Right, obviously we know that Skoda have recently rebranded and altered their logo, changed colours, typefaces etc. As part of this Skoda said that dealerships would also be revamped to remain inkeeping with the new look.

14 months or so down the line since they announced all this, has anybody noticed new-look dealers springing up anywhere? Has your local dealer been treated to the rebrand? I was just thinking that the current dealership livery is beginning to look a little dated, and they've looked the same for a number of years now. Most dealers seem to be displaying the new flags in the used car sections, looks a little at odds with the old branding though!

Peugeot were relatively quick with rolling out their recent rebrand, Citroen less so... can Skoda do better?

Perhaps things will pick up speed-wise when the Rapid's launch gets closer!

Peugeot is about down the pan, sales are pathetic and they are cutting Production of vehicles

& Skoda is on the up, waiting lists, but people canceling orders because of the Black Hole ordering system.

& less than truthful Dealerships, Sales People & even Skoda UK theirselfs.

The Skoda Logo has looked almost the same for 100 years.

Lets hope Skoda sort out their Customer Service and poor communications from Franchise Skoda Dealerships to current customers,

& waste no money on cosmetic frills & stuff that the Customer has to pay for in the long run. JMO obviously.

george

Edited 6 August, 201213 yr by sk4gw

I was told by a mate who is a parts manager, that the reason the model range has been delayed, compared to other parts of Europe is that dealers are franchised and struggling to fund the snazzy new showrooms, was told February next year

My local dealer has been revamped. Bigger showroom and more modern outside.

My local is also a seat dealership, one half skoda and the other seat.

Only trouble is the show room is too small to have 2 brands and looks abit poo and I don't think all the models fit in. There's no proper parts counter, just a doorway and most customers arn't really allowed to go in to the lil parts office.

Sent from my Galaxy S2 not a Crapple!

My local dealer became Chevrolet last year...

Farmers Leicester has recently been revamped, looks quite smart and tidy but can't really say whether it's an improvement, just tidier.

The one in Preston was suggesting that they'll need to be a 12 car showroom rather than the 9 it is now, but that takes money....

The Skoda Logo has looked almost the same for 100 years.

The Coca-Cola logo has had the same font for ~125 years, and it's one of the most recognised brands in the world. Just sayin'

I have heard of several relatively successful franchises refusing to do the required updates and dropping franchises. Sometimes the big company comes in and demands upgrades to sites that can run into 6 figures.

All that bling just means we have to pay more to cover it, Skoda isn't Audi it doesn't need the shiny glass and steel it's not supposed to be in that segment.

Maybe they're seeing sense and allowing the dealers to hold off on spending on cosmetic changes.

Edited 7 August, 201213 yr by Aspman

My dealer lost their franchise about 6 months ago because they refused to buy/lease a much bigger showroom in a town 25 miles away! They are still a service agent and can still order cars so it doesn't seem to make any difference. Given that they seem to supply just about every other car in the Cotswolds it seems a very short sighted approach from SUK, but then we have come to expect that.

I have to admit to preferring the old style "Ma & Pa" approach to Skoda dealerships than the companies springing up selling them now.

Having bought my last 2 new Skodas from one of each and know which I prefer to have my business......!

There is something reassuring about the sales guy having to fetch his Dad from under the bonnet to test your car in preference to beeing wowed by a "Dealer Principal" or something in his s****y office....

Edited 7 August, 201213 yr by curleybar

Give me this...

...over this...

..any day of the week.

What you don't realise is that the manufacturer has access to the dealers bank account and when they feel like it they'll send the dealer a few self assembly cardboard things to display in the showroom and charge them hundreds of pounds for them.

The truth is that Skoda don't want the small dealers retailers anymore, they want the large corporates who can cope with the volume that they're after.

Thats so true. My local dealer (Mill Hill, March) lost the franchise in 2008 I think. This was because the showroom could fit maybe 4 cars in (if displayed at angles etc etc) or about 8 if parked side by side. They had been a skoda dealer for something like 40 years or something crazy. Then they moved to Daihatsu, then daihatsu stopped importing. Then Subaru...for the Justy to replace the Sirion and now Perodua..for the Myvi.

Such a friendly place too.

Well I have to say, my local Skoda retailer is individually run, is doing very well (two other franchises alongside it - some of you will know which one it is), the showroom is large, clean and it really makes a difference to the customer's experience. Some may have had negative experiences elsewhere but the point is that a lot of people buy a car partly based on the environment in which they see it. An appealing dealership goes a long way, as does appealing customer service. Good that some are bringing in the changes.

Here's just hoping that Skoda UK aren't getting too big for their boots. Sure, they deserve to be as successful as they are being, but they need to remember that part of that success is down to their dealers' approach to customer service, which in turn has built up the reputation for reliability/customer support etc. If Skoda want to rebrand everything, then they should flipping well be funding it themselves - not leaving it to the individual dealers to do so! They need to do things properly - part of a rebrand is that the entire product/package needs to fit together. People may dismiss the 'upgrades' as unnecessary but they are actually put in place for a reason - not massive size increases and everything, just a lick of paint and some new signage to fit with the rebrand.

Edited 7 August, 201213 yr by Octy09

Couldn't care less what my local dealer ends up looking like as they're hopeless. I can't ever see myself setting foot in the place ever again.

Couldn't care less what my local dealer ends up looking like as they're hopeless. I can't ever see myself setting foot in the place ever again.

Couldn't actually give a monkey's chuff what a car showrrom of ANY brand looks like tbh

Just want excellent service, excellent product knowledge, excellent after sales service, excellent money saving deals on excellent vehicles, reliabilty and truthfulness,, no frills, no glitz, no pin strip suits with sharp tounged sales staff that are ONLY interested in ££££££'s and commision, and getting you stiched up on some poor selling heap that the manager/manufacturer has decided to add an extra sales bonus to, and DEFO no background musac/nosie.

They can all sell cars out of a leaky garden shed on a bomb site for all I care, as long as the above are adhered to.

Fish bros skoda swindon are gettin a new showroom which means theyll proberly try and get more money out of customers to pay for it!!!