© Reuters. The Stellantis logo is seen in this illustration taken May 3, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
By David Shepardson
(Reuters) – Chrysler parent Stellantis (NYSE ) said on Friday it will not advertise at next month's NFL Super Bowl, citing the challenging U.S. auto market.
In November, General Motors (NYSE:) said it would not advertise during the much-watched National Football League championship game to reduce marketing costs. Stellantis said earlier this week that it had opted out of the upcoming auto shows in Chicago and Washington.
“With a continued focus on preserving business fundamentals to mitigate the impact of a challenging US automotive market, we are evaluating our business needs and will make appropriate decisions to protect our North American operations,” a Stellantis spokesperson said.
Earlier this week, Stellantis said U.S. sales fell 1% last year to 1.53 million vehicles.
The parent company of Jeep, Chrysler and Ram has often used the Super Bowl for major advertising, including ads starring Clint Eastwood, Eminem, Bruce Springsteen and Bill Murray. A 30-second ad in the 2023 Super Bowl sold for about $7 million.
In November, Stellantis offered 6,400 U.S. salaried employees voluntary buyouts as it works to reduce costs amid the transition to electric vehicles and agreed to a new contract with the United Auto Workers (UAW).
The workers who chose the acquisitions had to leave last week. The company declined to say how many had left.
In April, Stellantis said it was offering voluntary exit packages to 33,500 U.S. employees. That offer covered 31,000 American hourly workers and about 2,500 salaried workers. It also offered some employees in Canada voluntary buyouts.
Under the UAW contract, the company agreed to offer $50,000 buyouts for veteran skilled manufacturing and trade members. It will also offer acquisitions in 2024 and 2026.
Stellantis said on Oct. 31 that it would look to offset a major financial hit from strikes in North America that led to large pay increases, adding that it was considering cost cuts.
