jrock65

Couple things caught my eye.

1) Infiniti brand will launch in Japan within 5 years
2) Infiniti is second among all luxury brands in sales per U.S. dealer (Lexus must be #1)

----------------------

Infiniti Road Show – Sausalito Event Scott Fessenden, Director, Infiniti Marketing [Aug, 22, 05]

Good morning. Welcome to the “Infiniti Limited Engagement Summer Tour.” You may recognize the graphics on the sides of these trailers from our commercials and print ads. In a sea of look-alike advertising, the Limited Engagement Summer Event materials really stand out. And these graphics frame our vehicles really well – like the pieces of art that they are.

I’d like to start this morning by giving you a quick snapshot of Infiniti in the Bay area and Northern California.

San Francisco is part of the Infiniti West Region, which accounts for 29 percent of Infiniti’s total national sales. Sales in the region are up 8.9 percent for the calendar year – so the West is hot, and not just with the recent heat wave.

We have eight Infiniti dealers here in the San Francisco Metro area. The newest local dealer is Infiniti of Oakland, which opened its doors in May. We also plan on opening a new facility in San Jose within the next 18 months, which will bring our dealer count to nine.

For those of you from the Sacramento area, we just recently opened a beautiful new facility in Elk Grove.
And, a number of our other dealers have recently invested capital in facility upgrades to handle their increased sales and service volumes.

Our dealers, of course, are very active in the local community. Infiniti was a major sponsor of the recent Sonoma Jazz Festival, which supports local health and education programs. We used the event to help support the launch of the new Infiniti M.

Infiniti also is a supporter of the San Francisco Giants and Oakland A’s. And finally, our area dealers are working together to launch a new, unique Internet marketing program that you’ll hear more about soon.

Our success here in the Infiniti West Region mirrors what is happening on a national level, both in sales and in brand momentum. Infiniti passed the 100,000 annual sales mark for the first time in 2003 on the way to setting an all-time Infiniti record of more than 130,000 in 2004.

For the 2005 calendar year to date, sales have reached almost 80,000 through July – more than what was sold by the Division in all of 2001! These numbers represent an increase of 8.1% over 2004. Our fiscal year-to-date numbers are even stronger – an 11.2% increase.

These strong sales have been achieved without a heavy reliance on incentives. In fact, Infiniti’s incentive spending is about 60% of competitive average, which says a lot about the strength of our products and our brand.

Infiniti is second among all luxury brands in sales-per-outlet, averaging over 750 retail sales-per-dealer-per-year. Our used vehicle values are great and are continuing to appreciate. This is good for the brand and it’s something our owners understand and appreciate when it’s time to turn in one Infiniti for their next one.

One other thing I should mention. Though product has been the driver, we’re continuing to deliver the high standard of customer service – which we call the Infiniti Total Ownership Experience – despite more than doubling our product offerings and sales-per-dealer. We continue to offer free loan cars with service appointments, and all the other benefits our Infiniti retailers offer.

Of course, when you talk about the unique things that Infiniti has to offer, one other item comes to mind: vibrancy.

There’s a defining gesture that we introduced with the launch of the new Infiniti M last spring and that you’ll see more of in the months ahead. It’s a light gesture, a movement, an action.

This light gesture symbolizes both our vehicles and our brand – vibrant, intelligent, alive.

The gesture is the confident stroke of all that is possible... the demarcation between conventional luxury car thinking and a more interesting, purposeful, artful and brave thinking.

It bursts forth in everything we do, in every piece we craft, in every vehicle and in every customer interaction. It is our promise. It is the mark we will leave.

And now we are bringing Infiniti’s vibrancy – and the successful U.S. business model – to the rest of the world.

Currently, Infiniti vehicles are available in North America, Taiwan and the Middle East. In July, Infiniti entered the South Korean market with a spectacular grand opening celebration at a beautiful new six-story dealership in downtown Seoul.

Infiniti Korea is starting out with three new dealerships offering a full slate of vehicles, including the G35, FX, Q45 and the all-new M.

Following Korea, Infiniti will launch in Russia and China, though the exact timetable is still being worked out.

In Japan, Nissan already has a presence in the luxury market with Nissan-badged vehicles, but the plan is to fine-tune our luxury strategy and launch Infiniti as a separate channel in Japan in the later part of the decade.

In all new Infiniti markets, just as here, we’re bringing the unique Infiniti Total Ownership Experience philosophy.

The success of Infiniti in the U.S. has proven the business case – and blueprint – for Infiniti’s emergence as a global brand. And, as a true global brand, we understand that you need to implement a global brand look and feel.

Toward that end, we recently announced a new Infiniti retail design that will be implemented both here in North America and in our new global markets.

When Infiniti launched in 1989, we had 51 dealers in 17 states. Over the ensuing years we’ve grown dramatically, though selectively. We’ve kept our total dealer number small and profitable – currently we have 177 Infiniti stores.

But now, with most of our U.S. dealerships more than a dozen years old, it’s time to make our stores more reflective of our invigorated brand and product lineup.

We call the program the Infiniti Retail Environment Design Initiative, or IREDI for short. It was developed in conjunction with Lippincott & Mercer, a brand identity and design firm chosen in a worldwide design competition.

In developing the IREDI program, we benchmarked the leaders in all types of luxury categories, taking a customer-centric look at the needs of luxury car owners and their car buying expectations.

We studied the evolution of luxury from traditional luxury, to status luxury, to meaningful luxury.

Where we ended up is right where Infiniti lives – a vibrant luxury that combines performance, innovation and art. A luxury that is personal and emotional. And the results are, we believe, nothing short of stunning.

Here is a look at a proposed exterior design. The forms are energetic and modern... solid but seeming to glow from within, evoking a sense of “wow.” In the daylight, the design projects a unique, modern profile with an accent on natural materials.

At night, the lighting brings the shapes – and our vehicles – alive.

The entry areas are designed to create a sense of interest and attraction. The lobbies are rich, eclectic and inviting. And the sales areas offer a striking reveal of the cars in the “gallery,” with an emphasis on lighting and scale in a dramatic setting.

Consulting offices will be open to the product gallery, with casual seating areas and work desks. We’re also upgrading the look and feel of the service lounges.

The designs are extremely adaptable, including applications to “vertical” urban locations such as the new Seoul facility.

There are two versions of the IREDI program, one for ground-up designs and another for retrofitting existing stores. Here’s an example of how a retrofit would work.

Of course, one of the keys to the success of this program will be its “flexibility within a framework.” We recognize that you can’t force one layout on all your dealerships. Just as every Starbuck’s coffee shop is slightly different, they all still have a familiar look, feel and service standard. That’s the kind of flexible uniformity we’re striving for with Infiniti.

We respect the various nuances regarding geographical differences, business practices, local governments and now international governments and cultures. The IREDI program helps us establish specific minimum guidelines and requirements around the world, reinforcing the global brand image and the Infiniti experience.

We’re also implementing a new signage program with a dramatic new brand pylon.

The first new facilities and retrofits are scheduled for completion in spring 2006, with Infiniti providing a measure of financial support.

As great as these new dealership designs are, success still ultimately comes down to what’s on the showroom floors. For 2006, we believe Infiniti once again offers a lineup of performance luxury vehicles that is second to none.

Our biggest news for 2006 arrived last February with the addition of the new Infiniti M. Available in both V8-powered M45 and the V6-powered M35 models, the new M is off to a great start with sales-to-date topping 12,000 units through July. In July, M achieved its best month yet, 2,755 units, so its momentum is clearly building as word gets out.

The new M is also more than holding its own against the segment leaders, ranking first in comparison tests by Car and Driver, Road & Track, Motor Trend, and most recently, AutoWeek and Consumer Reports.

In other refinements to the lineup for 2006, the Infiniti FX gets an exterior facelift – including a new grille, bumper and wheel design, and added standard interior features. The FX is again offered in two models, the V8-powered FX45 and the V6-equipped FX35. Please come up later and take a closer look at the changes.

The 2006 G35 coupe adds a new Premium Package with Intelligent Key and available Rear Active Steer. Rear Active Steer was introduced on the 2006 M and helps improve the already high levels of handling performance by adjusting the rear suspension geometry according to steering input and vehicle speed. The result is a balance of sports car-like agility, combined with luxury stability and ride quality.

The popular G35 sedan adds a few enhancements for 2006, including a Bluetooth® Hands-Free Phone system.

The 2006 Infiniti Q45 also receives Rear Active Steer as part of the new Sport model. The flagship Q also gets a revised transmission with new torque converter and Downshift Rev Matching and available Lane Departure Warning.

The 2006 QX56 features a new 60/40 split 3rd row seat, power folding mirrors with heat and power adjust and Bluetooth® Hands-Free Phone system.

In 2006, as always, Infiniti remains one of the leaders in the automotive industry in the development of new automotive technology, including our intelligent all-wheel drive system, RearView Monitor, Intelligent Key and many other systems.

We are the first brand to offer an advanced Lane Departure Warning system in a passenger vehicle application. It’s available in the 2006 M, FX and Q.

LDW was developed with Valeo/Iteris and is a significant safety advancement.

Infiniti vibrancy, of course, should not only be seen and felt. It’s something you should hear. For example, the new M’s available Bose® Studio Surround™ sound system with digital 5.1-channel decoding and 14 speakers is absolutely spectacular.

I hope you’ll take a moment today to experience it, and also to get a demonstration of Infiniti’s “Human Machine Interface” or “HMI.” This is a philosophy that says, essentially, that all of the controls should be intuitive, easy to understand and natural to operate.

We feel great that Infiniti is being acknowledged for its leadership in design, performance, technology, quality and safety. There isn’t an Infiniti in the lineup today that anyone wouldn’t be excited to drive or proud to own.

The enhancements to our lineup for 2006, along with the new look of our dealerships are one indication that we’re not resting on our laurels.

We’re also enhancing our marketing efforts for 2006 with the introduction of a new brand campaign and continued refinement of our minority and lifestyle marketing efforts.

The new campaign, like our current marketing efforts, will be targeted toward people with an appreciation of innovation, detail and nuance. These are people who respond with passion to creativity and sensuality... and who embrace life at its best, rather than embracing just a badge. In other words, people who follow their own path.

Luxury today is less about material items and more about getting more from experiences and personal development. Luxury is becoming about extraordinary experiences.

Infiniti’s new marketing campaign will highlight this new, vibrant definition of luxury – and how Infiniti sets new standards, pushes the limits and focuses on design.

You’ll hear more details about the new campaign and specific executions in the upcoming weeks.

Also, please join us next January at the North American International Auto Show, where we plan on showing a concept that further emphasizes Infiniti’s vibrant direction in design and luxury.

I’ve covered a lot of ground today. I hope you’ve come away with a greater sense of what Infiniti is, and where we are heading. From the very beginning Infiniti has followed its own path. We’re well positioned for success today, and for an “unlimited” future.

Thank you.

chicagoblknazn

They are going to need a litle bit more then that to catch up to Lexus.

Gojirra99

A chart on Annual Sales Per Dealer in a June 2004 Article from Forbes HERE

Lexus is way ahead of it's closest competitor at 1280. Ford was second at 747. Infiniti was third at 717. Infiniti must have passed Ford with the successful launch of the M35/45