Booming Cupra sales returns Seat to profit

Seat S.A. has turned a profit for the first time since 2019 as a result of growing demand for its Cupra models.

While the volume of cars sold by the Volkswagen Group business in 2022 was 4% lower than 2021, due to semiconductor shortages, its turnover grew 14% versus 2021 and revenue per vehicle increased by 18%.

The company has already had a strong start to 2023, with 71,500 deliveries in the first two months of the year. This is a rise of 27% compared to the same period in 2022 and paves the way for increasing sales in 2023. Seat brand deliveries rose 12%, while Cupra delivered an increase of 75%.

Wayne Griffiths, CEO of Seat S.A., said: “Prioritising Cupra, implementing a new cost reduction plan and reshaping the way we work were crucial to guarantee long-term stability for the company. Seat S.A. also took a major step forward towards electrification when, together with the Volkswagen Group, PowerCo and the Future: Fast Forward partners, we committed to invest 10 billion euros in transforming Spain into a European hub for the electric vehicle.”

Cupra grew its UK fleet registrations by 42% last year, against a backdrop of an overall decline in UK new car fleet sales.

The brand's fleet sales were helped by the launch of the Cupra Born and the ongoing appeal of Cupra Formentor, says the manufacturer.

Cupra will continue to drive growth for the business in the coming years. A product offensive will begin in 2024 with the launch of the Cupra Tavascan and Cupra Terramar, followed by the Cupra UrbanRebel, in 2025. These new models will allow the brand to enter new segments and markets and reach its mid-term goal to sell 500,000 cars a year.

Electric powertrains will be predominantly focussed on the Cupra brand, with Seat continuing to offer combustion engine models.

Griffiths explained: “We cannot electrify both brands at once. Seat is combustion. Cupra is BEV."

Seat's turnover grew 14% from €9.3m to €10.5m. This is the second-largest turnover in the company’s 73-year history, behind 2019’s record €11.2m. Profit after tax increased €324m to €68m (2021: €-256m).

Fellow VW Group brand Skoda increased its global revenues by 19% in 2022. It delivered 731,300 cars last year, representing a drop of 16.7% on the previous year. Skoda's profits were hit by its exit from the Russian market.