General Motors and Chrysler this week sat in front of Congress with their hands out with nothing but promising better results in the future. Both companies will be getting money, but arguments can be made for and against giving these car companies taxpayer money, but I do not think there is any argument about what path they should take, just follow Mazda. Yes Mazda. Sure the bigger imports like Honda, Toyota and Mercedes-Benz have more impressive total sales figures and much more panache to the car buying public, but I think you’ll agree that Mazda’s actions over the last 5 years provide a blueprint for GM brands and Chrysler.
In 2005 Mazda began changing. That year they had 900 dealers around the country, today, 4 years later they have 640 dealers, a 30% decrease. Less total dealers allow each one to be healthier. It works on the Savanna and in the auto business (if you work in this industry like I do, there’s even more similarities between the auto business and were wild animals hunt each other).
And not only are there less dealers, Mazda is also making a much better product. The Mazda 3 and Mazda 6 are outstanding cars and both have received incredible praise from customers and the auto press. Additionally, they have three CUVs the Mazda 5, CX-7 and CX-9 that are extremely popular and offer an excellent product. Mazda has created 5 great vehicles that provide outstanding satisfaction from price to performance for 80% to 85% of the general public. Their other vehicles like the B-2000 (a pick up truck), Tribute (an SUV) and niche cars like the RX-8, Speed 6 remain, but are not their main focus. They focus on the 5 great vehicles. So Mazda reduced dealers and concentrated on creating a handful of excellent vehicles… are you listening GM and Chrysler?