Toyota introducing Lexus in home Japan market to boost brand
05-21-05 | 06:40 PM
#1
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Toyota introducing Lexus in home Japan market to boost brand
http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosins...uto-187058.htm
Toyota introducing Lexus in home Japan market to boost brand
By Yuri Kageyama / AP Business Writer
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TOKYO - Toyota is bringing back home to Japan its Lexus luxury brand, which has marked big success in the United States, with 150 dealers opening nationwide by the end of the year, the Japanese automaker said Thursday.
Toyota Motor Corp. is eager to strengthen its image by promoting the Lexus in Japan, where it's still largely unknown and most luxury car buyers still prefer European brands like BMW and Mercedes Benz.
Takeshi Yoshida, overseeing Lexus development, said the brand will differentiate itself from European rivals that boast a historical legacy by appealing to younger buyers who aren't afraid to assert their Japanese identities and sensibilities.
"The Lexus hopes to grow into a younger premium brand for Japanese of the 21st Century with new values," he said.
The world's second largest automaker invited reporters Thursday to a Tokyo Lexus dealer, set to open Aug. 30, a shimmering white showroom of glass walls and leather couches that Toyota said will showcase the best in customer service.
Among the perks buyers can expect is a 24-hour helpline phone service, reached with a touch of a button on the dashboard, which will provide tow-trucks in accidents _ and even make restaurant reservations like a concierge.
Owners will also get Net-linking services, such as having a message sent to your mobile phone if someone breaks into your Lexus.
Toyota won't say how many cars it's targeting to sell through Lexus dealerships or how much it's investing in the effort.
Kyoji Sasazu, senior managing director, says Toyota has learned a lot from its Lexus success in the United States such as financing and insurance policies, as well as how dealers should treat customers.
And the best of what they learn in Japan may be brought back to America, he said. "Japanese are even more picky about service," Sasazu said.
The automaker, based in Toyota city, has been recording booming profits in recent years, gaining market share in both the United States and Japan.
But it appears serious about making its brand mean more than the everyman Corolla in Japan. It has set up a facility to train dealers so visitors will get service comparable to top hotels and luxury-brand shops, officials say.
Toyota introducing Lexus in home Japan market to boost brand
By Yuri Kageyama / AP Business Writer
Comment on this story
Send this story to a friend
Get Home Delivery
TOKYO - Toyota is bringing back home to Japan its Lexus luxury brand, which has marked big success in the United States, with 150 dealers opening nationwide by the end of the year, the Japanese automaker said Thursday.
Toyota Motor Corp. is eager to strengthen its image by promoting the Lexus in Japan, where it's still largely unknown and most luxury car buyers still prefer European brands like BMW and Mercedes Benz.
Takeshi Yoshida, overseeing Lexus development, said the brand will differentiate itself from European rivals that boast a historical legacy by appealing to younger buyers who aren't afraid to assert their Japanese identities and sensibilities.
"The Lexus hopes to grow into a younger premium brand for Japanese of the 21st Century with new values," he said.
The world's second largest automaker invited reporters Thursday to a Tokyo Lexus dealer, set to open Aug. 30, a shimmering white showroom of glass walls and leather couches that Toyota said will showcase the best in customer service.
Among the perks buyers can expect is a 24-hour helpline phone service, reached with a touch of a button on the dashboard, which will provide tow-trucks in accidents _ and even make restaurant reservations like a concierge.
Owners will also get Net-linking services, such as having a message sent to your mobile phone if someone breaks into your Lexus.
Toyota won't say how many cars it's targeting to sell through Lexus dealerships or how much it's investing in the effort.
Kyoji Sasazu, senior managing director, says Toyota has learned a lot from its Lexus success in the United States such as financing and insurance policies, as well as how dealers should treat customers.
And the best of what they learn in Japan may be brought back to America, he said. "Japanese are even more picky about service," Sasazu said.
The automaker, based in Toyota city, has been recording booming profits in recent years, gaining market share in both the United States and Japan.
But it appears serious about making its brand mean more than the everyman Corolla in Japan. It has set up a facility to train dealers so visitors will get service comparable to top hotels and luxury-brand shops, officials say.
05-22-05 | 11:02 PM
#4
Lexus Test Driver
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 1,509
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From: MD
Lexus is equated with "old man" in the US but will be for the "younger crowd" in Japan? Hmm... Maybe they'll be making some cooler cars there and keeping them for themselves?
BTW, I hate how the US gets gypped on the coolest cars from Europe and Japan and the newest technology from Japan. Example, the cell phones they send over here are like phone booths compared to the stuff they got over there.
BTW, I hate how the US gets gypped on the coolest cars from Europe and Japan and the newest technology from Japan. Example, the cell phones they send over here are like phone booths compared to the stuff they got over there.
05-24-05 | 07:16 AM
#5
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 30,120
Likes: 231
From: Canada
Originally Posted by Incendiary
Lexus is equated with "old man" in the US but will be for the "younger crowd" in Japan?
I think they should have models that appeal to both the younger & the older demographics.
I think the stereotypes for old man/young man, guy/girl cars are mostly nonsense anyway . . .
Last edited by Gojirra99; 05-24-05 at 07:19 AM.
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