Astara Philippines, the country's exclusive distributor of Peugeot and GAC Motor vehicles, has announced three new senior leadership appointments to handle its automotive brands. 

These three key appointments begin with Franz Decloedt as Marketing Director for Astara Philippines, handling Peugeot and GAC Motor; Michael John del Pilar as Sales Director for Peugeot Philippines; and Ryan Bermudez as Sales Director for GAC Motor Philippines.

“I am thrilled to welcome Franz, MJ, and Ryan to Astara Philippines as we advance our growth plans in the market. Being seasoned leaders with proven track records in their respective fields, they each bring valuable experience that will help accelerate our momentum for Peugeot and GAC Motor through impactful marketing and sales campaigns,” said Raoul Picello, Managing Director of Astara Philippines.

Industry veterans

Franz Decleodt has more than 20 years of marketing leadership experience. He will drive strategic marketing direction and brand-building efforts for Peugeot and GAC Motor in his new role.

Michael John “MJ” del Pilar is the newly-appointed Sales Director for Peugeot. He will manage the brand’s sales strategies in partnership with Peugeot’s rapidly expanding network of dealers across the country. He also brings 25 years of experience in sales and marketing gained from his previous stints at Honda Cars Philippines, Inc., Volkswagen Philippines, and Sojitz G Auto Philippines.

Ryan Bermudez takes on the role of Sales Director for GAC Motor. A sales leader with extensive experience in the automotive industry, Bermudez directs all sales planning and strategies critical to the brand growth of GAC Motor in the country.

Astara Philippines has established itself as a growing presence in the Philippine market, with Peugeot gaining record-breaking performance, resulting in 285% year-over-year growth in retail sales.

GAC, the other brand handles, is also encountering success after Astara took over its distributorship. The automotive brand recently celebrated another milestone in January with the launch of the GAC Empow and the GAC GS8 (Specs | News).

Familiar names 

We noticed that two of the three appointees were former AC Motors executives with positions in Volkswagen Philippines. 

AC Motors is encountering a company-wide restructuring which could indicate why members of its top brass are moving on to greener pastures.

Things aren’t looking too good at the moment for the group as Volkswagen Philippines is lagging in the market, and Maxus Philippines is also beginning to stagnate.

From what we can see, only Honda, Isuzu, and Kia are doing well under the group’s distributorship, which could indicate that AC Motor is shifting more of its resources to these three brands. 

Do you think these raft of appointments will elevate Astara's brand portfolio in the Philippines?