In the first months of the year the Abarth network will move into Switzerland and Austria, followed in the Spring by Germany, Portugal, Greece, Holland and Belgium, and by Spain, the United Kingdom, France and Poland in the Summer.

The Abarth & C. S.p.A structure is agile and fast-moving, in the true spirit of the brand, and it has created its own exclusive distribution network, on four levels: flagship branches, dealerships, specialist tuners and service workshops.

The flagship branches are known as the ‘Officine Abarth’, and there will be four in the world (in Italy, Germany, Great Britain and Japan), representing the brand in the key markets. The Italian headquarters obviously had to be in the historical premises in Corso Marche in Turin, to demonstrate that the link with tradition is not only hypothetical but tangible and concrete.

The second level of the Abarth network is made up of the dealerships, which will be limited in number, and will guarantee a specialist, targeted relationship with all customers. The third level comprises the independent Tuners who will be recognised by the ‘Abarth Assetto corse’ sign, and they will be the real experts of the tuning possibilities and sole installers of the kits. This guarantees respect for all the relevant environmental and safety standards and will keep the make’s hands-on character alive. And finally, the last distribution level comprises the Service workshops which maintain high standards of specialisation, technology and service, guaranteeing the necessary assistance to all Abarth customers.

The marketing network is organised to embody three of the make’s important values: sportiness, relations with the customer and safety, generating a unique ‘shopping experience’ for the customer at every Abarth showroom. The same distinctive elements will identify Abarth on the new European markets that open up in 2008.

In the first months of the year the Abarth network will move into Switzerland and Austria, followed in the Spring by Germany, Portugal, Greece, Holland and Belgium, and by Spain, the United Kingdom, France and Poland in the Summer. The expansion of the marketing network in Europe includes the inauguration of about 60 dealers, 120 specialist tuners and 180 service workshops. For example, the Swiss market, the first to be inaugurated, will have 6 dealers (in Geneva, Zurich, Cadenazzo, Biel Bienne, Spiezwiller and Basel), while Austria will soon have 4 dealers, in the cities of Vienna, Salzburg, Graz and Innsbruck.

We should underline that the choice of dealers is not random; only the best Fiat dealers have been chosen, in order to guarantee an efficient top quality service to customers. All the showrooms will be furnished with a uniform style, a true ‘concentrate’ of concepts and references to the Abarth world: history, sports cars, tuning kits, accessories, merchandising and the racing world.