Proton Holdings Bhd has taken further steps to ensure that its overall export plans and strategies are align with those of its international importers and distributors.
In line with this, the national carmaker held a two-day International Distributor Conference that ended last Friday, where it not only shared updates and details but also held dialogue sessions to gather feedback on various operational issues abroad.
The annual conference, held this year in Phuket, Thailand, is one of Proton's distributor and importer engagement exercises organised by its international sales and services division.
Emphasis was on high growth regional markets, namely Asean, China, India and Middle East-North Africa (MENA), where Proton is able to benefit from the economies of scale, quality and capability transfer, the company said.
The markets were chosen for their pre-existing trade and culture linkages with Malaysia and Proton leveraged on this to reduce its cost in making further inroads, it said in a statement Monday.
The strategy also identified several key regional centres, namely China and Iran, for the establishment of completely knocked down (CKD) operations which allowed Proton to serve its customers in the region more effectively.
"The current environment clearly indicates that the challenges ahead would demand for a more aggressive export strategy for Proton," said managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir.
"Staying competitive and our ability to sustain requires for our export operations to operate differently and if need be, drastic changes will be made to ensure growth in Proton's business abroad," he said.
According to Syed Zainal Abidin, the national carmaker wants to ensure that its international importers and distributors are on the same page when it comes to Proton's moving forward strategy.
"To strengthen the distribution network, Proton will finetune some key areas, such as product forecasting, and improve several aspects of its operation, particularly in product quality control, after-sales services, marketing and branding and product positioning," he said.
Source : BERNAMA