Honda launches Acura in Japan

Honda today announced plans to introduce its luxury brand, Acura, in Japan. The Acura brand will offer distinctive products with a core focus on advanced, leading edge technologies that are always ahead of the times. Honda will also integrate its three current sales channels into one – so customers can buy and service any Honda-branded model in any one dealership (mirroring the UK set up).

The goals of the new sales channel strategy are to maintain Honda’s ability to respond to changes in society and the automobile market and to continue to provide the diverse values desired by customers and meet increasingly sophisticated customer needs.

The introduction of Acura, a luxury brand, will offer a distinctive driving experience and other unique characteristics. The Acura brand will start in autumn 2008, with approximately 100 dealers in Japan. This will also enable Honda to achieve further growth and take a big step forward in its home market of Japan. The current number of Honda dealers there is 2,400.

With this new sales channel strategy, Honda will accelerate its effort to maximise customer satisfaction and pursue the goal of consistently achieving annual sales of more than 800,000 units.

Acura is a luxury brand Honda first introduced in the US in 1986.