When Kia UK’s president and chief executive Paul Philpott took the helm in 2007, the company was teetering on the edge of collapse.
Its brand identity was murky, dealers were walking away, customers were unconvinced, and the business had just posted a £50 million loss. Fast forward to 2025, and Kia is now the fourth-largest car brand in the UK, enjoying sustained growth, robust profitability, and the highest levels of dealer satisfaction.
What changed? According to Philpott, it wasn’t magic – it was a meticulous strategy, relentless in its execution, and a refusal to accept mediocrity.
“Why the hell have you left Ford?”
“I am 37 years in this wonderful industry of ours,” Philpott told the NFDA’s recent Diving Automotive event. “I joined Ford of Britain in 1988 and then at the end of 2006, this funny little brand called Kia came after me, and I decided to take the jump.”
The move puzzled many. “Many people at the time asked me, ‘Why the hell have you left the world’s biggest manufacturer to join Kia?’” he recalled. “I guess some of it was about being a bigger fish in a smaller pond.”
But more than that, Philpott was drawn to Kia’s ambition. “They’d just opened their own European plant in Slovakia. They’d just stolen designer Peter Schreyer from Audi and we had this revolutionary idea: a seven-year, fully transferable warranty. That was unheard of.”
Stabilising the ship
By February 2007, Philpott had officially joined as MD and inherited a company in disarray. “Back in 2006, Kia UK lost £50 million. Staff turnover was 30%. Dealer turnover was 30%. There was no core to our organisation.”
Supply far outstripped demand. Dealer relationships were fractured. The network was dominated by heavy discounting and unprofitable fleet deals.
Philpott embarked on a strategy of focussing on three core pillars: raising brand awareness and appeal, building true dealer partnerships and delivering customer experiences that would drive word-of-mouth.
“These are the three things we’re going to focus on,” he told his remaining team. “Nothing more complex than that.”
Laying the foundations
Kia’s early growth came on the back of European-built models like the Ceed and Sportage. But it was the 2010s that was to truly redefine the brand.
“From 2010, every one of our cars, Korean-built or Slovakian-built, was backed by the seven-year warranty,” Philpott said. “It became central to our brand. And in 2014, we launched our first EV, the Soul EV. We’ve been in the EV game now for 11 years.”
The watershed moment came in 2019 when the e-Niro became the first EV – and the first Korean car – to win What Car? Car of the Year. Since then, models like the EV6 and EV9 have claimed top international awards, and in 2024, Kia went on to launch its first electric van.
The strategy to do this was clear to Kia, “Car volume is beginning to plateau,” he explained, “but we’ve got a whole commercial vehicle market that we don’t yet compete in.”
Building the brand
To elevate its brand equity, Kia has taken a long-term, multi-channel approach. From its Surrey County Cricket Club sponsorship and naming rights to The Kia Oval to its flagship West London showroom, the brand has moved away from its budget past.
“Back then, the brand was known as a substitute for cheap used cars,” Philpott said. “Now, we’re 90% through rolling out our new store concept. It’s worth going to see.”
But it’s not just about perception – it’s about results. In 2007, Kia sold just under 30,000 cars and had a 1.2% market share. By 2023, sales had grown to over 212,000, a 5.7% share, placing Kia number 4 in the UK.
“There are only two years in the last 18 where we went backwards – after scrappage, and during COVID. Every other year, we grew. And sustainable, profitable growth has been the mantra ever since.”
“You can’t build trust overnight”
Central to Kia’s transformation has been the revitalisation of its dealer network.
“Profit and partnership,” Philpott emphasised. “If you’re making money and we’re not, the partnership comes under pressure. If we’re making money and you’re not, the phone doesn’t stop ringing.”
The result? From an average annual net profit per dealer of £84,000 in the late 2000s, Kia dealers now average £373,000, with many earning more.
Philpott credits much of this to service plans, used car programmes, and PCP finance which today supports 70% of retail sales after Kia created its own finance arm, Kia Finance, in 2011 in partnership with Santander and Hyundai Capital.
“Despite pressure from dealers to move to four-year PCPs to lower monthly payments, we’ve stuck to three years,” Philpott said. “It helps with renewal and customer retention.”
That same thinking underpins the approved used programme, which ensures high residuals and strong workshop throughput. “Today, our biggest challenge in aftersales is capacity and lead times – not enough space.”
Proof in satisfaction scores
In 2006, Kia scored a lowly 3.9 out of 10 in the NFDA dealer satisfaction survey. “It took four years to build a partnership that the dealers trusted,” Philpott said. “You cannot create a partnership overnight.”
By 2016, Kia had entered the top three brands in the survey – and for the last five surveys, it has ranked number 1.
“It’s very good to report to the board in Korea that our dealers are more satisfied with us than any other brand.”
When he eventually retires, Philpott says there are two charts he’ll hold up: the sales growth and the NFDA satisfaction chart. “That’s the real achievement,” he said. “Not just what we sold, but how we did it – and who we did it with.”
When Philpott is asked to explain what makes a successful franchise partnership, his first response is characteristically grounded: “It’s not rocket science.” But while the principles might be simple – respect, integrity, trust – the execution is anything but passive.
Kia’s rise to the top of the NFDA Dealer Attitude Survey wasn’t accidental. It was a methodical, values-led transformation, shaped by one core belief: success is built on true partnership.
“Without respect and integrity, your partnership will decline,” Philpott states plainly. But beyond those fundamentals, he’s spent years building a culture based on eight strategic pillars – what he calls the “wall” that holds the whole relationship up.
A unified direction is essential. “There’s no point in the dealers thinking Kia is going one way if we’re all in our offices planning a different future,” he says. Kia invests in transparency – literally. Dealers are flown to Korea to witness firsthand the scale and seriousness of Kia’s global ambitions.
What’s Next?
Looking forward to 2030, Philpott’s focus is on maintaining momentum, responding to new competitors, and futureproofing the franchise model.
“It’s about selling the journey,” he said. “Making sure everyone knows where Kia is going. What does the franchise look like in five years? How do we counter the newcomers? Our success hinges on being able to answer those questions – and to bring the dealers with us.”
Central to that is Kia’s multi-tiered communication system which includes national conferences, regional meetings, quarterly business updates, monthly letters, and in-person dealer visits. “If a dealer invests a million pounds in a new showroom, someone from Kia should be there to open it,” Philpott says. “They’re proud of what they’ve built – and they should be.”
“Words must match actions,” Philpott insists, noting that if he says one thing on stage, but the business does another, trust unravels. Everyone, he says, from the CEO to the field team must carry the same message.
That is no doubt supported by the fact that Kia’s UK board shares a combined 90 years of experience with the brand. In contrast, Philpott notes that brands struggling in the NFDA survey often suffer from “revolving door” leadership: “They set a new vision, change a few things, then leave. How can you build a partnership on that?”
Level playing field
When he joined Kia, the best-performing dealers were the wealthiest – able to buy huge volumes of discounted cars. “We changed that,” he says. “Now all 92 Kia partners operate on the same standards and profit opportunities.”
Kia also dispensed with mystery shopping and audits, relying instead on open scorecards and regular engagement. “It takes years to build trust and one meeting to destroy it,” Philpott says. But when dealers are trusted, they step up.
He noted that while other international car makers may love complexity with layers of programmes, slogans, and heavy binders. Kia doesn’t. “Keep it simple. Focus on the customer, the partnership, and profit,” he says.
Philpott is adamant that both manufacturer and dealer must face the same risks – and share in the rewards.
Kia rejected post-COVID trends to go direct-to-consumer and resisted European pressure to adopt an agency model. “That would have undermined our franchise partners,” he says. “Instead, we watched others try it and mess it up. That became an opportunity for us.”
Not becoming followers
Philpott adds one last principle like a footnote: don’t chase fads that destabilise relationships. Online-only car sales and agency models may look modern, but he believes they strip out what matters most – human connection.
“We want customers in showrooms, speaking to trained staff, not just clicking boxes. People still want to buy from people. A £60,000 car is not a vending machine purchase.”
Philpott doesn’t pretend it’s easy. From ZEV mandates to rising costs, the road ahead is tough. But he’s insists that facing it together – with honesty, aligned incentives, and mutual respect – is what sets Kia apart.
“Some brands are walking away from Europe. Some legacy names may not make it. But we’ve got the product, the people, and the partnerships. That’s our edge.”
Asked whether this kind of leadership can be taught, Philpott doesn’t hesitate: “No. You can’t send someone on a course for it. It’s about vision, direction, and getting 190 dealers running in the same direction because they believe in the brand.”