Denmark

With $600 million in yearly turnover and the import and distribution rights to Peugeot - Denmark's most popular car brand - as well as several other major brands including Nissan, the Interdan Group is the dominant force to be reckoned with when it comes to autos in Denmark. This is holding increasingly true for the rest of Scandinavia as a well.

While many automakers have had problems entering this market, Interdan, established in 1951, has used its many years of experience and its knowledge of the market to its advantage.

"You could say that we have found the key to selling cars here," comments group director Preben Stenkjaer, who sits with Anders Brun, Chairman of Daewoo Danmark, at their charming offices overlooking the sea outside Copenhagen.
Interdan's Group Director Preben Stenkjaer (left) and Daewoo Danmark Chairman Anders Bruun (right)

"Our competitors have done things very badly. They had a lot of private dealers in Denmark. Then they changed the structure and centralized ownership. That is the opposite of what we have done. To succeed in this business you have to understand the market and all of its intricacies. You have to know the tax system, the culture and the people."

Interdan is structured as a group with independent subsidiaries. The top line unit is Scandi, which holds the Peugeot rights in Denmark and Sweden.

The second unit is Europcar, the biggest car rental company in Denmark with market share of over 30 percent.

The third unit holds the group's Nissan and Daewoo interests. Interdan provides a strong financial umbrella for the subsidiaries. Specialization is delegated to each of the different units below the holding.

The vertical structure goes further. "We have 70 dealers all over Denmark," says Stenkjaer. "You need to be in all corners of Denmark. The dealers are all independent. This is partly our key to success. They are independent and entrepreneurial. They make money for themselves, for us and for the factory."

For Peugeot there is only one brand name in each shop. "It's what we call a 'mono' dealership," he explains. "As we started importing Peugeot in 1956, we have a long history and a long relationship with the brand. We understand it very well."

Interdan has taken its success internationally, a bold step for a Danish car importer. It took over Peugeot Sweden in 1998 - then owned by the factory. Then, Peugeot had a market share of 1 percent. Barely three years later it now has 5 percent of the Swedish market. "We make our dealers into entrepreneurs and they become empowered," Stenkjaer comments. "Our strategy is to have a Scandinavian angle. It could be Norway in the future."

Anders adds: "I think we are in a good position because we are in a small country. The factories want to have their own force in the big countries because of economies of scale. However, they have found out that for the smaller countries like Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries it is better to have privately owned distributors and importers."

In the case of Nissan the company's situation has mirrored the fortunes of the company as a whole in the last eight years and sales have decreased.

"Eight years ago we had a market share of 8 percent but now it is below 3 percent," Stenkaer mentions.

"The reason is that cars produced were too conservative and lacked style, though quality-wise they were probably the best cars in the world."

"We are sure that the tie-up and alliance between Renault and Nissan will bring many positive results," he adds. "We have seen the new models. The combination of Japanese quality with the French style will be great."

Interdan is the biggest company of its kind in Denmark, with a 20 percent market share of the total Danish auto market, counting shares of Peugeot, Nissan and Daewoo.

"For the Japanese, we are their local business partners here in Scandinavia," Anders comments.

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