Italian parts company Magneti Marelli continues move into U.S. market
BOLOGNA, Italy — In more than 2,300 Chrysler dealerships across the U.S., the Italian company Magneti Marelli already has made an impact. But the company is not stopping there, as it rolls out more plans for dealership, oil change stations and distribution of parts to independent shops across the country.
Speaking exclusively with Motor Age and Aftermarket Business World at Autopromotec 2011, CEO Dino Maggioni reports that the initial rollout is complete and the company is focusing on more training and expanding the partnership the Italian parts manufacturer has with Chrysler and Mopar.
The alliance, which formed last year and began in practice in 2011’s first quarter, brings Magneti Marelli parts to Mopar distributors for all vehicle makes and models. It also creates a relationship with Mopar and Shell to open oil change stations, bringing more consumers to Chrysler dealerships for service.
After starting with 600, the program is now in 2,311 dealers, according to Pietro Berardi, North American aftermarket vice president. “It’s a reality. There are customers already using Magneti Marelli parts in the U.S. the customer response is very good. It’s a reality,” he adds.
Repair Shop Effect
Reaching the independent shops is a real partnership between Chrysler and Magneti Marelli, Berardi notes, especially in the short time since the automaker repaid its government loan. The companies now are discussing hosting events together to educate independent repair shops on the availability of Magneti Marelli parts — all clearly labeled as such — from Mopar dealers.
To begin this process, Magneti Marelli is implementing training processes to educate Mopar dealers and distributors on how to sell parts for all makes and models, not just Chrysler nameplates.
“We have agreed with Chrysler that we will take care of training the dealers about the technical quality of the products and also how to sell the all makes products, because it’s somehow a new thing for the Chrysler dealers to sell the all makes parts,” Berardi says. “We are in contact with the Chrysler academy. We are developing the training plan together with them.
Maggioni adds that both Magneti Marelli and Chrysler agree that this is key in making the partnership a success. To do so, Magneti Marelli is planning a variety of training approaches. Berardi says today is a digital age, so there will be an online component. But, he quickly adds that they also are Italians and believe greatly in personal relationships. That will lead to visits to leaders within the Chrysler network for training.
Perfecting a Position
So as the company moves deeper into the American marketplace and prepares its training and message, one basis it focuses on is quality. Berardi says that for the company, quality is a cornerstone.
“We will never give up on quality. The idea is to have high quality products and to position Magneti Marelli parts at the high end of the parts (spectrum),” he says. “It’s in our heritage, it’s in our blood. It will be a (cornerstone). At the same time, we need to be cautious of how we position our products to avoid cannibalization from the OES and to be at the same time competitive with our products in the aftermarket.”
Maggioni says the company will implement a model already in place in Italy, and will add some American components to make it appealing to U.S. customers. Magneti Marelli’s shop model in Italy is called the Checkstar Service Network, though it is unlikely at this time that the name and logo transition to the U.S.
“But all of the experience we have here makes us the best repair shop in Italy. Best because the customers said that. It was interviews and then visiting the Checkstar and then saying, yes, I would come back because they are nice and they are good and they have a quality service and good products,” Maggioni explains. “This is the experience done through training, technical assistance, call centers. All the experience we have developed in other markets like Italy and make us very successful here, we will be having all in the U.S.”
In fact, the model earned Magneti Marelli a top customer service award from GiPA, an Italian association similar to the Automotive Service Association (ASA).
As the program continues to roll out this year, Magneti Marelli will build its reach throughout the U.S. and maximize its relationship with Chrysler, Maggioni states.
“We will go through Mopar dealers first. This is our priority. In any case if we can have more reach, more capitalization in the market, we will do it in agreement with them,” he says. “It’s a common target between us and Mopar to reach big numbers. But to do that, we will do it in a reasonable way and proper way in the marketplace.”
