Story & Photos by Ronald Rey M. de los Reyes
TOGETHER with a strong first-quarter performance, Suzuki Philippines (SPH) further stretches its market reach down South with the recent opening of their dealership in Batangas City. Strategically located along the diversion road in Barangay Balagtas, Batangas City, Suzuki Auto Batangas is now ready to cater to customers, particularly in the Calabarzon area.
“After reaching a great milestone this first quarter with the highest sales growth achieved so far by SPH, the whole team became even more inspired to build on our efforts and exceed our previous performance. The relentless support of our valued customers and Suzuki partners motivates us to further improve our services to better serve the Filipino community,” said Shuzo Hoshikura, vice president and general manager for automobile at SPH.
According to SPH, despite the majority of the auto industry suffering drawbacks which resulted from the initial implementing phase of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law, the country’s pioneer compact car distributor closed January-to-March sales with a robust 21.4-percent year-to-date growth.
As part of their plan to widen the brand’s reach and penetrate key growth areas outside Metro Manila, they opened the said dealership. It also served to answer the growing economy and their increasing number of patrons in Southern Luzon.
“We have high hopes for Suzuki Auto Batangas, particularly because of its strategic location. As one of the rapidly urbanizing cities in the Philippines, Batangas City offers a healthy and stable economy for investors, traders and businesses,” Hoshikura shared.
“Located at the heart of Batangas are some of the largest oil refineries and big corporations from various industries. Suzuki Auto Batangas is very accessible to motorists around that economic zone, which paves the way for us to share the Suzuki Way of Life to more people,” he added.
This newest dealership covers a total floor area of 1,400 square meters and comes with a six-to 10-vehicle showroom display. Similar to its other newly opened dealerships, such as the one in Taytay, Suzuki Auto Batangas is also categorized as a 3S dealership, which covers sales, spare parts and services.
Suzuki Auto Batangas is owned and operated by Shaw Motor Plaza Corp. which is under the management of Felix K. Limcaoco III, the company’s president.
“We are happy to be in partnership with Suzuki Philippines and have only positive expectations for our 3S dealership in Batangas. Suzuki vehicles are easy to market because of their unique feature upgrades and top-of-class quality. The growing economy of Batangas City will also help us quickly establish a following for our new dealership,” Limcaoco III, on the other hand, stated.
This, meanwhile, serves as SPH’s 40th 3S dealership, bringing the total number of Suzuki Automobile dealerships in the country to 70.
“Our company assures the community of a seamless and pleasant car-buying experience right at the heart of this city. We are proud to be an anchor in the newly developed Batangas Autoplex providing mobility and service in a modern city. There is a large potential target market here,” he added.
“We’re fortunate to be in a high growth industry. The Suzuki of the present is no longer the Suzuki of the past, it is now a mainstream brand that everybody knows, and the current models now fit today’s demographic. For us, it is a vote of confidence in the brand.”
Image credits: Ronald Rey M. de los Reyes