Mercedes Benz India is the one of the first entrants in the luxury car segment in India and has enjoyed dominance over the years (more than 15 years to be precise!). The growing Indian market obviously bought competition and Merc was challenged its leadership position by BMW. Even Audi has emerged as one of the fastest growing brand in this segment.
This has literally taken Merc to re-think its positioning and the equity it enjoys in the market. BMW’s growth was primarily fueled by its craze in the youth and the feel of a sportiness amongst its models. And as the average age of the buyer in this segment decreased, Merc lost in the race. Most of the Merc buyers were in the 40-50 age group whereas BMW/Audi were the choice of the younger lot.
This took Merc on its heels and thus came Mr. Peter Honegg, who has recently taken in charge as the MD & CEO of Mercedes Benz India. The most crucial part of his induction was to imbibe Merc as an young, lively and a sporty brand. One of the foremost actions were:
*Bombarding a TVC of Legendary F1 Icon Schumacher driving the uber-sporty SLS AMG. The idea was instill and associate a RACING image for the brand. This would attract the younger aspirants in the luxury segment.
*Mercedes also tried to leverage the status of being the oldest automobile brand in the world. This was also reflected in their advertisements where they projected to grow with the growing desires of the customers. It not only reflected their pursuit of perfection in every car that they manufactured but also connecting each car with their drivers. The urge to re-invent and the technical expertise was depicted by the amount of their patents worldwide (almost 80 percent of Auto patents is owned by Mercedes Benz!)
*It is also planning to sell the tickets of the much-anticipated F1 serie which is to be organized at the Budh International Racing Circuit of Greater Noida. The tickets would be made available through the company’s dealerships.
*Mercedes Benz India’s Facebook fanpage has already garnered more than 41000 fans and it eminently projects MBI as a fashionable, sporty and an entertaining brand.
*MBI has also inaugurated a star lounge in Delhi International Airport with SLS AMG on display.
The company is now sure of gaining popularity in the younger buyers and also revive its position as the leading luxury manufacturer. The intention could also be seen in its fresh design of its models.