Thierry Koskas is the new CEO of Citroën

Vincent Cobée, the current CEO of the Citroën brand, part of the Stellantis Group, will be replaced by Thierry Koskas as of March 1st. Cobée, recently cited in our articles, “has decided to pursue personal projects outside the company”, as it always sounds in official press releases.

“In the light of the growing challenges related to the accessibility of electrified mobility for customers and the arrival of new entrants to the automotive market, Thierry Koskas is appointed Citroën brand CEO and Stellantis Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, effective March 1st, 2023,” the official press release states.

Long relationship

“Building on previous experience as a brand commercial director, Thierry Koskas will take responsibility for the Citroën brand to leverage the brand’s potential in Europe and the world,” the press release continues.

Thierry Koskas will combine his new function with his former Chief Sales & Marketing Officer role at the Stellantis Group level and report directly to the Stellantis Group CEO, Carlos Tavares.

“I have full confidence in Thierry Koskas to carry out these strategic and valuable missions for our company so that Stellantis can lead the way the market moves while developing the iconic Citroën brand,” said Tavares. “Thierry’s dual responsibility is part of a logic of cross-functionality, as is already the case for other EVPs within the Stellantis leadership team.”

“I would like to thank Vincent Cobée for having set the positioning of Citroën within the Stellantis brand portfolio and wish him the best in his future endeavors,” he added.

Koskas (born in 1964)  and Tavares have known each other since working together at Renault under Carlos Ghosn. When ‘second in command’, Tavares left Renault to become CEO of PSA (Peugeot-Citroën at the time), Renault vice president Koskas followed him.

He became the Sales & Marketing boss at Stellantis after the fusion of FCA and PSA in 2021. It’s clear that Tavares and Koskas are ‘fellow travelers’ and that the boss has complete confidence in his new Citroën chief.

Core business

According to the strategic plan within Stellantis, Fiat, and Citroën have to be the core brands in the market, most accessible to potential customers. Vincent Cobée’s task was transforming Citroën into an accessible, fashionable, and sustainable brand. As in the past, Citroën has to lead the way with its innovative thinking without letting price get out of hand.

Unfortunately, we live in a downsized market where premium brands and models are doing well, and others suffer. For example, Citroën’s sales have melted away by one-third since 2019 to some 700 000 cars sold in 2022.

Most of the Stellantis brands regressed in Europe last year. For example, Citroën sold 341 000 cars, according to ACEA, 16,6% less than in 2021, and now has a 3,7% market share, less than Dacia.

Citroën’s best-seller, the C3, still number one in Belgium, is getting old and will be replaced this year. There is already a new version in South America, and in India, Citroën has recently introduced a fully electric version of its C3 sold over there.

Meanwhile, the Citroën brand has attracted quite some media attention with its four-wheeler Ami (growing into a commercial success in a new market segment), and with its ‘out of the box’ concept car Oli, considered by many as a modern interpretation of the iconic 2CV/Méhari.

According to Tavares, Oli will have a series product inspired by it very soon. But all this media goodwill hasn’t been enough to save Vincent Cobée. It’s now on Koskas to return to long-term profitability for a brand that has seldom been out of original ideas but has frequently been in bad financial shape.