Fiat is set to become more Italian in the UK, with its boss promising more colour, more fun and a stronger taste of la dolce vita in dealerships as the brand rebuilds its range and targets a doubling of its market share.
Kristian Cholmondeley, managing director of Fiat, Abarth and Fiat Professional, told The Independent that leaning harder into the company’s roots would help it stand out in a market filled with more rivals that are increasingly difficult to differentiate.
He started with the importance of the retail experience and how that’s going to change. “We’re going to be redoing all our showrooms to give them a more Italian flavour,” he said. The brand will be working on smaller touches designed to make the welcome different from the usual showroom coffee-machine experience.
Asked directly whether he wanted Fiat to become more Italian, Cholmondeley said: “Yeah, I think so. It’s more unique, more standout.” He added: “We play to our strengths, which is Italian, dolce vita.”
Colour is already central to the plan. “Certainly in the UK we have too many grey cars, too many grey skies. Of course, in Fiat we don’t do grey,” said Cholmondeley, who believes the cheerful Grande Panda and enduring appeal of the 500 also give it something many rivals can’t easily copy. That emotional pull still must be backed by useful cars and competitive prices, though.
And the competition is hotter than ever – not least from the fast-growing Chinese brands. Cholmondeley accepts that plenty of buyers care more about value than the badge but believes there is still a large audience that wants a car to say something about them.
“The Chinese, they’re doing very well. They’re in a honeymoon period,” he said. However, he believes the medium-term test will be how much momentum and loyalty the newcomers can retain once the initial launch phase has passed and competition becomes harder.
Fiat, meanwhile, is emerging from what he described as a journey “through the desert”, when its UK range became too reliant on the 500 and then shrank further. The Grande Panda is now leading the recovery, with hybrid and electric versions selling well and a petrol manual model due to make it more accessible still.
The numbers are looking good for Fiat, with combined car and van sales up 32 per cent year-on-year, while retail car sales have risen by a whopping 78 per cent.
He also acknowledged that Fiat had too often overpromised and underdelivered to its retailers in recent years, leaving the network without enough profit. “We haven’t been giving our network enough profitability in recent years,” he said. Rebuilding trust, keeping its plans simple and improving dealer profitability are now central to the recovery.
Cholmondeley expects Fiat to take around one per cent of the UK market this year and grow to two per cent next year. But he insists it won’t chase volume at any cost. “We don’t want to try and be everything to all people,” he said, with small, affordable cars remaining at the heart of the business.
He also predicts that the industry will eventually swing back towards smaller cars playing to Fiat’s strengths – after years of SUV growth, as tougher CO2 targets push manufacturers and buyers in that direction. “The only way, as a society, we’re going to start to meet these tough CO2 targets is by a migration back to more people buying small cars,” he said.
Fiat is nevertheless moving further into the larger family car market, with the Grizzly and Grizzly Fastback due in 2027 and arriving with both electric and hybrid power. The new models – just two of five new EVs joining the Fiat family soon – will take their visual cues from the Grande Panda and are intended to offer family-sized space at what Cholmondeley promises will be a very accessible price.
But he’s determined not to chase big launch numbers at the expense of the longer-term health of the company or its dealers. “I’ll launch a car that is going to be here and succeeding and thriving in two or three years’ time rather than have a really fast start, destroy the residual value and then it’s gone,” he said.
At the opposite end of the range is the tiny electric Topolino, arriving in UK showrooms priced from £8,995. Fifteen dealers have signed up to sell it and, said Cholmondeley: “We’ve already taken 80 orders without any cars actually in the country.” Most orders have come from private customers, although Fiat also sees potential with businesses including airports and holiday resorts.
The 500 is getting a fresh push, too. The Government’s Electric Car Grant has brought the starting price of the 500e down to £17,245, making it £1,750 cheaper than the new 500 Hybrid at £18,995 – it’s no longer the expensive electric option that it was at launch.
With pressure from both sides on the government following its decision to review the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate, Cholmondeley said Fiat supports the current direction and will be compliant this year, with electric vehicles accounting for 23 per cent of its sales so far. However, he believes policy is running ahead of the public.
“The pace of change they’re asking for is not in line with customer demand,” he said. “So, we’re asking for some sort of flexibility on the path and how we get there.” Fiat nevertheless supports the existing 2030 and 2035 dates targeted by the current mandate.
The Fiat Professional van business is also playing an important part in the Fiat recovery, with the Fiat Ducato a major player in the panel van and motorhome markets. However, there’s a role that Ducato takes that gives Cholmondeley particular satisfaction. “One thing I’m unusually proud of is that we’re the number one provider of ambulances to the NHS,” he said.
Talks about electric Ducato-based ambulances are moving in a positive direction, too. “The principle and the demand is there,” said Cholmondeley, although weight and the effect that has on areas such as braking still need to be addressed. He said the van business also helps Fiat deliver the same promise across the company: distinctive design, useful products and prices that remain within reach.
With Fiat’s range growing from the tiny Topolino to the family-sized Grizzly, plus the brilliant Grande Panda and realigned 500 range, Cholmondeley and his team now have more products to work with than the brand has had for years. The challenge will be turning that broader line-up, its renewed focus on affordability and a more distinctive Italian showroom experience into lasting growth, particularly as competition from Chinese brands intensifies and the pressure of the ZEV Mandate continues to build.
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