Kia and AC Motors discuss their plans for continuity, consistency and what the consumer needs
A very casual chat introduced those that are meant to take KIA Philippines to the next level. On many levels.
At AC Motors Centrale in BGC, Brian Buendia was presented as the car company’s new chief operating officer. Brian has over 20 years of experience with the AC Motors Group, the automotive division of Ayala Corporation, in particular on the customer-facing sales side of the equation.
This fits well with the ever-increasing focus on customer experience as the customer and the automotive experience themselves are changing. “We will refine the Kia buying and ownership experience,” said Buendia “by ringing our corporate identity and culture to the fore.” This will be done, he explained, by establishing Kia and the group as a major player in the electric vehicle market not just with current offerings like the EV6 but also with what they are calling the future “New Energy Vehicles”.
An example of this customer-service focus was actually shown real-time, with the 2022 Kia National Skills Cup Champion in Korea as they spoke to represent the Philippines in the Kia Service Advisor World Competition.
None of this is particularly new, really, as outgoing Kia president, Manny Aligada, explained the pillars on which their vision of Kia Philippines was built. From product choice to brand identity to customer experience to proper distribution of all of the above, the key points all were in service to giving the end consumer what they wanted and deserved, often even before they knew it themselves.
AC Motors president for for Automotive Group Toti Zara was also on hand to give a broad strokes picture of the market, the economy, and the opportunities and challenges going forward. From the more macro global trends that support and even push electrification to the specific local “micro” details that more directly affect whether or not a person or family will find electrified vehicles the right choice.
What’s in store for Kia? Locally, they are primarily internal combustion, with the popular Stonic model making up almost a full half of their sales for the year-to-date from May. Globally, though, you start to see the directions they want to take. They (Global) will operate their first dedicated EV factory in Gwangmyeong by 2024, and they plan to introduce a total of 15 Battery Electric Vehicles by 2027. On the way there, new models from 2025 will have connected car features, with “AutoMode” hitting the major markets from 2026. They explained that there are several levels of autonomous or assisted driving, and the big jumps require dry different ecosystem and community support. They target global sales of 4.3 million units by 2023, over half of which should be electrified.
The Kia Philippines plan for the same 2023-2024 period will be further aligning with all these changes. They expect to introduce a new BEV model, as well as what they are calling another type of “New Energy Vehicle.” They are not ignoring the mainstream automotive market of course, and they have said that two new internal combustion models (at least two) will be introduced into the particularly key and competitive segments.
Brian Buendia, the new chief operating officer, was asking the right questions. He wanted to know if people thought their plans and double-digit percentages of electrification for the local market were conservative or realistic. The whole evening really was more of a back-and-forth on what real challenges were faced around the world as electrification became a larger portion of daily driver choices.
Clearly, they see that while numbers mean a lot, the key point is really how people feel. And what really makes their lives better.
