Stellantis reconsiders corporate presence at auto shows, including Detroit and Toronto

Officials said they are trying to be as efficient as possible in a “challenging automotive market.”

“Stellantis is working to optimize its marketing strategy as it relates to auto shows,” a spokesperson for Stellantis North America told CTV News Windsor in a statement.

Canadian officials are taking it one step further.

“We are encouraging our dealers to evaluate participation in auto shows on a case-by-case basis, while prioritizing opportunities for consumers to experience our vehicles first-hand,” Stellantis Canada authorities said in a statement.

According to the company, Toronto dealers have agreed to pay for “all display and activation costs” at the Canadian International Auto Show (CIAS) coming up Feb. 16-25.

“Leaving it just to the dealers makes a lot of sense and saves a lot of money on the manufacturer side,” Sam Fiorani, vice-president of Global Vehicle Forecasting with AutoForecast Solutions told CTV News Windsor Wednesday.

“This has been a trend for about five or six years now. Manufacturers have reduced their spending on car shows. They just don't see the appeal of spending millions of dollars on a stand to compete with another manufacturer who's 12 feet away,” said Fiorani.

He noted the real point of an auto show is offering consumers a pressure-free way to kick the tires of their next vehicle purchase.

“The glitzy shows that we've been used to for decades are pretty much a thing of the past,” said Fiorani.

He predicted Media Days at the auto shows will slowly continue to shorten and he doesn’t predict multiple vehicle unveilings and news conferences with executives on the same days.

“Whereas, they could spend the same amount of money and bring journalists in to a private unveiling and get a lot more coverage,” Fiorani said.

Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association agreed with Fiorani; it’s a sign of the times and the “waning” interest in flashy unveilings that are for the media only.

“Consumers are getting their vehicle experiences in new ways,” he said.

Volpe is however a big proponent of the CIAS, which he called a “uniquely cultural event” because it is downtown Toronto, in the middle of February when there’s nothing else to do.

He said the CIAS enjoyed its highest attendance from consumers in 2023 with more than 350,000 attendees.

 

The OTHER BIG THREE

Officials with Ford Motor Company and General Motors said they intend to be present at auto shows in 2024.

With respect to large vehicle unveilings, Ford officials only said “It all depends on vehicle introduction timing and when a show date lands. Nothing to share at this time.”

While officials with General Motors added, “plans are to bring the latest from our full portfolio. No big announcements planned but that is always subject to change depending on business needs.”

 

THE CHANGING SCHEDULE FOR NAIAS

On the website for the Detroit show, more commonly known as the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), there are no dates for the 2024 show.

In the last five years, NAIAS has seen numerous changes to its timing.

A decision was made in 2019 to shift to a June schedule, but then the pandemic hit and the show was cancelled outright.

At the time, officials anticipated turning Huntington Place into a hospital; it’s not clear if that ever happened or not.

In September 2020, officials announced a plan to move the show from June 2021 to late September 2021.

It was cancelled again in January 2021 in exchange for an outdoor show to be held on a race track near Pontiac, MI.

The show returned to Huntington Place in September for the shows in 2022 and 2023.

Emails to NAIAS organizers and officials with the Detroit Auto Dealers Association (DADA) which puts on the show every year were not immediately returned.