D’Ieteren Automotive Announces Strategic Transformation: 344 Jobs at Risk
D’Ieteren Automotive, Belgium’s largest car distributor and exclusive importer of Volkswagen Group brands, announced a sweeping strategic transformation plan on Thursday that could eliminate up to 344 jobs. The company presented the restructuring proposal to its works council, triggering the legal information and consultation procedure under Belgium’s Wet-Renault framework for collective redundancies, as VRT NWS reported.
The company, which employs approximately 2,945 full-time equivalents, said the job cuts would primarily affect white-collar workers (236 positions), with about 100 blue-collar roles also at risk. The impact will be felt most acutely at the headquarters in Ixelles, Brussels, though other locations will also be affected.
A Sector in Radical Transition
D’Ieteren Automotive cited a confluence of structural forces driving the transformation, including the decarbonization of the vehicle fleet, the evolution of mobility applications ahead of Belgium’s mandatory mobility budget taking effect in 2027, AI-accelerated digitalization, and intensified global competition. The company stated that these trends are permanent in nature, alongside the structural market decline observed since the COVID pandemic.
“Some activities, functions and structures no longer align with the future market reality,” the company said in a press release. “The project provides for the closure of certain locations, the consolidation of certain functions, the reorganization of multiple teams, and the optimization of the network to better respond to market expectations.”
The announcement sent shockwaves through the workforce. Jean-Paul Sellekaerts, ABVV union secretary, told HLN that while some restructuring was anticipated given the turbulent market, the scale came as a surprise. “We knew something was brewing because the market is turbulent, but we were shocked by the scale of the restructuring.”
According to Sellekaerts, management intends to close several garages and reduce the bodywork department, including operations in Zaventem.
From Car Sales to Mobility Services
The transformation marks a fundamental pivot for the company, which is shifting from a model focused on new vehicle sales toward one built around mobility, services, and sustainable customer relationships. The restructuring plan, covering the period 2026-2030, is structured around six pillars: strengthening used car sales, offering an integrated ecosystem spanning financing, maintenance, insurance, and mobility services, accompanying customers throughout the full vehicle lifecycle, simplifying processes to optimize productivity, streamlining the customer experience, and reinforcing operational excellence across the network.
CEO Denis Gorteman framed the transformation as an opportunity rather than a retreat. “Market developments force us to transform our model,” Gorteman said, as reported by Transportmedia. “Our ambition is to sustainably strengthen our leading position by accompanying our clients throughout their entire mobility journey. Today, D’Ieteren has strong assets to make this transformation a success: a robust strategy, a unique ecosystem on the Belgian market, and development opportunities through our mobility services, whether it’s Poppy for shared cars, Lucien for bicycles, or D’Ieteren Energy.”
The company has been steadily expanding beyond traditional vehicle distribution into mobility ventures including Poppy (car sharing and leasing), Lucien (bicycle retail), D’Ieteren Energy (charging infrastructure), and Taxis Verts. As Belgium’s dominant automotive distributor, D’Ieteren manages approximately 1.4 million Volkswagen-brand vehicles in circulation nationwide and holds a leading 22.8% market share in the passenger car segment.
A Legacy Company Under Pressure
The restructuring is the latest chapter in a storied corporate history. Founded in 1805 by Jean-Joseph D’Ieteren in Brussels, the company has operated continuously for over two centuries under family control. Its automotive division began in 1948 when Pierre D’Ieteren signed the import contract for the Volkswagen Beetle, establishing a partnership that would make D’Ieteren Automotive the dominant car distributor in Belgium.
This is not the company’s first major restructuring. In June 2020, D’Ieteren Auto announced a transformation plan threatening 211 jobs amid the COVID crisis and structural market changes, as BRUZZ reported at the time. A year later, in September 2021, plans to close two D’Ieteren Centers sites triggered a strike at the company’s Ixelles facilities, with workers protesting proposed changes to wages and working conditions, according to BRUZZ.
The broader context is equally challenging. The Belgian automotive sector faces unprecedented structural transformation driven by electrification, changing mobility patterns, and intensifying global competition. La Libre described the sector as facing a transformation “without precedent,” with these elements creating “a radically new environment” that will persist over the long term.
What Happens Next
The company has initiated the Wet-Renault procedure, which requires employers to inform and consult with employee representatives before implementing collective dismissals. During this consultation phase, management will listen to employee representatives, answer their questions, and evaluate counter-proposals. Following this process, the Board of Directors will make a final decision on the proposed project.
D’Ieteren Automotive has stated that the plan will not impact customer relations or the continuity of independent dealers’ activities. The company’s promise of no disruption to its dealer network and customer-facing operations will be tested as the consultation process unfolds in the coming weeks.
For the Belgian automotive sector, already navigating the transition to electric vehicles and evolving mobility expectations, the D’Ieteren restructuring signals that even the country’s most established automotive players are not immune to the industry’s profound transformation. As L’Avenir noted, the company believes it must “adapt in depth” its organization to survive in this new environment.
The coming weeks will reveal whether the consultation process yields adjustments to the plan, and what the final scope of job losses will be. What remains clear is that D’Ieteren Automotive—a name synonymous with Belgian motoring for more than two centuries—is charting a new course for an era in which the car itself is no longer the center of the mobility universe.