Sicard finds it much more interesting to work in a high pace country than a low pace country. "That's because, you need to challenge yourself, you need to develop the network, you need to develop the training centers and you need to have a strong retention program so that the good elements are staying at your company," he explains. 

Nissan India's ambition of grabbing 10 per cent market share in India by 2017 hasn't really been on track. Sicard acknowledges that. "I think ‘the ten percent story' is something I learnt when I arrived here. For me, it is like a dream; it is a vision. And it is true that ten percent is a market share that every global OEM is aiming at."

Then he reminds us that Nissan (globally speaking), is in the midst of the ‘Power 88' program right now. This program aims to achieve a global market share of eight percent and increase its corporate operating profit to a sustainable eight percent by 2017.

"Eight percent market share is possible in markets like the US where we have been operating for more than 50 years old, or the UK where are more than 40 years old. In India, we are just five years old. So ten percent by 2017 is extremely ambitious," he admits and adds that it still is a dream and a vision.

"If you talk about reality, I think five percent market share by 2020 is something that we should be able to achieve if we keep on developing the brand properly, offering the right products, developing our offers and maintaining the improvement in customer satisfaction that we are doing currently. I think it is possible."

Sicard points out that the Company has two faces in India; the Nissan one and the Datsun one. The iconic Nissan is a car that is priced around ten lakh. It is quite expensive with a very high level of technology content, best in class safety and quality content, and with a design that will keep on evolving.

"Then we have the Datsun side with cars below five lakh globally with the aim of delivering best value for certain budgets. For example, the Datsun Go+ at Rs4.5 lakh has five + two seats, 1.2 l engine, two years unlimited warrant, quite roomy cabin space and enough features to please the customer in that segment. Although it is a bit complex to manage to different brands, we still have an advantage over our competitors," he shares.

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