KUALA LUMPUR: Mercedes-Benz Malaysia is optimistic of achieving a stronger performance this year as it plans to roll out a slew of new models and measures to drive sales and become even more customer-centric.
Its president and CEO, Dr Claus Weidner, said the Covid-19 pandemic which had sparked a series of lockdowns that spilled over to 2021 had taken its toll on the local automotive industry.
"The pandemic had also accelerated our move towards digitisation in order to stay connected with our customers and dealer partners," he told local media via a livestream conference today.
He also said that as a leading premium car company, Mercedes-Benz had to be agile and quick in adopting new measures.
For example, the company's introduction of a virtual showroom had enabled its customers to remain safe and abide by Covid-19 SOPs while enabling them to view and configure the cars they fancy and even book a test drive from anywhere in the country.
Dr Weidner.
Dr Weidner said Mercedes-Benz Malaysia would continue to develop its sub-brands such as AMG, G-Class, EQ and Maybach that had been gaining wider public interest.
On whether Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles would be sold in Malaysia, Dr Weidner said the company was open to the idea but said the Government and other relevant stakeholders should first develop a roadmap and spur the development of an EV infrastructure through various incentives and regulations.
He also said that Malaysian consumers' acceptance of electric vehicles should also be studied and gauged to assess the feasibility of selling such cars.
Dr Weidner said the lockdown in the first half of 2020 had caused the company to lose two months of car sales as well as delayed production and delivery of cars to customers.
"However, the company was able to catch up in the second half of the year and made sure customers' expectations were met," he said, adding that the lifting of the lockdown and introduction sales tax exemption at the second half of 2020 helped buyers return to the showrooms.
Mercedes-Benz Malaysia vice-president of sales and marketing Michael Jopp said although Mercedes-Benz customers could be attended to through digital means, face-to-face interaction was still vital to offer the best ownership experience.
He said that while customers could learn much about new models and their specifications through digital channels, test drives can only be conducted in person.
Jopp.
Jopp said 2021 is expected to be exciting for the company as it would be launching a new range of compact cars and sports utility vehicles (SUVs).
"Compact cars are the introduction point into the Mercedes-Benz brand for many new customers, while SUVs are getting more popular and everyone is shifting towards them," he said.
Jopp also said the Mercedes-Benz pre-owned vehicle unit was gaining traction with customers as its vehicles still come with a high level of quality despite being lower priced compared to a brand new vehicle.
