Corona crisis: PSA prepares plants - and intensifies online purchasing

The PSA Group is preparing its German Opel plants in Kaiserslautern, Rüsselsheim, and Eisennach for the restart of production, although there is no fixed date yet. The schedule will be discussed in the "societal and commercial context," as stated. During the production pause, a protocol of enhanced health and hygiene measures has been developed.

This includes more than a hundred health and hygiene measures covering all activities of the company, from production to administration and research & development, to sales. Measures regulate the daily issuance and use of individual protective masks, maintaining necessary distance regulations in break areas with floor markings, and implementing expanded hygiene rules. Tools and work surfaces are to be frequently cleaned, and shift changes will be adjusted in advance consultation with the works council to avoid direct contact between employees, it continued.

Digitization of Sales: Everything Online!

Meanwhile, the group is pushing digitization of sales. Financing offers can now be accessed on the manufacturers' sales pages, and vehicles can be selected, ordered, and paid for online.

“Currently, all customers start their search for new vehicles on the internet. Some of them also want to complete the entire process online afterward," explains Thierry Koskas, Director of Sales & Marketing of the PSA Group.

This desire for simple and quickly accessible mobility solutions is now being met at a time when showrooms in numerous countries are closed due to protective measures.

Financing also available online, initially in France

Additionally, the financing offers are available in the Peugeot Store and from the end of April 2020 also in the Citroën Store and the DS Store. Initially, the offers apply to France and are to be expanded to other countries within and outside Europe shortly. Opel/Vauxhall has also launched several local sales initiatives, particularly in Germany, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. "These new sales methods for our vehicles have been tested and validated by our employees," promises Thierry Koskas.

Currently, 89 percent of the PSA Group's sales are already made to employees familiar with the brand's models online. The entire processing on the new websites of Peugeot, Citroën, and DS Automobiles is done with just a few clicks. Leasing offers (with purchase option) start at 83 euros per month.