Subaru calls creative pitch in Indonesia

The Subaru Singapore team called for the pitch, looking to boost market share in the country. Presentation should take place this week in Jakarta.

The brand’s market share is still small in Indonesia, given that its distributor, TC Subaru, targeted to sell only 2,500 cars last year.

The Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo) expects the country's car sales to increase 10 per cent in 2014, to 1.3 million vehicles. Japanese automakers dominate the island nation’s market, with Toyota, Daihatsu, Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Honda claiming the lion’s share.

Subaru did not respond to Campaign Asia-Pacific’s by press time.

Indonesians generally prefer big vehicles, such as SUVs and MPVs to accommodate the nation’s larger families and to navigate through the floods that often plague the country.

Last month news reports quoted Yasuyuki Yoshinaga, the CEO of Fuji Heavy, Subaru’s parent company, as saying the car maker is looking to increase sales in Russia, China and emerging markets in Southeast Asia, such as Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia. This pitch appears to be part of that effort.

The company has teamed up with Malaysian assembly plant Tan Chong Motor Assemblies to make the Subaru XV, which launched in Jakarta in September 2012. The same model is also available in Thailand and Malaysia.