Lexus dealership management staff from different parts of Russia attended the special training seminar
Any time a cross-cultural exchange takes place, it’s almost always likely to generate new ideas and concepts. And that was very much the case during a special automotive sales training seminar conducted by Chris Schulthies, President of Wye Management at the Four Seasons Toronto recently. The session in question featured an audience of dealership management staff from Lexus stores in Russia. Canadian auto dealer was invited to take part in the seminar which proved to be a fascinating insight into auto retailing practices, both here in North America and Russia.
The attendees, led by Yuriy O. Kataev, Senior Manager for Lexus Sales Operations in Russia, came from dealerships in different parts of the country, including Moscow and Siberia, so there were many different ideas and concepts that were discussed during the course of the day.
Wye Management’s Chris Schulthies discusses sales practices with the Russian attendees
The event began with an overview of the Canadian and U.S. markets before diving into key topics such as compensation for retail staff, recruitment practices, digital marketing and social media, the role of the sales manager; financing and leasing as well as the changing needs of the luxury auto customer.
Although there were some key differences between North America and Russia when it came to luxury retailing practices, including the fact that most buyers in Russia still pay cash for such vehicles (evidence of a market that’s still fairly embryonic), many topics and concerns among dealers proved to be similar in both parts of the world. These included effective ways of targeting customers, hiring practices, staff turnover and management strategies to help optimize dealership personnel performance.
Among the biggest challenges facing Lexus dealers in Russia appears to be high vehicle prices and taxes (a Lexus RX crossover sells for the equivalent of $80,000). That said, as the market matures, cars are expected to become more affordable, especially as leasing and finance programs evolve.
The topic of leasing generated a good deal of discussion among the participants and Schulthies remarked that today, lease penetration is around 92 per cent in North America with few luxury vehicle owners choosing to finance. “We are a payment driven market,” he said, “which is why leasing is desirable.”
Schulthies said the questions being asked by the attendees from Russia related to leasing reflected “many of the concerns we had 25 years ago in North America. I hope you push more towards leasing in Russia,” he said “because it trains the customer to not focus on price and it keeps them coming back.”
