Isuzu Philippines Corporation has set a fighting target of doubling its market share in the pick-up segment to 15 percent in 2021 from 8 percent in 2020 with the introduction of the all-new D-Max pick-up Thursday (March 4, 2021).
“We aim to hit 15 percent of market share in the pick-segment with this new model,” Isuzu vice-president for sales Yasuhiko Oyama said during the virtual launch of th D-Max Thursday.
He added that the Isuzu has the confidence to achieve the target market share despite the current situation because of emerging signs of economic recovery and efforts of the government to open-up the remaining sectors of the economy.
Isuzu president Hajime Koso said the Philippine unit is eager to market the all-new D-Max in the Philippines after its successful debut in Thailand that sold over 160,000 units in 2020, dominating the pick-up segment with 44 percent market share.
“We are very excited to introduce this model to the Philippine market—a market that has been particularly special for us since there are a lot of scenic routes and challenging terrains all over the country that a pick-up and 4×4 enthusiast would love to traverse, especially on the weekends. Because of that, we’ve made sure that the All-New D-MAX will have a wide range of choices to cater to every consumer’s needs,” he said.
The Isuzu D-MAX is well received in the international scene specially in Thailand and has been redesigned to keep in harmonious step with the modern-day Filipino’s ever-changing needs, and is more than capable of meeting the unpredictable daily demands of both work and lifestyle, while still achieving that remarkable balance between toughness and style.
About 30 percent of the D-Max sales are expected to come from the 4×4 variant and the bigger share will have to come from the variant with the most value for money which is the 4×2 variant.
Isuzu has carefully designed the all new D-Max to suit the requirement of the Filipino market, officials said.
Oyama said the company preferred not to set sales target in 2021 since -“nobody knows how big of an impact the safeguard duties will have on the market.”
“We requested our customers to include the provisional safeguard duties of P123,400 in escrow. This will be refunded once we receive favorable result from the ongoing proceedings on the safeguard issue at the Tariff Commission,” he explained.
He added that the safeguards issue is very challenging for the local automotive industry considering the state of the industry which is still reeling from the effects of the harsh lockdowns and the depressed demand in 2020.
Of the total automotive firms in the Philippines, Isuzu ranked 5th in terms of sales and market share in January 2021.
