1. 36
Name Justin Hocevar
Company Renault Australia
Position Managing Director
HQ Melbourne, Australia
Employees 86
EXECUTIVE INTERVIEW
On the
right road
French automotive business Renault has been around for
more than 100 years. Justin Hocevar wants it to achieve a
sense of belonging in the Australian psyche, and so far he’s
doing a pretty good job.
IMAGES RENAULT AUSTRALIA
R
enault has experienced a number of highlights in the past two years.
At the end of its last full calendar year, it had 11,500 vehicles in the
Australian market — the highest volume the business had ever
achieved. Quite rightly, Justin Hocevar, Managing Director of
Renault Australia, sees it as a testament to all the groundwork his
team has been doing.
While all companies face challenges in the automotive industry, Renault has
been winding down its stock in two major categories ahead of new launches,
which makes its sales volumes even more remarkable. The small-car and
medium-SUV categories make up half the Australian market, and a change in
the Megane and Koleos models has resulted in a slight slowdown. “We have
gone for the best part of nine months running out the previous generation of
cars, and we have run out very cleanly, with very little stock,” Justin says. “It has
probably been a little too clean to keep the numbers up in our network.”
At the end of 2016, however, the business launched two new next-generation
vehicles: a Koleos in September and a Megane in October. “We are back in the
game, you could say,” Justin shares. “The feedback coming from the opinion
leaders and the automotive press is that we have very compelling products at
a very competitive price.”
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2. EXECUTIVE INTERVIEW
38
EXECUTIVE INTERVIEW
Renault has been buffered in this
transitional period by its light
commercial vehicle (LCV) business,
which continues to grow. As Justin
explains: “The volume that comes from
those vehicles is a real cornerstone of
our business now. It’s also very good for
our dealer network.”
Plans are already in place to realise
Justin’s vision for the growth of Renault
Australia in the passenger arena,
alongside its LCV base. “We have a
mid-term plan that shows investment
in people and product. I mentioned the
two products that we have launched
this year, and there will be a real focus
on those two model lines and
strengthening our passenger portfolio
over the coming years. The medium-
sized SUV in particular is key because
it’s a real growth segment in the
Australian market.”
Justin says Renault has to put
even more substance into its
specifications as a way to draw
people’s attention to its brand over
others that may have higher profiles.
Product pricing and specification are
therefore a key focus — not just at
point of purchase, but throughout
the vehicle’s whole lifespan.
“We know that the customers expect
good service,” Justin says. “But where
a brand can excel is to make the
experience as simple and
straightforward as possible, to make
things easier in their day-to-day busy
lives. The total cost of the ownership is
an interesting part of our journey.”
While ‘Team Germany’ and ‘Team
Japan’, as Justin refers to them,
have long automotive engineering
histories in Australia, ‘Team France’ still
has some stigmas and challenges
to overcome. These challenges will
define a big area of Renault’s
investment. “French engineering is
highly sought after in many other
areas,” Justin explains. “For example,
it’s highly trusted in Australia in
sectors such as finance, medicine,
military, rail, mining and even
submarines. However, from an
automotive point of view, despite the
fact that we are a brand that’s been
around for about 118 years now, we
haven’t had that longevity of presence
in Australia. We know that we have to
build trust and confidence.”
Renault has taken practical and
pragmatic steps to start achieving
this. It is the first European brand
to introduce a five-year unlimited-
kilometre warranty, underlining
the quality of its vehicles, and it
has implemented a focus on
servicing costs.
“If I were to ask 100 people in Australia,
‘Is it cheaper to service a Toyota or a
Renault’, their logical response would
be the Toyota,” Justin says. “But the
Toyota Corolla requires two services a
year, and while each service costs less
than our one, our one service is less
than their two.”
Justin’s main challenge is to communicate
this to the market and overcome
misconceptions. In the trade arena, there
has been huge success, with Renault
building strong relationships with dealers.
“We refer to our dealer network as our
business partners and I think that helps
in our organisation,” he says. “It sets the
tone for what that relationship should
be about. When I started back in 2010,
we had 19 dealers. We are sitting at just
shy of 60 now. Of the original 19, I think
only seven still exist, so a lot of the
dealer network is quite new.”
Finally, a purpose-built facility for
Renault has literally cemented its
thoughtful approach to business in
Australia. The project has been
large, to say the least, but with great
outcomes. The success of Renault’s
approach is plain to see, with the
company winning Aon Hewitt
employer of choice awards in each
of the past two years.
Not surprisingly, Justin loves his job.
“I get a huge sense of satisfaction and
reward from seeing the team achieve
goals and from witnessing our people
develop and mature in their pathways
in the business,” he says. “To see our
dealers out there recruiting more
people and winning over new
customers, and seeing this French
auto giant that’s been around for so
long finally start to get some traction
in the Australian market, it’s a
fantastic thing.”
“Renault’s enthusiasm and passion was contagious
and PTID relished the opportunity to harness that
energy and translate it into its built environment,
delivering an on-brand spatial experience born out
of true collaboration and partnership, celebrating
Renault’s vitality and spirit.” – Cameron Harvey,
Director, PTID
“The feedback coming from the
opinion leaders and the
automotive press is that we have
very compelling products at a
very competitive price.”
– Justin Hocevar
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