DENIS LE VOT

Dacia's CEO is bucking industry trends to essentials, and focus on value-for-money sales are booming. Mark Tisshaw finds out how - and why - he did it

- Mark Tisshaw

With rising interest rates and inflation, the increased cost of raw materials and the financial burden of meeting ever-stricter legislative requirements, all while funding future electrification plans, cars have never been more expensive.

Yet one brand is using this as an opportunity to offer something relevant and compelling to car buyers in 2023: Dacia. Its boss is Denis Le Vot, and he is our Sturmey Award winner for 2023. The award is named after Autocar's founding editor, Henry Sturmey, and is given for innovation and achievement. In the case of Le Vot, the achievement is seen in the brand's exceptional sales figures across Europe, but his innovation manifests as something altogether different from the norm.

Le Vot is rallying against what he considers an unnecessary creep towards heavy, expensive technology being added to cars that is counterintuitive at a time when attempts are being made to decarbonise cars. He is almost an anti-establishment figure, speaking with clarity and common sense rather than blindly following perceived trends and conventions.

But the cars Le Vot sells are good - really good, actually - and in his two years in charge at Dacia he has overseen a successful refresh of design and rebranded the company at the same time, with the dealerships to come. Customers are flocking to Dacia like never before, with buyers even coming from premium models to a brand that is no longer seen as cheap, but rather bloody good value. Residuals are strong, and the average ownership period of a new Dacia is eight years.