The Belgian manufacturers association Febiac has lost its communication director (again). Gabriel Goffoy, who came over from BMW Belux to succeed Joost Kaesemans in September 2021, is returning to its old barn to become General Manager of Mini Belux.

Goffoy started his career at BMW in 2003 and introduced Mini (the newly created brand under BMW parenthood) again on the Belgian market. Further in his career, he led the BMW dealership in Brussels (when it was still dependent on the importer) and later moved on to board membership of BMW Group Belux when he became Commercial Manager.

“We are delighted that Gabriel is coming back into our organization,” states Alexander Wehr, CEO of BMW Group Belux. “His profound knowledge of the sector and long-time BMW experience make him the right person to lead our Mini branch.”

“The dynamism typical for Gabriel is perfectly fitting an innovative brand like Mini that is at the brink of an unseen model offensive and will also change its distribution model,” he adds.

Back to the old barn

Gabriel Goffoy reacts: “I’m grateful to BMW Group Belux for their confidence, and I’m looking forward to a renewed collaboration with the Mini team, the dealers, and the customers. These latest years, I’ve accumulated experiences inside and outside the BMW organization. I will now use them to add new chapters to the story of Mini in Belgium and Luxembourg.”

Goffoy is succeeding at Mini Belux Joachim Sas, who had marketing and sales responsibilities at Mini Belux for five years and led the Mini team the last years. Sas left the company to pursue other challenges. Goffoy will take the reigns of General Manager at Mini Belux as of the 1st of September 2023.

Abandon ship?

Goffoy has been the communication director at Febiac during a very turbulent period. Because of the pandemic, there were no Brussels Motor Shows in 2021 and 2022, and the association had to cut heavily in its personnel to compensate for the lack of income, the BMS being the most significant source of revenue for Febiac.

At the beginning of this year, there was a BMS again, but it only attracted 270 000 visitors because it was smaller and the period was shorter. Some thought it was a good restart; others were less positive. In 2024, there won’t be a live Brussels Motor Show because one of the major players, D’Ieteren, decided not to invest in a Brussels Motor Show for 2024.

There’s a possibility of a sort of car show in January in Brussels, organized by a Dutch group, but this will be completely different, and Febiac has nothing to do with it. The sector association will have to reinvent itself and its core business, and that will be with a new director of communication. A successor for Goffoy at Febiac hasn’t been appointed yet.