(MENAFN- Muscat Daily) Hyundai Motor Co a South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer has eight manufacturing bases and seven design and technical centres worldwide and in 2014 it sold 4.96mn vehicles globally. Hyundai Motor's Africa and Middle East regional headquarters are located in Dubai.
In an e-mail interview Jin (James) Kim vice president and head of Hyundai's operations in Africa and the Middle East details the automaker's position in the Middle East and its business performance in Oman. Jin was appointed to his current position in April this year.
What do you attribute to Hyundai's success
We made significant changes to our retail education processes for difficult-to-use features like Bluetooth pairings. Quick tips and reference guides are
now available on all Hyundai-related outlets (YouTube channel service marketing e-mails dealership material and communications).
We also continue to make improvements to our audio communication entertainment and navigation (ACEN) systems through software upgrades. New internal analytics systems allow us to react faster than ever when issues are identified. When we see a problem we address it. All the teams did a great job.
How important is the Oman market for Hyundai
Oman is one of our top-tier markets and that's thanks to the discerning nature of our customers in the sultanate. It is very important for Hyundai to continue to offer them the highest quality products and unrivalled customer service.
Our distributor in the sultanate Oman Trading Establishment (OTE) is an excellent partner when it comes to building brand image and awareness of Hyundai in the country. OTE also provides a superb level of service which has led to high levels of customer satisfaction. This has enabled us to build strong customer loyalty for Hyundai.
How much are the all-new Sonata and Genesis responsible for your improved performance
In 2014 the all-new Sonata saw a six per cent increase in sales with 28556 units sold across the Middle East. The Genesis also had a good year with increased awareness of the model and a 20 per cent increase in sales.
How do you feel about your ranking vis-Ã -vis Toyota and Honda this year
Hyundai is glad to be compared with companies that we have a lot of respect for. Our laser-like focus on quality has gotten us to this point and we will to continue to strive to be the very best in every segment. We are proud of our quality processes and we now are taking the best practices globally.
What changes are you adopting to improve your ranking even further
Hyundai is always evaluating ways to improve processes. We are always trying to improve processes within product development with our dealers and by benchmarking the competition. We are meeting customer needs with our current products and developing new products to exceed those needs. Our goal is to be No 1 overall.
Educating customers on how to operate their vehicle across multiple channels having special call centre agents to handle ACEN issues completing campaigns and reacting quickly to customer concerns are some examples of new processes that are proving very effective.
What has been the reaction of your parent company
We share the same vision for the Hyundai brand - to build the highest-quality vehicles in the industry. We know everyone at Hyundai Motor will be very pleased with this latest recognition of Hyundai's superior quality. However the quest for quality never stops. Together we will analyse the data and redouble our efforts to once again improve our ranking next year.
How many models do you market in the sultanate and in the region Which are your best-selling ones
The most popular car in Oman last year was the Elantra followed by the Santa Fe the Accent and the Tucson. The all-new Sonata which was launched in September 2014 has also enjoyed a strong initial number of sales and we are proud of the efforts of OTE for its undeniable efforts and commitment to offer services that are up to Hyundai's standards.
We have a strong line-up available in the Oman market some of which include all our key products; such as i30 Veloster Veloster Coupe i10 i20 i40 Azera and Grand Santa Fe.
What do you anticipate to be the top-selling Hyundai models in the Middle East this year
We are confident that Hyundai's range of compact and mid-size cars will remain in high demand as the Hyundai Elantra continues to be the best seller in the region followed by the Accent and the Sonata.
We also believe that there will be an increase in SUV and mid-size line sales in the Middle East following extraordinary results across both these categories in 2014. The demand for the SUV range featuring Tucson Santa Fe and Grand Santa Fe has been strong and these models accounted for 21.9 per cent of total sales representing the strongest growth segment for the brand. Among those sales of Grand Santa Fe leapt 101 per cent in its first full year in the market while the Santa Fe posted a very strong rise of 24 per cent.
What new models are you preparing to launch in the Middle East this year
While I cannot disclose which models we will launch during the rest of the year what I can say is that 2015 has started well with the launch of two new models the Veloster Turbo our powerful hatch and the Sonata Sport Turbo sedan. We will be focusing on promoting them to customers and communicating their benefits.
What is your personal experience of the regional market and how different it is from other world markets
Middle East customers have a desire to purchase versatile vehicles that are comfortable to drive but also have the technological advancements which keep them connected on the move. They also look for vehicles which are luxurious but affordable.
As mentioned earlier our extensive SUV range caters to these demands. We have also bagged a number of international awards for vehicle safety; one being the prestigious US IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award which gave the Genesis a superior rating for front-crash prevention.
What is the current position of the company in Oman and in the region and what is your strategy to improve market share
Oman has always been a strong performer with regards to unit sales and the country represents one of our most important markets. Oman accounted for around 12 per cent of total sales across the Middle East in 2014 and once again posted a year-on-year sales increase.
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