Lexus is on track to sell over 520,000 vehicles worldwide this year, which will break their all-time global sales record set in 2007 — from Automotive News:
Mark Templin, executive vice president of Lexus International, today said worldwide sales would “finish on the north side of 520,000,” edging Lexus’ all-time high of 518,300 units in 2007.
“We’ve already come to surpass our 2007 number, even though the U.S. market hasn’t grown back yet,” Templin said. “The biggest growth in sheer volume over the next few years is going to come from the U.S., just because the market is still growing back.”
U.S. sales should expand to around 270,000 units this year. That compares with Lexus’ peak of 329,177 in 2007.“There’s no reason for us to think they won’t surpass that as the market grows back to the kind of levels we had in 2007,” he said. “And it should grow beyond that.”
More importantly, breaking this global sales record shows the growth of the Lexus brand in other parts of the world — in 2007, US sales accounted for 63.5% of sales worldwide in 2007, but in 2013 this percentage has fallen to just 51.9%.
While Lexus is targeting a steady 5 to 10 percent annual growth in the coming years, sales are not the main priority for the brand right now — from a recent Reuters article:
Lexus officials say despite the growth, the priority is building a stronger brand image rather than volume.
In a drive to boost its image, Lexus on Wednesday named for Akio Toyoda, the President of Toyota Motor Corp, “Chief Branding Officer and Master Driver”. Toyoda is a race driver and a founding family scion.
“Right now, he (Toyoda) says sales aren’t important, profits aren’t important, it’s all about building a foundation for the future. So we are trying to build through the next 30 years,” said Mark Templin, Lexus Executive Vice President, at the Tokyo Motor Show.
[Source: Automotive News & Reuters]
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