New Lotus chief - the full interview

Q What position is Lotus in?

A We're in the same situation as our competitors in the sports car segment and the automotive industry in general. We face a difficult time with potential buyers hesitant to buy. However, we have an advantage over other sports car manufacturers that play in a higher league than we do.

We have placed ourselves in a very special niche where the product is more important than other factors - the technology, the pricing and the image. For us, it's purely about the driving and the passion to own the car. That means the customer really wants our car. So what I would say is that we're doing reasonably well, but we are not doing exceptionally well.

Q So is the potential you see to take Lotus forward what appeals about the job?

A Absolutely. This is the biggest challenge I see - bringing the company forward. As a person, I like challenges and it's why I decided to join the company. I feel the Lotus brand has a lot to offer. There's plenty of heritage, tradition and past successes.

I believe that in the last 15 to 20 years, the heritage, tradition and strength of brand values have rather decreased. It's easier to bring a brand back to where it was than to start a brand from scratch."

Q How does Lotus compare or differ from Ferrari?

A I'd never compare Lotus to Ferrari because it's not a competitor - it's a different league. A Ferrari is a beautiful product and the price position that goes with it is four or five times that of Lotus. That's why I'd never see Ferrari as a competitor. What Lotus has missed in the last 10 years is investing in the future, which Ferrari did and which Lamborghini, Aston Martin and Bentley all did.

They were in a similar situation as Lotus is today, but they invested in facilities and products. Somehow we missed the train and that's the sitution we're in compared to other sports car manufacturers.

Q Where is Lotus going under your leadership?

A Fifteen or 20 years ago - when I was a very young guy - I was a big Lotus Formula One fan. I saw Lotus's success in the lifestyle world through its presence in different movies like James Bond, Pretty Woman, Lara Croft, Rain Man, you name it.

It was a big player in the sports car market. I strongly believe that this brand has the potential to offer upmarket sports cars.

This is the direction that Lotus will focus on for the next five to seven years.

Q Why a timescale of five to seven years?

A It would be unrealistic to talk about 10, 15 or 20 years ahead. I'd rather concentrate on something I can influence and that reaches to five to seven years - that's already a long time. But the simple answer is that we're already planning to come up with some new products and in the time period of five years we will have completed that new product range.

Q How extensive a range will it be?

A We are working on it. We're in phases of analysis and in the next six to 10 months we'll be able to say what the product range will look like and in which segments they will play.

Q But can I infer that there will be a much broader portfolio of vehicles than Lotus currently produces?

A I believe Lotus is a sports car brand and should concentrate on what it's good at.

Q A new Esprit perhaps?

A Possibly yes. But I mentioned a product range - I don't believe that one car will provide our success for the next 10 years. It's a combination of a few cars - the sum of all the pieces.

Q The launch of the new Evora coincided with the downturn, but it was well received. But is the economic climate right to take new cars to market?

A All of the cars have to be engineered, manufactured and sold, so we're talking about two years before the first product will see daylight. We all hope that in two years' time the economic environment will have changed. But I believe that we should use the downturn to invest in technology and be ready for when the economic environment changes.

Q On the engineering side, we've seen Lotus develop a strong, green, environmentally friendly reputation. Will that continue to be part of the strategy?

A Today our products already offer highly efficient output of CO2 and fuel consumption. We've already incorporated into our road cars the research and technology our engineering arm has developed. It's already part of the brand's DNA and it will be in future.

Today a sports car buyer looks at three things, tomorrow he will look at four: performance, style and design and quality and then environmental performance. We'd like to combine all four of those characteristics of a sports car.

Q Is Lotus staying in Norfolk?

A Yes, of course. Why should it not? We want to invest in facilities here and bring them up to speed to a state-of-the-art level of quality.

I see Lotus as one of three British sports car manufacturers and they have to remain British, although they may have foreign ownership. But it's a British brand and it would be a mistake not to manufacture the car in Britain.

I would hope that we can make a bigger contribution to the region by increasing the value of the company - it goes without saying that increasing the value of the company means more people. It's our ambition to do so.

Q We understand that in motorsport, there will be investment at Hingham and in Malaysia, and in the longer-term, Malaysia will become the hub for Formula One activity for the Lotus brand and the presence will be diminished in Norfolk. So the strategy for Group Lotus is not the same?

A Although there is a Lotus name in Formula One, our two organisations are separate. We support the activities of the Formula One team, but it is not related to Group Lotus when it comes to equity and shareholders. It's a pure commercial co-operation though we share the same goal.

Colleagues in Hingham are setting up their infrastructure - but the choice of the location was because it is the right facility rather than being near to Hethel. Secondly, since it is a Malaysian initiative, the plan was

from day one to make it a national Malaysian team.

That being the case, you would want your people to be Malaysian and the hub to be in Malaysia. For sure, slowly but surely parts of the business will be transferred to Malaysia. It makes sense to do that. However, if you look at the motorsport ambitions of Group Lotus - outside Formula One - we have strong ambitions and big plans and we'll concentrate them here at our factory."

Q You believe motorsport will complement Group Lotus though...

A I'm very grateful to the group behind the Formula One team - it means Lotus is getting the awareness it wants three or four times more than it would take through traditional channels.

Q You've also spoken about the possibility of investigating Le Mans and Indy Car - how realistic is it to do those things too?

A I strongly believe motorsport to be a big help when you sell and manufacture sports cars. It's the credibility that everyone is looking at - if you are doing reasonably well in motorsport, then you must be doing something right in the road cars, because you'll be using the same technology. So yes, motorsport will play a big role in supporting our sales and marketing activities for future road cars. These activities do not

emerge in one day - you have to carefully plan and we have a timetable that should reach our point of launching our new products in two years' time.

If you look at our history, there is no other car company that has won nearly all the most important series in motor racing. So why shouldn't we replicate what worked in the past?

If we've had a big play in the past in Le Mans, Indy Car and GT racing, we should go there again. This is why we're hiring staff - hiring Claudio Berro as our motorsport director, with a serious track record in all these series. I hope we can soon participate in Indy Car, soon have a project for Le Mans and GT.

Q But at its peak, as you've said, Lotus wasn't just a motorsport brand, it was an aspirational lifestyle brand. So will you be looking to place Lotus in the likes of Bond films to take it to a different audience?

A We're not going to do this artificially, it comes naturally. Whenever you have the right products that appeal to the right clients in the world, it's a natural next step that people want your product to perform in their activities, be that in movies or other product placement. But in order to do that, we need brand awareness and the right product. I don't think James Bond would ride in a Lotus Elise, even though it's a fantastic car. So let's get a product out there he'd feel comfortable driving."

Q So how will you know that you've succeeded in five to seven years' time? What will the company look like?

A If the company has increased its economic value, if it builds the most beautiful, high-performing, most fuel-efficient sports cars - then I know the company will have succeeded. If we can build 6,000 to 8,000 cars a year, I'll know we have succeeded.

Q Does that mean a step-change in the scale of operations of Hethel?

A At the moment we're building 3,500 cars. If you look at the past, the peak was 5,500 cars. So we need to make some adjustment and investment in facilities but, yes, there will be a step-change and I think we'll be able to do that.

Q You seem to be saying 'there's a great brand here, let's push it, extend it, make it bigger'...

A What we're doing is taking the core of the brand values of today and incorporating them into new products. We simply add products to the range we offer today and extend the segments we are present in. It's not different to what we do today, but there might be products that are a bit more expensive and playing in different segments from where we are in today.

Q So have you come in to Lotus with a mandate from the board to invest and a sum of money behind you?

A I have come into Group Lotus with a mandate to take the company to the next stage.

Q Will the investment in the future mean more people?

A Yes, of course. If the business grows, it will mean more people. But it all depends on how the business develops. I believe car manufacturers have two difficult years ahead and we hope to go through those two years reasonably well with our current products and then be ready to launch our new products."

Q Taking a step back, what was the appeal of coming here?

A I had the good luck to work for one of the biggest brands in the world and I enjoyed every minute of it. But I'm the sort of person that likes challenges and I was attracted by the opportunity to change a reality and help a company take the next step. The biggest trigger was the brand name, Lotus. I had a safe future at Ferrari, but the Lotus brand attracted me - and if it can attract me, hopefully it can attract hundreds of thousands - maybe millions - of other people. That's the opportunity I see.

Q What are your impressions of Hethel and Norfolk in general?

A The little time I've had to see Norfolk, it's a beautiful place. Thank God, the weather, so far, has been OK - and not as bad as people warned me. When it comes to Lotus itself, I am really impressed with what this company is able to produce, manufacture and engineer.

The facilities are not state-of-the-art, we all know that. But the quality of the people and engineering capability is really impressive. I believe that if you compare us with other car manufacturers, we can do more here than any other manufacturer can do with bigger resources. The willingness and the passion that everyone here puts behind the product is really impressive, and it's something similar to my previous experience at Ferrari. It's that extra 20pc that you get from the people on the ground into your products - that's similar to Ferrari. It's really impressive.