Stellantis dealers pin US turnaround hopes on new CEO

By Nora Eckert and Kalea Hall

DETROIT (Reuters) -U.S. dealers of Jeep SUVs and Ram pickup trucks are pinning their hopes on new Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa to turn around months of disappointing sales and weakening trust.

The 51-year-old Italian national, named on Wednesday to run the global automaker, has already had plenty of facetime with U.S. dealers as chief operating officer of the Americas since December, when Carlos Tavares abruptly quit as CEO.

Sliding U.S. market share factored into Stellantis' search for a new leader.

"He knows what he's doing. He has a manufacturing and quality background, which is important to us," said former Stellantis National Dealer Council Chairman Kevin Farrish of Filosa.

Farrish was the top signature on a letter in September admonishing Tavares for a pricing strategy that retailers complained led to a steep sales decline.

Tavares had pushed for cost cuts that alienated many car sellers, suppliers and unions. The company faced lawsuits from shareholders and unfair labor practice charges from the United Auto Workers union.

Stellantis has since been working to repair these connections and lift the company's stock price and North American sales. It brought back longtime executives such as Ram Chief Tim Kuniskis to lead its brands. Filosa has been meeting with dealers around the country and is expected to speak with the Stellantis dealer council on Wednesday.

The turnaround after Tavares' departure has been slow. First-quarter net revenues fell 14% year-over-year globally, and were down 25% in North America. Shipments in the region also faltered.

Filosa is tasked with reversing this slump while facing billions in added costs from tariffs on imported cars that U.S. President Donald Trump implemented in April. Stellantis and some other automakers have suspended their annual guidance, citing uncertainty around the levies.

The company in 2024 imported over 40% of the 1.2 million vehicles it sold in the United States, mostly from Mexico and Canada.

Mark Trudell, general manager of Extreme Dodge Chrysler Jeep dealership in Jackson, Michigan, called Filosa's appointment the "right decision" at this time.

"Everything I hear from the inside is that he knows the North America market better than his predecessor," Trudell said. Stellantis executives need to prioritize where to go with the electric-vehicle market and how to handle tariffs, he added.

Thad Szott, dealer partner at Szott Auto Group, said Filosa came to his dealership in White Lake, Michigan, more than a year ago and talked to him for about an hour.

"He has had a lot of experience, listens to U.S. dealer feedback, and I'm optimistic we will start taking U.S. market share back," Szott said.

(Reporting by Nora Eckert and Kalea Hall in Detroit; Editing by Mike Colias and Richard Chang)