The 50 year old executive will not have the summer to himself, even if he is scheduled to take the new office in September. Until then, Muir will join the VW group in April and work with Schmitt for five months to ensure the transition. The man he replaces will move further up the VW's corporate ladder and will take on new responsibilities in the group.
Martin Winterkorn, Volkswagen Group CEO said Schmitt achieved “significant progress” as Seat boss since his arrival in 2006, helping the company return to profitability in 2007, after a 160 million euro loss in the previous year.
Muir, who became Mazda's CEO in 2005, has a difficult task ahead, as Seat is regarded as a very poor performer in the Volkswagen Group for some time now, partly due to its yet unclear brand image and the fact that it's largely dependent of the Spanish market. In 2008, the company registered a 13 percent drop in its already not so glorious sales volume.
Muir's place within Mazda Europe was taken by Jeffrey H. Guyton, who had to take the office right away because of the sudden departure of its CEO.
“We appreciate the contribution made by James Muir. Under his leadership, Mazda Motor Europe has reached new heights, and we wish him well for the future,” Takashi Yamanouchi, Mazda Corporation CEO had to say about his former employee.
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