The newspaper headline ‘From laughing stock to top dog’ sums up the Skoda story. For years a synonym for poor quality, Skoda now regularly tops vehicle satisfaction and reliability rankings. Heidi Cartledge, who started her marketing career at Royal Mail, says the brand has developed a community of loyal customers by playing to its status as a challenger brand. “We’ve been the underdog and people now realise that we’re not a joke,” she says.