A year ago we spoke to Seat and Cupra chief executive Wayne Griffiths and asked him what would happen to Seat and Cupra if combustion engines were banned. ‘The name of our company is SEAT S.A. That is our company name and it will remain our company name. The company has two brands, Seat and Cupra,” he said then.
We now speak to Volkswagen boss Thomas Schaffer about the future of the Seat and Cupra. To be clear: Schafer is the boss of Volkswagen, but also the chairman of Seat. According to the CEO, one of the two brands must be dropped: “We cannot invest in both.” According to Schaefer, the choice between the two brands was not difficult: ‘Cupra is more logical’.
I am going to America
Shaffer’s logic may be partly selling. Cupra sold 150,000 cars worldwide this year, up 60 percent from last year. That number should only grow as Kubra looks to expand. They even want to cross over to North America. A step that is not allowed to take a seat from Volkswagen. A shame, because we could immediately come up with the slogan: ‘a seat’. Also has a seat in Central and South America.
Griffiths wants to make Cupra a global brand. Kubra took action last year below Now it’s America’s turn. “Our plans are working well, and I am confident that we have the right strategy in place to make the Cupra an American success story,” says Griffiths. It is not yet known which models will make their way to the US.
What happens to the ace now?
The seat section is reduced in the production of a large number of cars to give the Cupra more space. Seat hasn’t announced any new models for a while. The brand has recently been showcasing electric scooters and other vehicles for urban mobility. Will they keep it up? Insiders also say Seat may start building small cars on the VW platform.
The Seat and Cupra names will continue into the future. “The company will stay the same,” Schaefer says. Kind of strange if you say you don’t want to invest in both brands. We also know that there will be Cupra and Skoda versions of the Volkswagen ID.2. These cars should be delivered in 2025. Construction of the smaller Cupra and Skoda will take place at the factory in Martorell, Spain.
