20/05/2004 - Saab Cars USA to relocate headquarters to Detroit

Saab Cars USA’s corporate headquarters will be relocated from Norcross, Georgia to the General Motors world headquarters at the Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan. The move will take several months and Saab’s new corporate office should be fully operational by September 7, 2004.

"This move will allow us to save a significant amount in facilities and other structural costs and re-direct those resources to areas that support the growth of the Saab brand in the U.S. market," says Debra Kelly-Ennis, Saab Cars USA’s President and COO. "As is true for Cadillac or Hummer, Saab will retain its unique brand identity and heritage, and continue to provide its customers the same excellent ownership experience."

Examples of back office support areas Saab will utilize include employee benefits, dealer training, purchasing and accounting administration, vehicle distribution and legal counsel.

In a similar move, over the past several months, Saab Automobile AB and General Motors Europe have consolidated sales, marketing and engineering operations throughout Europe. This consolidation has resulted in synergies that have reduced fixed expenses, eliminated redundancies and streamlined internal work processes. Saab in Europe has been able to tap into GM Europe’s vast resources, and this has improved Saab’s competitiveness in the top markets there.

Saab Cars USA field employees continue to work from the GM regional offices they were recently co-located to and Saab Cars USA’s field force continues to report directly to Saab Cars USA.

Saab Cars USA, is the importer and distributor of the new Saab 9-2X, 9-3 and 9-5 automobiles, parts and accessories.