GM’s announcement that it is unlikely to sell iconic automobile brand Saab and will start shutting down the brand in January if a white knight investor does not emerge. Two recent deals have fallen through and the brand is considered too small in automobile sales for most major manufacturers.
Similar to the brand positioning of Apple, Saab has always appealed to free thinkers as shown in the 1995 “Find Your Own Road” commercial above. That appealed to GM who wanted to the yuppie market attracted to Saab.
However, GM failed to protect the authenticity of the brand and in an attempt to save costs be started building Saabs on the same platforms as Opels, Chevrolets and Buicks.
The blanket approach “seemed to make sense to General Motors,” automobile journalist Ray Wert told The New York Times. “Unfortunately, it killed what made Saab Saab.”
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