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Mercedes-Benz hopes to keep market share by assembling cars locally
German car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz aims to keep its “number one position” in the premium car market in Indonesia by increasing its amount of completely knocked down (CKD) vehicles that offer premium products at competitive prices.
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Mercedes-Benz head of marketing and sales for Southeast Asia Claus Weidner (left to right), Industry Minister Airlangga Hartanto, Mercedes-Benz Indonesia chief executive officer Guenter Haefele, Mercedes-Benz Distribution Indonesia CEO Roelof Lamberts CEO, Mercedes-Benz India Private Limited head of operations Piyush Arora and the Industry Ministry's director general for metal industries, machines, transportation vehicles and electronics, I Gusti Putu Suryawirawan, pose together during the launch of the new Mercedes-Benz E Class on Tuesday in Wanaherang, Bogor, West Java. (JP/Bimo Raharjo)
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erman car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz aims to keep its “number one position” in the premium car market in Indonesia by increasing its amount of completely knocked down (CKD) vehicles that offer premium products at competitive prices.
Mercedes-Benz deputy director of sales operations and product management Kariyanto Hardjosoemarto said CKD vehicles had an important role to play for the brand because they were the main contributor to its total sales.
“Locally assembled cars contribute about 80 percent to our total sales. With premium CKD vehicles, we can offer cars at better prices,” he said during a test-drive event of two CKD premium vehicles, namely the E-250 Avantgarde and the E-300 AMG Line, in Jakarta on Friday.
By assembling the car locally at its Wanaherang plant in Bogor, East Java, the company can offer the same type of cars as completely built-up (CBU) cars, but at lower prices because it will not need to bear the import duties.
As of March, the company controls a 56.8 percent share of Indonesia’s premium car market, according to data from the Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo).
“We are optimistic that our move to assemble the cars domestically will enable us to better compete in the premium car market,” Kariyanto said. (ecn/ags)
