[mojo]

Jeff Braken may be interested in persuing Tesla's Mall showrooms if the demographics make sense...

“The model that Tesla has to open up their outlets in shopping malls is a clever one, (and) I think they’re getting a lot of folks to stop in and learn about Tesla,” Jeff Bracken, group vice president-Lexus at Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. recently told a crowd at a late November media gathering here.

“We’re interested to watch what (Tesla does), how the business model works and what kind of customers wander into their outlets,” he says. “That’s really interesting to us and that’s about as much as I would be able to share with you today.”

“If we were ever to consider something like that, we would keep our dealers part of the solution, no question about it,” Bracken says. “But it’s intriguing if young folks are telling us they don’t really look forward to going to a traditional dealership, but they still have an interest in buying a vehicle or shopping for a vehicle. (If) that’s an outlet that could work for them, then we need to take a look at that to see if that’s something that could make sense for us.”

http://m.wardsauto.com/sales-marketing/lexus-keeping-eye-tesla-s-mall-store-strategy

 

[FSport]

i'm actually looking forward to this
noticed subaru did it for a bit and even that got some good interest from random folks.

 

[Kennedy]

They really need to consider doing the champagne glass test in malls, dyno, V8 LS, champagne glasses on top... sure to bring a crowd

 

[mister]

it could be a really good move for other automakers to do this outlet mall store thing. Not many people are going to just stop by a dealership to browse, but if there is a little shop in a mall I could see people doing just that. It would definitely be good for brand awareness.

 

[mojo]

it could be a really good move for other automakers to do this outlet mall store thing. Not many people are going to just stop by a dealership to browse, but if there is a little shop in a mall I could see people doing just that. It would definitely be good for brand awareness.

You're buying cars not shoes. There is no browsing, unless you're looking for a brochure, oh sure they'll fit A car in there but not CARS.

Besides, if you're shopping for a car but aren't interested in going to the dealership how interested could you possibly be in shopping for a car if you refuse to go where the cars are sold?

I'm in the mood for Chinese food but will only eat at Italian restaurants. Is that called winning?

 

[mister]

This wouldn't be targeting people who are currently in the thick of car shopping. It would be targeting people who may be looking for a car in the future. The car catches your eye, you go in and look around, learn a bit about the car. Then 1 year from now when your lease expires on your current car, you say, "hey maybe I'll look into a Lexus this time."

Its more like giving people a sample of Chinese food when you are out, so that those people will get a taste and comeback when they decide to go out for dinner next time.

 

[mjsNX]

I worked on a project with the executive at Tesla who developed and launched the Tesla store concept, George Blankenship. Brilliant guy. He also developed the Apple Store concept. The idea behind the Tesla store was to create a lounge atmosphere where people could hang out and be emersed in the brand experience. The goal was to have every visitor walk out of the store with a smile and a deeper connection to the brand. These days most buyers of luxury cars do their research and typically know more about the car than sales reps so purchasing online or in the store with no pressure is a big plus.

 

[David]

I worked on a project with the executive at Tesla who developed and launched the Tesla store concept, George Blankenship. Brilliant guy. He also developed the Apple Store concept. The idea behind the Tesla store was to create a lounge atmosphere where people could hang out and be emersed in the brand experience. The goal was to have every visitor walk out of the store with a smile and a deeper connection to the brand. These days most buyers of luxury cars do their research and typically know more about the car than sales reps so purchasing online or in the store with no pressure is a big plus.

Yup, that's a big one, people will never forget how you made them feel and leveraging that human trait coverts really well into dollars.

It helps even more that we're at a stage where creative marketing is needed more than ever these days.

 

[mister]

Take a look at Lincoln's newest dealerships in China. It's spaces like these that really immerse people in the brand. I think that whether its a dealership or a small show room in a mall, both are valuable for a brand that is trying to connect with customers.

Would be interesting to see a research study over X amount of years that sees how many people who visit a mall showroom end up buying from the brand in the future.

 

[David]

Take a look at Lincoln's newest dealerships in China. It's spaces like these that really immerse people in the brand. I think that whether its a dealership or a small show room in a mall, both are valuable for a brand that is trying to connect with customers.

Would be interesting to see a research study over X amount of years that sees how many people who visit a mall showroom end up buying from the brand in the future.

^ Those photos in this discussion are only relevant to the extent we're talking about the same market - Lexus China display vs Lincoln China display - approaches to different markets will be different, you sure don't see Lincoln doing that on North American soil.

 

[mister]

No, but the principle of the show room I think extends to both markets. The idea of creating that brand experience. I am saying that I think that a mall Lexus brand store would follow a similar look to what Lincoln has done in China. I think that would draw people into the store and get them to learn more about Lexus.

 

[David]

No, but the principle of the show room I think extends to both markets. The idea of creating that brand experience. I am saying that I think that a mall Lexus brand store would follow a similar look to what Lincoln has done in China. I think that would draw people into the store and get them to learn more about Lexus.

It's great that's what you want to see but you're missing the point, different markets call for different approaches, that will determine what they do.

 

[mister]

It's great that's what you want to see but you're missing the point, different markets call for different approaches, that will determine what they do.

OK, but the discussion is about mall brand outposts for Lexus. I am saying that this is an example of what those stores could look like. Why don't you think the China Lincoln dealerships aren't applicable to a Lexus mall store, and what do you envision for these Lexus stores instead?