Nissan 2006 Annual Report Download - page 20

and avoiding short-term decisions that can
jeopardize the future of a luxury brand. The
breakthrough of Infiniti is not just the products; it’s
also delivering the right service and the right
customer experience. That’s why we take our time.
Two different axes will determine the future
development of Infiniti. The first axis involves using
the trends and expectations of customers in
the various regions we will enter with the Infiniti
brand. Asian markets, for instance, simply will not
accept any kind of harshness or noise, such as
squeaks and rattles. For Russia and its neighbors,
we’ve added specs that address severe road and
winter conditions.
We will then apply pressure from Western
Europe, probably the world’s most demanding market
in terms of performance and craftsmanship, to raise
our standards further. With strategic constraints such
as these, and knowing that the luxury market is
probably the most homogeneous segment in the
global automotive industry, we will grow our
capability to delight luxury customers everywhere.
The second axis relates to the network and the
customer experience. For each product launch, we
have two very important and symmetrical milestones:
the start of production and the start of sales. The
start of production only occurs after everything
related to the performance of the car—durability, fuel
efficiency, handling, and so on—meets the specs
necessary to compete in the marketplace.
When we pursue the start of sales milestone,
however, we change worlds. We are not talking
about just the cars, but about whether the sales
channel deliverables are ready. Did we train our
salespeople properly? Are the necessary
maintenance tools available? Do the warehouses
have all the right spare parts? For start of sales,
we address everything that relates to the car’s life
cycle, and we don’t deliver the vehicles to the
customers until it’s right.
We are now selecting dealer partners for Europe,
and we are attracting them by showing them the
product lineup. We are looking for luxury
professionals that are convinced by the strength of
our brand and believe it is a long-term investment.
They can appreciate that Infiniti has some uniquely
desirable traits. And on top of the products we already
have in the marketplace, several models in the
pipeline will be very distinctive. The new FX design,
for example, is incredible. When we held a recent
executive design review, I saw a rare display of
wonder of the face of our CEO and other executives.
I believe Europe is moving away from the
aggressive vehicle stances to a more citizen-oriented
mode, so our Infiniti crossover models will have
great value because of their flexibility and balance.
They maintain the ability to go off-road and offer
safety, visibility and driving pleasure without an
aggressive posture.
We are on schedule to launch Infiniti in Russia in
October, and a China launch is in the works as well.
We will be entering Western Europe in 2008, with an
expanded lineup and a new V6 diesel, which the
European market wants and expects. By doing this,
we will bring more profit to Nissan, address new
customers in the luxury market, and follow up on our
present success to gain added credibility as a top tier
global luxury carmaker.
Nissan Annual Report 2005
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PERFORMANCE