Infiniti Centres start opening their doors to European customers

On the eve of the Paris Motor Show, Infiniti, the brand that defines the Japanese luxury car, has opened the doors to its first European sales centre, at 73 Avenue de Versailles in the fashionable 16th Arrondisement of Paris, France. Infiniti Centres will also open in Spain within the next week in the cities of Barcelona, Valencia and the capital Madrid.

These cities are the first to host an Infiniti Centre and launch this new-to-Europe luxury brand to the most competitive and sophisticated automotive market in the world. Further Infiniti Centres follow during 2008 as part of the first wave of openings in European metropolitan locations chosen for their associations with other high-end brands –Belgium (Antwerp), Bulgaria (Sofia), Greece (Athens),Italy (Milan, Rome, Padova and Bologna), Poland (Warsaw), Spain (a second site in Barcelona), and Switzerland (Zurich).

The second wave of openings, from January to April 2009, will see Infiniti launched in the Czech Republic (Prague), Estonia (Tallinn), Israel (Tel Aviv), Latvia (Riga) and The Netherlands (Rotterdam & Amsterdam), Romania (Bucharest), and open a further dealership in Spain (in Madrid, which will feature a showroom and service centre in the Las Tablas district to complement the showroom-only service offered at the first Madrid centre opened in October 2008).

A third wave of Infiniti Centres will open from mid-2009 and into 2010 in the other major G5 markets of Germany and the United Kingdom, as well as in further markets including Austria, Finland, Lithuania, the Republic of Ireland and Slovakia. Details of their exact locations will be announced at a later date.
The arrival of Infiniti in Europe is arguably the most exciting premium automotive brand event in nearly two decades, as it stands to redefine the customer experience of buying and owning a luxury performance vehicle and offering a real Japanese premium experience – with the promise of a brand that doesn’t try to be all things to all people, but which offers everything to some people.

Key to the success of Infiniti in Europe, as it has proven time and again in other markets (such as in Russia, the Middle East and the USA, where the brand is already some 20 years established), will be the highest levels of customer service and satisfaction in the industry, thanks to great cars and a great retail and after-sales experience.

DISTRIBUTION PARTNERS
Infiniti will achieve these proven levels of satisfaction through its Total Ownership Experience philosophy, which makes owners part of a discerning and exclusive group. This service will be delivered by a select number of highly qualified distributors across Europe with experience of selling other premium automotive brands.

Companies such as Neubauer in France, Fassina SpA in Italy and Berge Automocion in Spain have been selected as Infiniti distribution partners in these markets because they are considered the premium car brand experts in their home markets, and are highly regarded in the industry across Europe.

TOTAL OWNERSHIP EXPERIENCE
“Establishing the Infiniti retail network from the ground up is an exciting challenge,” says Jim Wright, Vice President, Infiniti Europe. “With our carefully selected partners we see a huge opportunity to provide customer care and hospitality unlike anything else offered in Europe today. We will actively engage with customers’ lifestyles, not just their cars, to provide them with our Total Ownership Experience – a totally new level and quality of customer service for the motor business.”

Total Ownership Experience is a promise to customers that they can buy their new Infiniti in a welcoming, modern and no pressure environment with expert advice, and enjoy a worry-free involving and exciting ownership experience thereafter.

INFINITI CENTRES
Following the IREDI concept (Infiniti Retail Environment Design Initiative), each Infiniti Centre will create a welcoming and hospitable environment for buying and servicing vehicles, primarily in fashionable, convenient metropolitan locations.

Retail outlet architecture will be energetic and modern, with an accent on natural materials and designer glazing and furnishings, where Japanese luxury meets its renowned reputation for premium service. All European Infiniti Centres will be modelled on a Lobby, Lounge Gallery concept, more akin to a luxury boutique hotel than a traditional car showroom, with space firstly and most importantly for the client as well as for each model in the range – the G37 Sedan, G37 Coupé, EX37 coupé crossover and the FX range of SUV/Coupe crossovers.

Urban centre locations, contemporary, elegant furnishings encased in natural wood with state-of-the-art, high-definition information screen technologies that have been specially designed and manufactured in Europe for Infiniti, accompanied by premium sofas and lounge chairs by acclaimed designer Walter Knoll, make these centres stand apart from the crowd in terms of car showrooms.

Visitors to an Infiniti Centre will first enter through a Travertine stone-surrounded door into the ‘Lobby’ area, behind a glazed exterior, which wraps around the Centre. The ‘Lobby’, with its natural light and high ceilings, is where the customer is greeted by an Infiniti host, who will try to understand the clients’ needs before showing them through the “portal” to the ‘Lounge’ area of the Infiniti Centre, and introducing them to the appropriate consultant. Refreshments and initial vehicle information will be available in ‘Lounge’.

‘Lounge’ immediately feels more intimate and suited to the client’s first, proper interaction with the Infiniti brand. Lower ceilings, softer lighting and darker sustainable-source wood, complemented by luxurious, deep-pile carpeting in the open seating areas and consultancy rooms – creating a comfortable atmosphere for the client to begin their experience and enjoyment of the Infiniti brand.

Once the client is comfortable, their dedicated consultant will introduce the Infiniti vehicle range, and dependant on the client’s requirements, focus on one particular car or explain the appropriateness of each to the customer’s needs. All, this will be facilitated via the fully interactive media wall, where exact specifications can be input to a small touch screen and viewed in detail on a larger plasma screen.

The next, natural stage of the customer’s first experience of Infiniti happens in ‘Gallery’. Returning to a brighter environment, again with higher, illuminated ceilings, and lighter-coloured durable porcelain ceramic tile floors provides the customer with a dramatic setting for their first sight of the Infiniti product range.

Extended, unaccompanied test drives are also available if the customer chooses a more in-depth appreciation of the vehicle’s handling and dynamics, with only the sounds from the exclusively recorded Infiniti music CD for company.

Following the test drive, the client can discuss their purchase requirements with their dedicated consultant in detail. This discussion will usually in a sales consultancy room, which is partially partitioned behind glazing for privacy, where the finer details of the Infiniti experience can be discussed, such as financing and warranty, but more importantly, the unique services offered by Infiniti to its clients through its Ownership Programme.

BECOMING AN INFINITI OWNER
Once chosen, the vehicle is ordered to the customer’s exact specification and built at the Infiniti production facility in Tochigi, Japan.

Once the client’s vehicle is delivered to their local Infiniti Centre, it is prepared for the handover, which happens in a dedicated new vehicle delivery area inside the lounge part of the Infiniti Centre. How this happens is again up to the customer.

Dependant on familiarity, the client can choose to simply collect the key and drive away or have a “deep dive” demonstration of their new Infiniti, where the new owner is introduced to the vehicle and all the chosen options and specifications are demonstrated in detail. Either way, the customer will be offered a second “handover” following one month of ownership.

The new Infiniti owner is also introduced to a personal servicing manager, who will take care of all servicing and maintenance requirements from on the day of delivery. As the customer takes ownership of their vehicle and drives away, they become part of an enduring relationship with Infiniti that will continue throughout their ownership of their chosen Infiniti luxury car.

The Infiniti Centre will become a hub to its customers, for services that go beyond the simply vehicle-related.

INFINITI OWNERSHIP PROGRAMME
This Total Ownership Experience is supported with Infiniti i-Contact, which is a customer care contact centre, staffed with carefully selected consultants who provide the client with informative personal service, from Infiniti model information to a test drive booking or a vehicle servicing enquiry. Infiniti i-Contact consultants will be available Monday to Saturday at a free of charge telephone number 00 800 463 464 84.

This ownership programme is designed to make owning an Infiniti effortless, rewarding experience, helping give back the client the commodity they value most – their time.

Two key components of the Infiniti ownership programme aim to help Infiniti customers maximise their valuable time: Infiniti VIP Service and Infiniti Touring Assistance.

At maintenance time, the Infiniti VIP Service offers customers free collection and delivery of their car when and where it is convenient to them, and taking care of all the time-consuming details for them.

Infiniti Touring Assistance is designed to offer the ultimate convenience and peace of mind while travelling. On the rare occasion that clients may require assistance, Infiniti Mobility Specialists will be on hand to ensure they receive a personalised service and that their car is handled by experts – no matter where they are, or what the time of day. Even if the customer is travelling in a non-Infiniti vehicle, the customer is kept on the move whatever the circumstance.

On top of such unique services, Infiniti offers an industry-leading warranty package, covering 100,000km or 3 years of vehicle usage, without exceptions, a 12-year perforation by corrosion and a 3-year paint defect warranty. Warranty extensions and service packages are also available.

VEHICLES MADE FOR EUROPE
“Infiniti vehicles have character, are of beautiful, warm design with a sometimes edgy and aggressive tone, but are always distinctive and true,” says Infiniti’s head designer, Shiro Nakamura.

This was the challenge set for Infiniti’s team of European engineers – to make these vehicles – already successful elsewhere in the world – appeal to and excite in the very demanding European market. As a result, the product offering for Europe has been some time in gestation, time that has been used to perfect and fine-tune the vehicles for the unique and discerning requirements of these customers.

Elements of the cars have been re-tuned to suit Europe’s roads and characteristic demands. A dedicated team of ten engineers based at the company’s technical centres in the UK, Spain, Belgium and Germany has spent the last year working on the entire range, and perfecting it for this very demanding automotive territory.

This team has worked on the specific-to-Europe, Euro 5 compliant 3.7 litre V6 engine and the new seven-speed automatic transmission, which will be used in the majority of Europe’s Infiniti vehicles. The automatic transmission has been subject to a tuning philosophy that delivers more natural responses, leaving the driver to feel more in control.

The same ‘natural’ philosophy has been applied to the steering, braking and suspension settings, with a resulting poised, confidence-inspiring chassis and an involved, enjoyable drive, thanks to a linear weighted steering – designed for a controlled, responsive experience.

Attention to detail was the engineering team’s overriding focus, which, once applied to the vehicles’ fundamental major items was extended to items such as interiors and even the switchgear labelling, which has had the traditional English script substituted with a more universal collection of graphics. The result is a range of vehicles that feels, looks and even sounds (thanks to a revised exhaust note) more appealing to the discerning European driver.

This ‘made for Europe’ vehicle philosophy, together with Infiniti’s carefully chosen distribution partners, unique Infiniti Centres and industry-leading ownership programme make up key elements of the Total Ownership Experience objective. The result is a product and service designed to fit exactly with customers’ individual preferences, from the type of car they drive to their lifestyle choices.

The first Infiniti vehicles for European customers will be delivered by the end the year and will be priced from approximately €45,000 to €80,000.