When Saab Automobile on December 19th 2011 filed for bankruptcy, the subsidiary Saab Automobile Parts (Saab Parts) was not included in the filing. Saab Parts is in fact a very profitable company. In 2010 the company had a turnover of SEK 1,697 million, made a profit (after tax) of SEK 391 million and the operating margin was 33.6 percent. Which is of course a very good result. The result for 2011 is expected to be about the same.
Following the bankruptcy in its parent company, Saab Parts has been busy making the transition from being a subsidiary of a much larger company to being a stand alone company. Earlier Saab Parts could of course depend on its parent company for a lot of purchase and sale, financial and technical services. Now Saab Parts is on its own. New deals with parts suppliers have been entered into and a global distribution network has been established. And in Trollhättan, Saab Parts has hired 50 new employees to work with purchasing, sales, marketing and technical information.
To take care of parts supply in Great Britain, which previously was Saab's third biggest market, Saab Parts established the subsidiary Saab Automobile Parts UK Ltd on January 1st. The subsidiary is managed by Corin Richards and has ten or so employees. Saab Parts UK continues to operate as normal and all 87 Saab authorised repairers in the UK still offers a full range of services.
"Following the sad demise of Saab Great Britain Ltd at the end of last year, Saab Parts UK was set up to continue to provide a parts and customer care facility for the 188,000 Saabs that are on UK roads. Saab Parts UK has now established itself with its first successful month of trading and coupled with the on-going partnership from the network will continue to provide high quality vehicle care," Corin Richards said in a press release last month.
Saab Parts UK has also set up a warranty product, Saab Secure, for the Saab owners in Great Britain. According to Saab Parts UK, Saab Secure offers Saab owners great value for money with up to five years cover priced from under £500. In addition, Saab Secure can also be applied to Saab vehicles that are already outside the original manufacturer three year warranty period.
"Saab Secure is a very competitively priced warranty package that can be tailored to the individual requirements of owners, whether they are recent or historical purchasers. In light of the continued uncertainty surrounding the new vehicle warranty, Saab Parts UK provides customers with an alternative solution for their warranty needs."
And for those owners who bought their new or used Saab with a complimentary free of charge servicing plan provided by Saab Great Britain Limited, Saab Parts UK is now pleased to confirm that these service plans will be honoured.
For those who craves a new Saab but have been in doubt due to the warranty issue, this new warranty product could be the message they have been waiting for. And to make things even better, just one month ago 200 unregistered new Saab cars remained for sale in the UK through the established network of Saab authorised repairers. I bet many of these cars are still sitting in the lot just waiting for its new owner.
A blog fueled by enthusiasm about Saab, the greatest car company between the North and the South Pole. And their cars, which probably is the only cars that would start on a cold and crispy South Pole morning.
