Stellantis has appointed Bob Broderdorf as head of Jeep in North America as the brand works to reverse a five-year U.S. sales slide.
Broderdorf, previously senior vice president of Ram brand operations, replaces Bill Peffer, who will become head of North American dealer network development. Peffer succeeds Phil Langley, who is retiring after a 40-year career at the former Chrysler Corp.
"Today's moves align with our focus on optimizing operations here in the region and preparing for our future," Stellantis North America COO Carlos Zarlenga said in a Sept. 3 statement. "Bob's diverse experiences in field sales, brand management, marketing strategy and product development will be critical as the Jeep brand launches its electrified portfolio over the next several years. And with his exceptional combination of retail automotive experience and leadership roles at both domestic and import OEMs, Bill will help us raise the bar as we work together with our dealer network to write the next chapter in our transformation."
The changes come shortly after Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares visited Detroit to address the company's troubled North American operations. Stellantis posted a 21-per-cent drop in second-quarter U.S. sales — including a 19-per-cent decline for Jeep — while the rest of the market rose 1.7 per-cent. In Canada, second-quarter sales for Stellantis were off 25.7 per cent and Jeep was down 33.3 per cent, all while the industry was up 3.4 per cent.
