Detroit / Hong Kong – INFINITI is a brand on the move.
Since establishing its global headquarters in Hong Kong and inaugurating INFINITI Motor Company Limited, INFINITI has taken decisive steps to strengthen its brand presence and globalize its business over the last 18 months.
The relocation to Hong Kong means INFINITI is strategically placed for growth in emerging luxury markets such as China while remaining closely connected to the west.
Under the stewardship of President Johan de Nysschen, an experienced management team has been assembled comprising leading multi-national executives from stand-out automotive and luxury goods brands.
The growth plan is underpinned by a commitment to offer product alternatives for a new generation of young-minded premium customers and to challenge the conventions set by the brands currently dominating the premium segment.
It is a norm-challenging growth strategy, with a provocative range of models like Q50 and an upcoming compact vehicle, both tailored for the needs of an emerging premium customer. The Q50 Eau Rouge, revealed at the Detroit Auto Show, hints at the high-performance design prowess of the INFINITI brand.
INFINITI expects to be present in 80 percent of the premium segments by 2018. To achieve this, INFINITI plans to expand the current product portfolio by 60 percent in the next five years and to double the number of powertrains.
The Q50 sports sedan, recently launched in the United States and Europe, is INFINITI's first model in this product offensive.
It features INFINITI's striking new design language, passionate craftsmanship, and a raft of world-leading technologies, chief among them Direct Adaptive Steering, the first steer-by-wire technology in a production vehicle.
The Q30 Concept, meanwhile, introduced at the Frankfurt Auto Show, is unmistakably INFINITI. Its shape deliberately challenges categorization – not a coupe, not a hatch and not a crossover, but a fusion of the three body styles. It is designed for young-minded customers seeking an alternative to traditional premium compact vehicles.
Critically, the upcoming production version of Q30 will have the input of Sebastian Vettel, INFINITI's Director of Performance, from inception.
INFINITI's future model range will be tailored to local needs like the long wheelbase version of the Q50 and QX50 for the Chinese market.
The powertrain options are being extended also with the recent addition of a turbocharged two-litre petrol engine for the Q50. The new petrol variant will be available to Chinese customers during spring 2014 before being made available in other markets.
The global manufacturing footprint is growing also with China and the United Kingdom joining production sites in Japan and the United States.
Leveraging strategic alliances such as that with Daimler AG will lead to collaboration on advanced research and development of key future technologies and their applications.
The vision for INFINITI is clear – to produce vehicles defined by emotive design, meticulous attention to detail, unsurpassed hospitality and intuitive technology.
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