2016 was a busy year for BMW Group Malaysia as the company delivered a total of 10,906 units of BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad vehicles in the country last year, charting a 16% growth increase compared to the same period in 2015 (9,368).
The record breaking achievement is in tandem with that of the global BMW Group, which achieved its best ever sales in 2016 with a total of 2,367,603 vehicles sold worldwide. This marks the 6th year in a row the company has set a new sales record while maintaining its position as the world’s leading premium car company.
Locally, BGM sold 9,000 BMW vehicles compared to 7,515 vehicles in 2015, recording a 20% growth. The MINI brand also recorded a 19% growth, delivering 902 MINI vehicles compared to 756 in the previous year while BMW Motorrad delivered 1,004 motorcycles in 2016.
To recap, in 2016 BMW Group Malaysia kicked off the new year with the launch of its flagship model, the all-new BMW 7 Series. The centenary year also marshalled in the new chapter of Electric Driving Pleasure as the premium automaker introduced the new locally-assembled BMW X5 xDrive40e and BMW 330e as part of the automaker’s “BMW iPerformance” portfolio. The demand for both plug-in hybrids continues to grow and BMW Group Malaysia is gearing up to produce more units in its first full year in 2017 to meet these large demands and take up rate.
With that, BMW Group Malaysia also strengthened its partnership with the Malaysian Green Technology Corporation (GreenTech Malaysia) to offer its BMW i and BMW iPerformance customers access to its ChargeNow services via the GreenTech Malaysia’s ChargEV platform.
The steady performance growth in 2016 was also spurred by the introduction of new product portfolios for the BMW brand including the new locally assembled variants of the BMW X1 and BMW X4, the new BMW M2 Coupé and a new special variant of the BMW 5 Series, the BMW 528i M Performance Edition.
BMW Group Malaysia continued to drive the premium segment with its industry-leading BMW 5 Year Unlimited Mileage Warranty and Free Service Program, the specially designed BMW Tyre Warranty Program along with the well-established BMW White Card program, and the BMW Concierge Services as part of the BMW ConnectedDrive innovation offering.
MINI also charted record achievements in 2016, successfully introducing the new MINI Clubman, the new MINI John Cooper Works Pro Edition and the special edition MINI Countryman Park Lane as well as introduced a new 4 Year Unlimited Mileage and Free Service Warranty program.
Moving forward, the company is set to prepare for its export hub initiatives for the BMW 3 Series, BMW 5 Series and BMW 7 Series to Vietnam and the Philippines in 2018 where the premium automaker will also see an increase in its expertise in its local assembly capabilities from over 7,000 vehicles in 2016 to over 10,000 vehicles in 2017 with an investment of over RM10 Million.
BMW Group Malaysia will also open its doors to its newest Regional Parts Distribution Centre facilities at the Free Trade Zone of the Senai International Airport of Iskandar Malaysia. Occupying over 45,000 square metres of land and with an investment of over RM 130 million, the new regional facility will be one of the largest BMW facilities in the region.
“We will continue the momentum we have built here over the previous years where we will focus on introducing to our customers the newest products, innovations as well as premium services which will be industry leading to drive the industry,” said Mr. Han Sang Yun, Managing Director and CEO of BMW Group Malaysia.
In saying this, the company will implement its Voice to the Customer as well as its newest Road Side Assistant (RSA) program in 2017. Based on the global standard NET Promoter Score (NPS) concept, Voice to the Customer will be the next level of measurement of customer satisfaction in the industry while the new RSA program will be the most comprehensive service offering in the Malaysian automotive industry for on road customer care, peace of mind and maintenance.
“Our customer satisfaction indexes have been the highest in the industry over the last five years. However, in a move for more relevance in changing times in the premium segment, we will implement a new global measurement standard as well as premium on the road, day to day care programs to ensure our customers here get the very best of our capabilities.” he added.
