MANILA: Suzuki is hitting the promotions button with its
newly-appointed ad agency DDB to expand its zero share of the
Philippines' sports utility vehicle (SUV) market.
With ambitions to snag a share of the top SUV market dominated by
Toyota's RAV4 and Honda CRV models, Suzuki will kick off a major
marketing initiative on May 1 for the re-modelled Grand Vitara. This is
the first time that Suzuki and partner General Motors Automobiles
Philippines (GMAP) are investing in a full-scale marketing push to grow
its share of the SUV business
GMAP president Harold Koh is disappointed that last year the company had
a zero share of the 4,000 SUV market. Industry sources said Suzuki's
drive to improve sales is in preparation for the entry of another
GM-allied brand, the SUV Forester of Subaru. GM has a 20 per cent stake
of Subaru manufacturer Fuji Heavy Industries and will market the
Forester in June.