A car group stands out by selling more sausages than cars, a strategy that ensures its survival

In a world where Volkswagen, Audi, Škoda, and other giants like Porsche and Mercedes-Benz are working at full speed to sell more and more electric cars, an unexpected twist joins the party: a German automotive group finds itself selling more sausages than cars. No, this is not a dark humor joke, nor an absurd scenario from Monty Python, but rather a survival strategy that provokes as much astonishment as cynicism. While Renault, Peugeot, Citroën, BMW, and Fiat are elbowing their way to conquer the automotive market, one manufacturer is putting its weight into another industry, much less glamorous but oh so much more profitable: industrial charcuterie.

Volkswagen and the improbable curry sausage revolution

Forget the roaring engines, leather finishes, or cutting-edge technology found in an Audi or Porsche. The real bestseller right now is a sausage. Yes, you read that right. In 2024, Volkswagen sold an incredible more than 8 million curry sausages, the famous "VW Currywurst" which has now become an institution in the little world of automotive-turned-charcuterie. That's more than the number of new cars sold by the giant across its various brands, including Škoda and Seat. This is enough to make car sedan and SUV enthusiasts grind their teeth, imagining that automotive passion was beyond the reach of packaged sausages.

Strategy or rout? The paradox of unexpected success

In the midst of a crisis where the ability to innovate faces logistical woes and market volatility, this turn towards charcuterie rather than engines illustrates a reality that is both savory and bitter. While Audi, Porsche, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz continue to polish their premium image, some heavyweights of the German industry find it safer to leverage their brand in an ancillary field, in order to compensate.

However, just a few decades ago, this diversification would have been seen as heresy; today it reveals itself to be an indispensable safety net. The German group has thus decided to turn it into a real product line, to the point where sausage sales are now approaching vehicle figures, a strange inversion that commands respect and piques curiosity.

The automotive industry’s dependence on alternative revenue

In this tumultuous economic context where Renault, Peugeot, Citroën, and Fiat are also looking to renew their ranges in the face of ecological and regulatory constraints, this situation raises a clear question: should we soon measure the health of a manufacturer by its sausage sales rather than by its car sales? While Ferrari and Lamborghini remain out of category, the factories in Stuttgart, Munich, or Wolfsburg now aim not just to be vehicle manufacturers, but gastronomic creation workshops for a hungry and hurried public.

A realization that is not without making dentists and nutritionists grind their teeth, but which indirectly demonstrates the incredible adaptability of the sector in the face of a saturated automotive market that is not always quick to embrace electric revolution. This gap could almost bring a smile if the financial consequences were not so crucial.

Volkswagen, Škoda, and Audi in the race for economic survival

With a net profit in free fall, Volkswagen has clearly found in its signature sausage an unexpected lifebuoy. This diversification, far from being a mere marketing gimmick, fits into a pragmatic logic in the face of the sector's challenges. When your sales of Audi, Porsche, or Škoda are shaking, nothing beats a good old sausage to ensure a steady cash flow. A biting irony in the face of brands like BMW or Mercedes-Benz, still locked in their premium ivory tower, and French manufacturers like Peugeot, Renault, or Citroën, who struggle to keep pace in a changing market.

So yes, this story of sausages being sold in massive quantities in mind-boggling proportions is a cocktail blending despair and marketing genius, a scathing rebuke to the sacrosanct classic automobile. Peugeot, Renault, and even Fiat can continue to believe that the future is drawn solely from a car key, Volkswagen has proven that sometimes all it takes is a bit of mustard and a warm bun to stay in the race.

Source: www.ouest-france.fr

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