By The Japanese manufacturer, Suzuki finished an extremely busy sales month in March. Topping an equally stellar financial year with record sales across the board. The brand sold an impressive 3 734 new vehicles for an 11.8% share of the passenger vehicle market this past month. This is 12% better than the same month last year, when Suzuki Auto South Africa ranked fourth overall in total vehicle sales.
This past financial year is the fifteenth since the company first opened its doors in South Africa in 2008 and it is also the fifteenth year of both sales and dealer growth. Naamsa (National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa) reported that Suzuki Auto South Africa closed the month of March in third place overall. This ended the group’s financial year with total sales of 49 863 vehicles, a new all-time record for the Japanese brand.
In contrast, the average sales growth achieved by the industry is -0.6%. The industry sold 31 631 passenger vehicles and 50 157 vehicles overall, with Suzuki remaining one of the most popular brands in the country. To place Suzuki’s remarkable growth in perspective, its total annual sales in the 2018/19 financial were 12 241 units. This means Suzuki has grown by an average of 61.2% a year for the past five years and hit nearly 50 000 units in this past financial year that ended in March. This is very impressive by any standards. Considering how challenging the current economic climate in South Africa is.
Henno Havenga, Manager of Dealer Sales at Suzuki Auto South Africa said “Suzuki Auto has grown by over 300% in the past five years, despite some of the most challenging economic conditions in our country’s recent history. It is testament to the hard work of each of our team members and especially of our dealers.” Regarding dealers, the Suzuki dealer network recorded its best quarter in its history with more customers across more models than ever before. In fact, no fewer than nine dealers each sold more than 100 new vehicles in March. In this month, the dealer network also welcomed its 95th dealer into the fold, making Suzuki’s network one of the largest in Southern Africa.
SWIFT MARCH
The Suzuki Swift continued its winning streak in March as Suzuki’s top seller. Dominating its segment with sales of 1 249 units, which also makes it one of the most popular vehicles in the month. Other Suzuki models that performed well in March included the Baleno (582 units), the Ertiga (497 units), the Jimny (192 units) and the S-Presso (384 units).
Henno said, “Suzuki starts its new financial year with a clean slate, but with more than enough sales prospects to suggest another record year. There’s a lot of demand for models such as the Jimny, Baleno and Swift, and we have no fewer than five brand new models planned for this financial year, including the new five-door Jimny 4×4, the new Fronx and the all-new Suzuki Grand Vitara.”
MORE ON ONE OF SA’s FASTEST GROWING BRANDS
Suzuki is one of South Africa’s fastest growing car brands. It has won the coveted Brand of the Year Award twice. Which was awarded at the cars.co.za Consumer Awards, powered by WesBank. It is also the most awarded brand in the Budget Car of the Year category in the same competition. The group is also one of two brands with the most finalists in the history of this competition. Suzuki has had multiple finalists in the Auto Trader Car of the Year. The Swift and Jimny models were category winners in the 2019 Car of the Year competition. In support of its growing client base, this Japanese compact vehicle specialist is continuing to open new dealerships, now standing at 95, including dealerships in Namibia, Botswana and Eswatini and franchise dealers in rural areas across Southern Africa.