"The future is not going to be boring." This is one of the many statements made this Thursday by the CEO of Seat, Wayne Griffiths, during the presentation of the annual results of the Barcelona-based automotive company. In an atmosphere of certain euphoria and also a harsh wake-up call to the Government, the executive announced that Seat achieved in 2023 the best financial results in its 73-year history, with a record sales of 14,333 million euros, a 31% increase, and an unprecedented operating profit of 625 million.
The take-off of the Cupra brand ---with 230,739 units sold in 2023, a 50% increase--- and the return to growth of the Seat brand ---288,437 vehicles delivered, with a 24% rise--- have been the keys to the year, along with greater cost efficiencies, which have been reduced by 30% since 2019. Griffiths wanted to thank and share "the pride" for having achieved these results with the company's employees, to whom he announced that they will receive an additional bonus payment of 1,800 euros.
Griffiths took advantage of the event to send two major messages. On the one hand, he assured that the Seat brand is not at risk of disappearing, denying the rumors and speculations that have been in the market and that suggested that the group would focus only on the Cupra brand. Secondly, the executive directed very harsh words against the European Union and the Government, to whom he asked for greater commitment and more speed in the electrification of the automotive sector, assuring that "both investments and jobs are at stake" in the sector. He also expressed himself "concerned about the lack of political stability in Spain" and criticized the dissemination of certain messages "that cause confusion to the consumer."
The executive recalled that the Volkswagen Group is leading investments of 100,000 million euros that can make Spain become a European electric mobility hub. In this sense, he highlighted that construction work is already underway for the Sagunto battery gigafactory and the Martorell battery assembly plant, where the first electric car, the new Cupra Raval, will begin to be manufactured at the end of 2025. "We are doing our homework and fulfilling our commitments to make electric cars more accessible, but we cannot say the same about the EU and Spain," he stated.
Griffiths has asked the Government for more tax incentives for the purchase of this type of vehicle, "which are part of the solution and not of the problem," and has urged to invest much faster in the deployment of charging infrastructure. He has given as an example that the sector has been waiting for more than a month for President Pedro Sánchez to fulfill his commitment to improve the Moves plan. "We have lost two years; we can no longer wait. Investments and jobs are at stake. We have to take it seriously," he warned, after regretting that in 2023 in Europe 22% of cars sold were electric, while in Spain this figure was only 12%. The executive also pointed out that European regulation "is like a straitjacket" that reduces the sector's competitiveness compared to China or the United States.
Griffiths celebrated that Barcelona has reached 1,000 charging points for electric vehicles and assured that the city "can be a benchmark in electrification for other Spanish and European cities." In this regard, the executive reiterated his commitment to the Catalan capital by recalling that Cupra is the official automotive and mobility partner of FC Barcelona, and that the company has signed a strategic alliance to be global partner of the 37th edition of the America's Cup of Sailing and "inspire the world from Barcelona."
The Seat brand "is more alive than ever"
The executive was equally emphatic about the future of the Seat brand, assuring that "it is more alive than ever" and that "it will not disappear." "The Seat brand is here to stay. It will continue to play a key role in ensuring our future,"he pointed out. To do this, he announced the renewals in 2025 of the Ibiza and Arona models and the updates of the Leon and Ateca models to extend their life cycle and ensure that the brand "will continue to grow in double digits." The idea is for it to play "a key role" in the launch of plug-in hybrid and low-consumption cars until the end of the combustion era. At this point, he noted that it is still premature to manufacture a 100% electric Seat car, as it would not be profitable. "We have to wait for the opportune moment. The best is yet to come," he stated. The intention, he advanced, is for Seat to have a basic 100% electric model "that serves as an entry point and to attract young customers."The great engine of the group's profitability and transformation, however, is the Cupra brand, which has received all the CEO's praise for having managed to sell 530,000 units in just six years and increased sales by 51% in 2023. "Cupra is the fastest-growing car brand in Europe. We have left many people surprised and stunned with what we have achieved," he proudly asserted, after recalling a recent study that values the brand at 1.5 billion, placing it in the eleventh position in the ranking of most valued Spanish brands. According to Griffiths, the goal now is to "take Cupra to the next level," with the challenge of reaching a 3% market share in Europe, with an annual sales volume of 500,000 units.
Cupra will arrive in the United States with two models
The offensive that will be carried out this year in new models and also the arrival in the United States will be key to the brand's growth. Thus, the CEO of Seat has announced thatCupra will start selling in the US market "by the end of this decade."Our plan is to launch in the US the electric version of the Formentor and acrossoverlargest electric SUV," explained the executive. The idea is that this second large model will be produced in one of the factories that the Volkswagen Group has in North America. In a first phase, Cupra will launch in a selection of states on the East and West coasts and in states of the so-called Sun Belt.According to the brand, the "heroes" for this new era will be the Cupra Tavascan, its second all-electric model; and the Cupra Terramar, an electrified SUV. New and updated versions of the Leon and Formentor models have also been announced and will be presented in the coming weeks. The new 100% electric urban model Cupra Raval will hit the market in the first half of 2026 and will be manufactured starting next year on the first electric platform to be installed at the Martorell plant (the current Line 1 will be transformed, where the small Volkswagen ID 2all model is also planned to be manufactured). The idea is that this factory can host a second platform to produce larger models starting in 2030.
After the recent opening in Madrid, Cupra plans to open new flagship stores this year, the so-called Cupra City Garage, in Istanbul, Vienna, and Manchester, bringing the total network to twelve garages.