EXCLUSIVE Citroen boss reveals bold future plans

Citroen's Vincent Cobée wants to change the type of cars we buy, and how we own them, while Citroen is set to become even more different

- Steve Fowler 

New design direction on way

Focus will be on sustainability

CITROEN CEO Vincent Cobée has revealed his vision for the French brand’s future, which includes inspiration from the recently revealed Oli concept in new models, likely to start with the next Citroen C3.

 Although Cobée was tight-lipped about future product plans, Auto Express expects the C3 to be the next new Citroen, and our exclusive images show how the references from Oli and new corporate logo will look.

Auto Express was invited to join Cobée and then-Citroen UK boss Eurig Druce ata business review meeting at the brand’s UK HQ in Coventry, where Cobée outlined how the Oli would influence Citroen’s business from the cars themselves to how they’re sold. It was clear from our meeting how highly Cobée rates Druce and the impact he’s had at Citroen UK. Druce's work hasn't gone unnoticed by parent company Stellantis's UK boss, Paul Willcox, either. Within days of our meeting, Druce had been asked to head network operations at a crucial time for the relationship between brands and dealers.

That relationship is at the forefront of Cobée's mind, too, especially with many brands committing to new agreements with their dealers, where the car company takes more control of direct customer relations.

Cobée was quick to address the important role dealers will play in the future. "Each and every one of us who owns a car sees it as a massive investment that requires maintenance you can't do yourself. In the UK that means we need to have 150 to 200 points where we can maintain the vehicles. Will an OEM want to do it by themselves? The answer is no.