18 February 2018

Citroen is planning on expanding its recently launched city retailing scheme, dubbed La Maison, with locations being assessed for a UK site.

Citroen’s global CEO, Linda Jackson, said: “I would love there to be one in the UK. I was in the UK in January discussing where. It’s not necessarily the ideal place to put it in the middle of London – I want to sell to people that live there, not tourists.”

First revealed by Auto Retail Agenda in June 2017, there are currently La Maison Citroen sites in Belgium, China, Colombia, France, Japan and Morocco, with Jackson saying: “We are planning to have about 30 by the end of 2019/2020 across the world.” There will be three in France’s capital city alone by the time the Paris motor show starts in October this year.

She also said that each site will be more than just a marketing exercise, and the stores will be expected to sell cars. “It shouldn’t just be about presenting a great brand experience it should be about selling vehicles and giving the customers the ability to buy vehicles in a city centre,” she said. The sites will have sales targets like every other retailer.

Jackson didn’t put a precise time on when the first UK site would launch, saying: “It is not imminent, but of course I feel slightly embarrassed that I have got this great idea but I don’t have one in the UK, so the pressure is on the UK team.”

Tags: Citroen, La Maison, Linda Jackson