Genesis distances itself from Lexus and Infiniti

The worldwide boss of Genesis Motor has distanced the South Korean luxury brand from fellow Asian car-makers, insisting that both Japanese marques haven’t reached their potential as premium brands and therefore aren’t direct competitors.

Speaking with carsales.com.au at the launch of Australia’s newest vehicle brand, Manfred Fitzgerald said Infiniti — the Nissan luxury brand that was axed in Europe earlier this year — struggled to resonate because it didn’t build enough brand awareness.

He bundled Lexus into the same boat and insisted Genesis Motors Australia, which was finally launched this week with the Genesis G70 and Genesis G80 sedans, would be different because it will aim directly at German brands like Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

“To be honest, I’ve never thought about Infiniti directly,” Fitzgerald said.

“We’re really focussing on other competitors out there. I don’t know what Infiniti and Lexus are doing with their brands right now.

“In the US, Lexus is a competitor for us, but not on a global basis.”

Pressed further, Fitzgerald said after several years on the global market, the Infiniti brand still wasn’t universally recognised. The former Lamborghini exec doesn’t plan on making the same mistake with Genesis.

“If you go to Europe and Germany, and ask the people there what Infiniti is, they’ll say ‘Infiniti, what’s that: Is that an audio brand?’. They don’t even know it as a car brand,” Fitzgerald opined.

“Believe me, they have fantastic cars and fantastic design. What they did not really do in Europe, from my point of view, is take care of their brand and getting that right.

“That’s something that most of the Asian brands fail in: that image of a luxury brand.”

As Genesis enters the Australian market, Fitzgerald plans to use the opening months to create awareness around the Hyundai-owned marque.

While his marketing spend will by no means reflect an open chequebook, he says there are no strict return on investment deadlines expected from the parent body.

“That has never been discussed like that. What we have discussed is that this brand has to be successful. And what we have discussed is that we have to be a true competitor in that market. That’s what we’re trying to do,” Fitzgerald said.

“We can’t get ahead of ourselves and think about volume, etcetera. That can only come with time and it can only be done once we’ve established the brand.

“We’re only at the beginning of that. We’re only three-and-a-half years into the game. I think that would be the wrong question to pose looking at sales or turnover as a key performance indicator.”

Fitzgerald identified the German domestic market as “the greatest challenge” for Genesis.

“If we can make it there we can make it anywhere,” he said.

But he is also cognisant of the challenges that lay ahead in Australia. Though not a key competitor, Infiniti sold only 650 cars in Australia in 2018, a decline on the previous 12 months.

“I wouldn’t comment on that. They have their reasons why Infiniti can be a success or can’t be a success but I can’t comment on that,” Fitzgerald said.

“I know what we expect to do with this market; it’s all about being recognised as a true competitor there, as an alternative. I’m very hopeful that we can achieve that.”

Apart from brand awareness, Genesis Motors Australia aims to highlight the value of its locally-tuned products and after-sales services, including a five-year warranty, complimentary scheduled servicing and valet service offer.