After a period of rapid and unprecedented volume growth, Kia is now focused on improving its quality and raising the perception of quality among consumers around the world, according to the company’s COO, Thomas Oh.
Speaking to journalists in Seoul, Mr Oh noted that Kia has tripled its sales and output over the past ten years with Kia vehicle sales projected to hit 2.8m units in 2013.
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“Our focus is now moving from quantitative efforts to qualitative,” he said.
Mr Oh ruled out any capacity addition in Europe – for the time being – despite signs that Kia’s Slovakian plant is struggling to keep up with European demand for its models and has reached its capacity limit (c. 300,000 units a year). Similarly, he confirmed that there is currently no plan to add a Kia plant in South America.
“Awareness is especially important for us, in Europe,” Oh said. “Still, there is a gap between consumers’ perception of Kia quality and actual quality. We have to work to narrow that gap,” he said.
JD Power’s initial quality surveys show a long-term improvement in Kia’s quality (with the Soul and Sportage at a claimed number one in their respective segments). Mr Oh stressed that the quality message has to embrace all parts of the car company’s operations, from product design to manufacturing and the dealer-customer interface.
Kia is embarking on a number of initiatives to raise awareness of its products and to consumers, including major sports sponsorships (tennis tournaments, NBA in the US and the football World Cup in Brazil in 2014).
Interbrand’s Top 100 global brands listing placed Kia at number 87 in 2012, the first time it had featured in the rankings.
