SEAT SETS NEW HALF-YEAR SALES RECORD IN UK

• SEAT UK first-half 2014 sales up 20.2% compared to 2013, to record 27,342 units and market share of 2.1%
• Impressive 32.2% surge in retail sales, led by Ibiza and Leon
• Ibiza becomes sixth best-selling supermini in UK June retail market
• SEAT international sales increased by 9.9% between January and June 2014

SEAT’s inexorable rise continues, as the brand’s just reported a new half-year sales record in the UK. For the third consecutive year, the Spanish brand eclipsed its previous year’s sales performance between January and June. This time, it rocketed by over 20% to 27,342 units, eclipsing its 2013 performance by a considerable 4,590 units.

Led by a stellar Leon performance, and the continued success of Ibiza, SEAT outpaced the UK market’s own 10% growth by a further 10%. One of the most impressive statistics in the figures, recently revealed by the SMMT, was the Latin firm’s 32.2% surge in retail sales, to 15,341 and a market share increase of 0.4% to 2.5%.

Within SEAT’s six-model line-up, the ever-popular Ibiza range spearheaded the charge, with 11,897 sales. It narrowly held off the surging Leon, at 11,481, boosted by the recent impact of the ST (1,800) and flagship Cupra. Notably, 1,577 Ibizas found homes with retail customers in June, up over 21% on the same month last year.

Commenting on its latest set of impressive sales figures, SEAT UK Director Neil Williamson, said, “It’s been a great week. Only a few days ago, we collected three prestigious trophies at the Auto Express awards and now here we are celebrating our best-ever first-half sales results in the UK. It’s a tremendous result and one the team and our Retailer partners should be very proud of. We’re on track for our most successful year ever, but with several more launches in the pipeline and a focus on both retail and fleet business in the months ahead, we won’t be resting on our laurels any time soon.”

Looking ahead, a series of new and recent introductions, are set to bolster SEAT’s performance even further. The recent introduction of I-TECH special editions across the Mii, Ibiza, Toledo, Altea and Alhambra ranges, plus the special edition Ibiza 30 years, to celebrate its latest milestone, are sure to cement the brand’s standing.

The striking new Mii by MANGO is already getting in on the act, with 50 examples having already been snapped up even before it officially launches in showrooms on 1^st August. Not to be outdone, the Leon range gains a new member of the family too. In September, when ordering opens, the four-wheel-drive X-PERIENCE joins the ST fold, giving SEAT a presence in the growing compact crossover/off-roader segment.

SEAT soars internationally – best result for six years with sales up almost 10%

SEAT’s impressive sales success was mirrored outside the UK too. The brand ended the first half of 2014 having delivered 200,200 vehicles, 9.9% more than in the first half of 2013 (182,200). Posting its best result in the last six years, it even exceeded the figure of 200,000 units delivered for the first half of a year since the beginning of the economic crisis in 2008.

Main European markets boost sales

SEAT increased deliveries by 10.5% in Western Europe for the first half of the year (158,300; 143,300 in 2013) and achieved a market share of 2.5% (2013: 2.4%).

Growth in production and jobs at Martorell

Martorell, the production plant where the majority of SEAT vehicles are built, closed the first six months of the year with 11.1% growth compared to the same period in 2013, with a total of 239,100 units built, almost 24,000 more (2013; 215,200). Thanks mainly to the increase in production of the Leon, this year more than 550 temporary workers have been hired by SEAT; and in March a third shift was added to the line producing the Leon.

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SEAT is the only company in its sector with the full-range capacity to design, develop, manufacture and market cars in Spain. A member of the Volkswagen Group, the multinational has its headquarters in Martorell (Barcelona), exporting more than 80% of its vehicles, and is present in more than 75 countries. In 2013 SEAT achieved a business volume of 6,473 million euros, the highest figure in its history, with worldwide sales of 355,000 units.

SEAT Group employs 13,500 professionals at its three production centres – Barcelona, El Prat de Llobregat and Martorell, where it manufactures the highly successful Ibiza and Leon, amongst other models. Additionally, the company produces the Alhambra in Palmela (Portugal), the Mii in Bratislava (Slovakia) and the Toledo in Mladá Boleslav (Czech Republic).

The Spanish multinational also has a Technical Center, a ‘knowledge hub’, bringing together more than 900 engineers whose goal is to be the driving force behind innovation for the number one industrial investor in R&D in Spain. In line with its declared commitment to environmental protection, SEAT undertakes and bases its core activity on sustainability, namely reduction of CO₂ emissions, energy efficiency, as well as recycling and re-use of resources.

For more information, please contact:

Juliet Carrington, Head of Press and Public Relations
01908 548 077; 07795 166 422; juliet.carrington@seatcars.co.uk

Mike Gale, Product Affairs Manager
01908 548 069; mobile: 07788 339 722; email: mike.gale@seatcars.co.uk

Adrienne Pearson, Press Fleet Executive
01908 548 364; 07908 165 535; adrienne.pearson@seatcars.co.uk

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