Mercedes-Benz Malaysia (MBM) had announced that a total of 3,335 of their premium passenger cars were sold in the first quarter of 2018. This is a double digit growth for the marque where they've achieve growth of 13.2 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2017. Aside from that announcement which somehow shows a Malaysia which seems wanted a lot more Mercedes-Benz, MBM also officially launched the EQ brand with the plug-in hybrid models of E 350 e and C 350 e now being designated as EQ Power models as well as officially opening the new EQ branded charging stations at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur yesterday (this is reported in a follow-up article here).
Back to the sales report first. Mercedes-Benz Malaysia have stated that the marque have a 2.8* per cent total industry volume market share which was attributed the success to their ongoing strategy of focusing on customers and then matching them with Best Products and Best Customer Experience they can offer.
Those of you who like numbers the quarter 1 performance for MBM’s locally produced sedans (or limousines as they like to call them), the Mercedes-Benz C-, E-, and S-Class, collectively recorded a total of 1,965 units sold. The Mercedes-Benz A-Class, B-Class, GLA and CLA Class compact class of cars recorded 596 units sold. These are increases of 8 per cent and 37.3 per cent respectively compared to the same period last year.
Another big growth in their sales performance is the Mercedes-Benz SUV range. It has remained a growth driver recording 675 units sold. This translates into a 13.6 per cent jump compared to Q1 of 2017. The SUV is certainly a burgeoning market and it shows improvements. Do also note that the GLA class is also a crossover or SUV and you could say this segment will be more popular in months or years to come.
Aside from the above, the aspirational and very niche Mercedes-Benz Dream Cars range also recorded a notable achievement with 94 units sold, marking a 1 per cent jump compared to Q1 2017. It does seem that when it comes to sales of premium marques here, things are not slowing down one single bit. Everything is business as usual.
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Mercedes-Benz Malaysia, President and CEO, Dr Claus Weidner said, “We are delighted with our positive performance in the first quarter of 2018 as our long-term strategy of bringing customers close and keeping them at the centre of our activities continues to deliver results. Working hand-in-hand with our extensive dealer network throughout Malaysia, we remain attentive to our customers’ preferences and needs. This is our strategy behind maintaining excellence in our Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) and Customer Loyalty Index (CLI),”
“It was a stellar first quarter for us in 2018, our best ever first quarter, as we successfully sold an impressive 3,335 vehicles. This translates into a significant sales growth of 13.2 per cent compared to the same period last year. We are pleased that our diverse portfolio of over 50 fascinating vehicle variants paired with our value-driven campaigns and engaging events continue to excite our customers and meet their diverse lifestyles and requirements,” added Mercedes-Benz Malaysia, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Passenger Cars, Mark Raine.
Now fantastic sales is actually nothing without stellar after sales. Someone has to maintain the cars sold and so, it has been reported that MBM’s dealer network had serviced a total of over 36,000 vehicles in the first quarter of 2018. This marks an increase of 18 per cent compared to the previous year. The after sales network seems to be able to cope with the additional number of cars sold. This ability to service the upward volume of vehicles is attributed to MBM’s extensive network of 33 dedicated dealerships nationwide which they have also been enhancing aside from adding new dealerships over the past year or so.
One recent example is the NZ Wheels Klang Autohaus relaunch early in the first quarter of 2018. The NZ Wheels Klang Autohaus is a dealership that has been around since the 1990s. It has been upgraded to the current Mercedes-Benz Presentation System II (MPS II) autohaus concept and has the latest MPS II showroom technologies, such as the iShowroom for Sales Executives to enhance customer product understanding for a more efficient and exciting retail experience.
MBM also held its inaugural Dealer of the Year awards in March 2018 which were aimed at recognising the dedication, passion and hard work of its dealer partners that performed exceptionally over the past year. Deserving dealer partners took home the honours for demonstrating Best Performance in Sales, Best Performance in After-sales, Best Performance in CSI and CLI, Best Performance in Dealer Excellence and Dealer of the Year. Sometimes, an award adds to the satisfaction of a dealership which translate to a lot of feel-good factor at the dealerships.
The Mercedes-Benz end-to-end experience also includes financing. The in-house Mercedes-Benz Services Malaysia (MBSM) continues to offer financial peace of mind through its customisable financial and insurance solutions. As a result, MBSM records a servicing portfolio of over MYR 2.4 billion**.
As for Mercedes-Benz globally, it was announced that Mercedes-Benz achieved its best ever quarter at 594,304 units (+6.0%) with the best month of all time in March 2018 at 237,307 units (+3.9% compared to 2017). From that, 88,976 units were sold in the Asia-Pacific region in March (+13.1%). Since the beginning of the year, 249,106 customers were delighted to receive their new Mercedes-Benz (+13.5%) – more than ever before in the first quarter of a year. South Korea, India and Malaysia have set new sales records in the first three months of this year.
Impressive numbers indeed. It does seem that the marque isn't slowing down anytime soon. It will be interesting to see what comes next for the brand here in Malaysia.
L to R - Mercedes-Benz Malaysia, President and CEO, Dr Claus Weidner, and Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Mark Raine, present the EQ brand - redesignating Mercedes-Benz C 350e and E350e as EQ Power products.
Note *The numbers for Q1 2018 are unaudited and subject to change.
**The numbers for Q1 2018 are unaudited and subject to change.
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