Brand Ambassadors in Trollhättan for a sneak-peak of NEVS future

Two weeks ago representatives of NEVS company presented they new #NEVS brand to Saab enthusiasts from Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands.

In fact, for this new brand and valuable and professional employees in the company NEVS – this visitors are not just ordinary car enthusiasts, they are true Brand ambassadors.

Here’s How did this visit experienced employees of NEVS –  these are their impressions:

The last weeks of June was pretty eventful. Our new NEVS brand was born, with simultaneous internal launches in Sweden and China, followed by several media events to support the news.

The preparations had been going on for quite some time and when we were discussing the different target audiences to reach out to, a key group stood out: the Saab car community. Saab cars have always enjoyed an extremely loyal fan base. In fact, hundreds of fan clubs are blooming around the world and many thousands of enthusiasts are still very devoted to the brand. It was crucial for us to reach out to this community in conjunction with the decision to continue our journey as NEVS.

Not just to explain the rationale behind the name change, but to really re-engage and to extend an invitation to join us on the journey we have set off on. So on the morning of the 21st, in parallel to our press release hitting the wire, we sent personal invitations to several Saab car clubs around the world to join us for a special program the day after. Given the sensitivity around the announcement, we weren’t able to contact people earlier but despite the challenge of the very short notice we were extremely happy to see representatives from Germany, The Netherlands and Sweden at our headquarters in Trollhättan, Sweden. Brand new NEVS flags and bright sunny skies were welcoming Saabblog.net, Saabclub Nederland, Saab Turbo Club Sweden, Svenska Saabklubben, Saab Museum and the Saab Veterans organization.

Lunch was served, but only after Jonas Hernqvist, VP Sales & Marketing at NEVS, had shared the company strategy. An animated Q&A session followed, where the ambassadors got the opportunity to speak directly to Jonas and several other key NEVS colleagues. The next stop was a visit to the press and body shop. Three shiny jet black MY14 9-3’s took the group over to the factory on the far end of the Stallbacka complex.

We were welcomed by the manager of the award-winning facility and the guided tour started with an extensive explanation of the production process. Metal noises sounded, a scent of oil was clearly noticeable and workers were busy preparing the factory for the start of the production of the painted bodies of the new electric NEVS 9-3.

Excitement and expectation levels rose exponentially when we arrived in the reception of the Technical Development Center. What we were going to be witnessing was both very special and quite confidential and two security guards kindly requested everyone to hand in their cameras and phones. An unobtrusive grey door on the 1st floor opened and a big hall revealed itself. The location for all concept cars and clay models was lit through huge windows in the roof and surrounded by more windows from the higher floors in the building, allowing design engineers great visibility. Director for Chassis and Powertrain, Hans-Martin Duringhof, explained the design and development process and shared the details of two earlier concept cars.

After a short coffee break, the group was welcomed on the design floor by Andreas Barbunopulos, head of the NEVS creative design department for the final –and most exclusive – part of the day. With the knowledge that access to this part of the building is restricted for all third parties and for nearly all NEVS employees, entering this spacious and creative looking department was extra special.

Andreas and his team started talking about several of the classic Saab designs, plus a number of the recent exterior design studies. A demo of the computer-aided design process followed and the session closed with an extensive overview of interior designs, including color and material options.

What a day it had been! It was a great pleasure and honor to host this distinguished group of ambassadors. Our aim is to continue the dialogue with all Saab car ambassadors around the world…our movement is in motion!