Re: Would it have been easier to salvage Packard than Studebaker?

Posted by HH56 On 2010/11/24 15:53:06

Interesting research. I don't think Packard ever had more than 5 or so% even back in the day of the three P's. Packard made some miscues post war, no question. A couple of threads are here early on about some of the reasons why but believe stodgy styling vs the Earl machine and lack of or quality of dealerships were the main ones.

Pre 55, Packard really was conservative. They catered to the older person who really wasn't into flash while Cadillac and to some extent the others was going the opposite and attracting younger buyers or those who wanted to be or thought they were. Seem to recall that Cad also had some very aggressive pricing as well and could make relatively small profit because they had the other divisions to carry the load.

Dealerships were an issue Nance tried to tackle almost as soon as he arrived. Many were run down, or had multiple makes & pushed those they might see more profit on. Believe one of his memo's on the subject said they didn't deal and would only settle on list price while the Cad or Lincoln guy would do whatever it took to move the merchandise. Location was another. I grew up in a rather sparsely populated area. Lincoln, Imperial was represented in the small town, Cadillac maybe an hour away but Packard was 2-3 hrs away and that probably was the norm for them in more than one area.