DETROIT — General Motors next year plans to launch a Cadillac-badged financing brand for its luxury customers and dealers, according to an internal memo obtained by Automotive News.
Cadillac Financial, which will operate as part of the GM Financial business, will include a concierge service, a new website and Cadillac-certified customer experience teams, according to a September memo to employees from Kyle Birch, president of North America operations. GM Financial plans to launch the Cadillac-badged service in mid-2022.
Most automakers with a captive finance arm have established separate brands for their luxury lines. For example, Ford Motor Credit backs Lincoln Financial Services, and Toyota Financial Services backs Lexus Financial Services. Breaking Cadillac out of the broader GM Financial fold is part of a broader vision to create a more personalized and streamlined experience for GM’s luxury brand as it leads GM’s transition to electric vehicles.
“While our initial focus is on the Cadillac customer’s luxury experience and marketing channels, we continue to talk with Cadillac leadership and dealers to determine what other opportunities or value may exist,” Birch said in the memo. “I am confident in our ability to bring continued value to our Cadillac dealer network, our Cadillac customers and our parent company in building Cadillac Financial.”
Under the broad GM Financial umbrella, there is no difference between the financing experience for a Chevrolet customer and a Cadillac customer, said Ed Williamson, dealer principal of Williamson Cadillac-Buick-GMC in Miami.
He hopes Cadillac Financial will be a differentiator.
“The good news is they are trying to do something, and it’s going to be constructive,” Williamson said.
