty of other interesting metal as well.

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The Saab 9-4x leading a pack at Spa, in Belgium.

Need I say more?

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We’ll have more on this in coming days, but for now, if you’re in Great Britain, keep an eye out for the Nomad Theatre, popping up in a place near you.

Here’s what it was like last weekend, at Hampton Court Palace.

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From Tobias A, via Twitter:

Wonder if we can expect any news on the current situation from Saab this week? @Inside_saab Keeping my fingers crossed!!!

I’ll tell you all what I told Tobias in response, because I know there are a lot of eyes on the company at the moment.

Officially speaking, we don’t do speculation. We can’t comment on matters that involve potential investors, or matters that are under discussion and incomplete. I try to bring some commentary and perspective from time to time (which some choose to interpret and dismiss as spin, but which they took as insight back in my SU days).

We will always bring you hard news as soon as it’s appropriate to do so.

Stay tuned. We appreciate your concern and support and despite what some say, our executive team are working their tails off to solve our current issues.

If you want to follow Inside Saab at Twitter, it’s @inside_saab.

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