A fresh strategy aimed at winning a greater share of UK corporate registrations is being drawn up at Mercedes-Benz.

The manufacturer is keen to build on record sales achieved this year and is planning to launch a new fleet programme designed to deliver more sustainable customer relationships, Fleet News can reveal.

Rob East, head of fleet, said: “The UK new car market is ever shifting and our brand is responding to this by offering customers a greater level of choice in derivatives - from the 20 we had on offer when I joined eight years ago, the number has now reached 30 and is set to rise to 40 by the end of this decade.”

East admitted that Mercedes-Benz did have a few years when fleet was not its “key focus”, but he told Fleet News this is no longer the case.

“We have rolled out some phenomenal products over the last five years and most recently, the E Class has proved to be the most significant model in this process,” he said.

“Fleet News has voted it the best executive and it is generally recognised as being a market-leading proposition and a technological tour de force. With 6,879 registrations year to date, it has certainly played its part in helping give us a positive story with a total of 56,849 fleet and businesses sales that reflect growth of 1% in a market that’s down by 5%.”

By comparison, East said, Audi is down by 2% with 47,306 sales and BMW is down by 6% with 41,606 sales. “This shows we are now taking the fleet market very seriously and we have ambitions to make further advances,” continued East.

“Over the next two months, we will be revealing some exciting innovations that will demonstrate that we’re focussed on improving the fleet customer journey and serious about gaining customer loyalty.”