Mercedes-Benz India appoints Michael Jopp as new sales and marketing head

Mercedes-Benz India has announced the appointment of Michael Jopp as the vice-president of sales and marketing with effect from August 1, 2016.

Jopp takes over from Boris Fitz, who has served for four years in India and will take-up a new assignment with Mercedes-Benz Turkey, the company said in a statement.

Jopp is currently in charge of directing sales strategy and is responsible for sales performance and profitability for Mercedes-Benz Cars in Berlin, Germany, as its head of sales management. He has a rich experience in areas of sales, product and marketing management and an experience of close to two decades in the automobile industry in Germany and other international markets, according to the carmaker.

“Boris played a pivotal role in Mercedes-Benz’s sales growth as the company witnessed a remarkable sales success amidst myriad market challenges,” Roland Folger, managing director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India said.

The Indian arm of German automaker registered its highest ever sales of 13,502 units in the year ending December 2015. However, more recently, sales dipped marginally to 6,597 units during January to June 2016, as against 6,659 units a year ago, due to the ban on registration of vehicles above 2,000cc in its key market of Delhi-NCR.

“We are excited to welcome Michael and are confident that Michael will continue the strong growth momentum of Mercedes-Benz in this highly competitive and dynamic market,” Folger added.