Tag Archives: GM

If you live in Sweden, as I do, you realize that as a foreigner (American) on Swedish soil I see Scandinavians in a light, culturally, that they often don’t see themselves. To cater to clichés, it is the land of ABBA, Ikea, and of course Saab cars. These things are held dear. Trust me. To poke fun at the sometimes, shoddy craftsmanship or slightly dodgy company politics of Ikea is akin to kicking a Swede in the groin. They love Ikea, wholeheartedly, and the same can be said for Saab. These are their global goliaths, and quite rightly, they’re proud.

So, it has been with great consternation, that everyone I know here in Stockholm has been following the latest details of what I called, until a few days ago, “the Saab story” and are now rejoicing that their once great brand is in hopefully better hands. Spyker, a small luxury Dutch carmaker is the company saving the day for almost 4,000 Swedish jobs, a national treasure, and well, a pretty great car that’s been in production for over seventy years. I think it’s probably fair to say that GM did a pretty poor job of selling a trustworthy and quirky (by American standards) brand to the public – a brand I can imagine wasn’t exactly a priority at GM HQ.

All brands have to paint an immediate picture in one’s mind, even if it’s a negative one. The problem, I think, with Saab is that they have been languishing without a brand presence since GM took over in 2000, and consequently, have been losing money for the Americans year after year. With a little TLC and creativity from their new Dutch parents, this could be a re-born brand and one that can compete on the battlefield of today’s automotive world. I, for one hope so, because I think the Swedes need their icons, and the world could certainly use a better car than GM’s hummer winning over the hearts of the population.