USA - Volvo's revival plan starts with immediate effect after dropping to its lowest level since 1978.

After its U.S. market share fell to the lowest level since 1978, Volvo has put its global product strategy chief in charge of North America and significantly boosted its marketing budget in preparation for an upcoming blitz of new vehicles.

Lex Kerssemakers, a 55-year-old native of the Netherlands, replaces Tony Nicolosi as CEO of Volvo Cars of North America after a 15-month period in which sales continued to fall. Kerssemakers, whose 29 years at Volvo include no prior stints in the U.S., described his immediate task as "very simple and very clear": put the Chinese-owned brand on a path back toward annual U.S. sales of at least 100,000 units.

Last year, it sold just 56,366.

"The revival plan of the U.S. starts now, and it will be very much product and brand driven," Kerssemakers told Automotive News. "With a strong network, a strong brand, strong products and a good financial offer, I'm convinced Volvo will be back on track."

Given Volvo's performance in five years under Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, Kerssemakers' job hardly appears simple. It's one of just two U.S. brands with sales that have declined since 2009, vs. a 58 percent gain for the industry overall.

Volvo was the worst-performing luxury brand in 2014, posting an 8 percent decline from the year before. It finished 2014 with just 0.3 percent of the overall U.S. market, half the share it had a decade ago.

Kerssemakers said he believes the company can reverse its sales slide this year but would not give a specific projection. He also declined to say how much Volvo has raised its marketing budget.

"We think it should be sufficient to start the revival journey and increase the level of awareness," he said. "We're working on the marketing plan now."

Kerssemakers will oversee the rollout of several critical models in 2015, including the XC90 large crossover and V60 Cross Country wagon. Volvo also plans to begin importing the S60 Inscription, a long-wheelbase sedan it unveiled at the Detroit auto show this month, to the U.S. from China.

The XC90 is well-executed and a "hugely significant statement car" for Volvo, said Stephanie Brinley, a senior analyst with IHS Automotive. She said Volvo's methodical approach since Ford Motor Co. sold the brand in 2010 could pay off down the road but that its rebound won't be quick.

IHS projects Volvo's U.S. sales to be only 80,000 units by 2020.

"They chose to kind of sit back for a while, which in the short term means lost sales and, unfortunately, some American consumers have forgotten about them as a brand," Brinley said. "The issue is it will take a little time to regain share of mind."

Kerssemakers said he realizes dealers' hands have been tied by the aging vehicles on their lots. He plans to meet with them at the end of March to lay out where the brand is headed.

"The dealers have faced a situation where they did not get fresh products in the way they were used to from Volvo," Kerssemakers said. "So we need to show them and convince them that this is coming, so that they start to invest in the brand Volvo again. Those elements should lead us to the 100,000 and to a sustainable equation."

He said it's too soon to say when Volvo could reach 100,000 units but that he hopes to have a better idea in six to eight months.

In addition to being North American CEO, Kerssemakers is now senior vice president for the Americas, with responsibility for North and South America, giving him broader authority than Nicolosi had.

Nicolosi was named president of Volvo Cars Financial Services of the Americas. Before becoming CEO of Volvo Cars of North America, initially in an acting capacity at the age of 53 in October 2013, he was head of Volvo Car Financial Services U.S.

Volvo recently shifted profit-and-loss responsibility in the U.S. to its three regions, a move that Kerssemakers said increases accountability and reduces the "number of layers between there, where the action is, and executive management."

You can reach Nick Bunkley