Over the past three years, global Cadillac sales volumes have increased 35 percent – a rather positive trend to say the least. But the automotive luxury brand isn’t stopping there, and is looking for even more significant growth over the next few years.
Cadillac’s parent company, General Motors, projects that global Cadillac sales volume will increase 100 percent by 2021. Speaking at the Deutsche Bank Global Auto Industry Conference in January 2018, GM executive vice president and CFO Chuck Stevens, stated that Cadillac sales volume will take place in both North American and in China, and will be driven by the upcoming Cadillac CT5 sedan, the recently-unveiled Cadillac XT4 crossover, and an all-new large three-row crossover that Cadillac Society believes will be called Cadillac XT6.
A slide from GM’s presentation at the 2018 Deutsche Bank Global Automotive Conference in January 2018 shows projected growth in Cadillac sales volume and profit
Former Cadillac president Johan de Nysschen previously described Cadillac’s product offensive entailing one new vehicle launch every six months through 2021, for a total of five vehicle lines. The 2019 Cadillac XT4, set to launch in the fall of 2018, will serve as the first step in this offensive, and will thus be the first of the five planned vehicle lines.
The two-fold growth in Cadillac sales volume as a result of this major product offensive is projected to deliver a 100 percent increase in Cadillac profit by 2021, Stevens said during the conference.
Notably, executives from GM and Cadillac have never provided specific dollar figures behind the current or forecasted profitability figures, but it has been previously reported that GM will begin to break out Cadillac financial information in the future.
We’ve know that GM is investing heavily into Cadillac for quite some time, with the parent considering the luxury division a significant growth opportunity. To that end, the expansion of the Cadillac product portfolio, along with the associated growth in sales and profit, is very good news.
However, we also believe that GM can grow Cadillac sales volume and profit even further than currently projected by expanding the product portfolio into electrified vehicles, convertibles, high-performance crossovers, “four-door coupe” variants of sedans and crossovers, and a dedicated super car. Entering these segments will grow Cadillac’s sales volume, profit and – perhaps most importantly – change consumer perception of Cadillac as a brand, which remains a strong factor working against it.
Nevertheless, the plan outlined by Stevens seems like a solid starting point for finally turning Cadillac into a respected and highly-desired global luxury automotive brand, while representing GM’s first concerted effort to do so in roughly three decades. Here’s to hoping GM and Cadillac will build on this plan going forward.
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