With slowed sales, Nissan has come up with a plan to handle this change and create the right mix of models and numbers going forward.
In much the same way as other industrial markets of the world, the automotive market is cyclical. While we don’t expect to see as much of a global disaster for the automotive market as we did in 2008, the fact is, the sales in the US have grown to numbers never seen in the past for the past couple of years.
Another factor that contributes to Nissan’s need to reduce its sales numbers in the US has to do with rental fleet sales. The brand increased the number of incentives offered to place an emphasis on the sales of these vehicles in recent years to boost the US market share but this created an adverse effect on profits and the image of the brand. This led to the creation of the 2019 Nissan Altima which is offered with premium looks and a high-end interior to allow the car to reshape the brand likeness and offer us the desired appearance.
The Nissan Reduction Doesn’t Cost Jobs
Many times when an automaker reduces the number of models being sold, jobs are lost. Even though the production of Nissan models will be cut back in North America by 10 to 20 percent by the end of summer, no jobs will be cut. Instead, some shifts may be cut which means some employees will need to stay home on certain weekdays through the summer. The production cutbacks are expected to end once the new Altima is offered for sale in the fall, which makes it possible for all Nissan employees to keep their jobs.
Right now, Nissan operates five plants in North America, two of which are in the US. These two plants are located in Smyrna, TN, and Canton, MS. The Smyrna plant is responsible for the Altima, Maxima, Leaf, Pathfinder, Rogue, and Infiniti QX60 models that are sold in the US while the Canton plant handles most versions of the Titan, the Altima, the NV van, the Frontier, and the Murano. Other Nissan models sold in North America are built at the plants in Mexico. All five plants will experience the same reduction in production for a short period of time.
Because the US market is SUV and truck heavy the leaders at Nissan have thought seriously about changing their lineup. With Ford already announcing its own planned changes to the lineup for the future, it may be time to make some changes that will affect the brand going forward. For now, the plan is to simply reduce the production by a strong percentage but maintain the workforce at the five Nissan plants in North America until the new Altima arrives which is expected to signal an upward change for the brand to be even more successful in the future.
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