Sadly enough, the death of the brand created in 1939 by Edsel Ford appears to be of marginal significance for Ford, which announced its demise as an addendum to the press release announcing the expansion of the Lincoln lineup.
"Mercury originally was created as a premium offering to Ford and was an important source of incremental sales. However, the continued strength of the Ford brand – particularly during the past three years – has accelerated the migration from Mercury to Ford for many customers,' Ford starts describing the reasons which led to Mercury's death sentence.
"Today, Mercury’s customer profile, pricing and margins are almost identical to Ford, but Mercury’s incremental sales have been declining."
From the economic standpoint, Ford's decision is undoubtedly welcome, as it will help it avoid the problems which affected its competitors last year. By killing Mercury, Ford will be able to strengthen the Lincoln brand, the one expected to take the majority of the Mercury buyers.
With a market share of only 0.8 percent of Ford's 16 percent slice of the pie, Mercury was the only bad performer in the carmaker's lineup. Even worse for the brand (yet great for the dealers, which will not experience the wind-down pain like their peers from GM and Chrysler), currently there are exactly zero stand-alone Mercury dealerships in North America.
Ford says it has already sent dealers a note informing them of the decision, along with an offer of a financial package for resigning the franchise. Customers are to be informed on how the decision affects them in the following weeks, albeit Ford says the impact on the existing Mercury owners will be minimal.
“We are 100 percent committed to supporting Mercury owners through Ford and Lincoln dealerships and working hard to keep them as valued customers in the future,” Ford says.
“At the same time, we will work closely with our dealers to phase out Mercury franchises and continue to build a healthy, growing Lincoln with strong new products and a profitable dealer network that delivers a world-class customer experience.”
The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) was quick to respond to Ford's announcement saying it is concerned about the 276 who sell only Mercury and Lincoln.
"It's a sad day for this 70-year-old marque, and its loss is disappointing for the more than 1,700 dedicated dealers who sell the Mercury brand," NADA chairman Ed Tonkin said.
"NADA's concern is that Ford treats each of its Mercury dealers fairly and equitably, especially the 276 of whom sell Lincoln and Mercury exclusively. Another important concern is that Mercury customers be reassured by Ford, and that all warranties will be honored and parts and service will continue to be available."
The Mercury killing will make for the fifth brand to have bit the dust in the last ten years, after Plymouth, Pontiac, Saturn and Oldsmobile.
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