LOS ANGELES — Kia Motors America has large plans for the approaching new yr, together with 5 new or considerably redesigned autos as a part of a yearslong product blitz. It additionally has a brand new COO and promoting result in get these autos onto People’ driveways.
In mid-December, the Korean automaker started preparations for the following part of its product push by naming the brand new crew to ship it .
Invoice Peffer was promoted to COO and government vp after serving as vp of gross sales operations since July 2017.
Peffer, 50, is actually taking on the position of Michael Cole, Kia’s former president, who left in June to grow to be CEO of Hyundai Europe. On the time of Cole’s transfer, Kia mentioned the president’s put up can be assumed by Sean Yoon, CEO of Kia Motors America and Kia Motors North America.
“This promotion is effectively deserved,” Yoon mentioned in a press release about Peffer’s new position, “and with 5 all-new and considerably redesigned autos slated for introduction in 2021, Invoice will play an more and more vital position within the progress and maturation of the Kia model.”
To assist the product drive, Kia promoted Russell Wager to vp of selling, reporting to Peffer.
Wager, 55, has been director of selling operations at Kia Motors America since July 2019 and beforehand labored at Mazda.
Kia has lots on its plate following the profitable launches of the Telluride crossover in 2019 and the smaller Seltos a yr later. As 2020 got here to an finish, Kia was launching the fourth-generation midsize Sorento crossover, which can come for the primary time in a hybrid model and later in 2021 as a plug-in hybrid. The Sorento PHEV will mark a big step ahead because the model strikes aggressively towards electrification.
Kia additionally has a compact EV crossover within the works, however that product in all probability will not arrive till 2022.
Current spy images additionally present Kia making ready a brand new era of the compact Sportage crossover and subcompact Niro, which is presently offered solely as a hybrid or full EV.
Kia’s fast cadence of auto updates has meant back-to-back media campaigns to assist them, and Yoon credited Wager with driving extra site visitors to sellers.
“Russell has instilled new power into Kia’s U.S. advertising and marketing actions and performed a big position in driving extra first-time Kia buyers to our showrooms,” Yoon mentioned.
Kia has been one of many best-performing manufacturers within the U.S. market in the course of the coronavirus disaster.
By the primary 9 months of 2020, when the U.S. business declined 18 p.c, Kia gross sales slid 7.6 p.c. The model notched a 12 p.c gross sales achieve in October and dropped simply 5.2 p.c in November regardless of three fewer promoting days in contrast with November 2019.