Buick: Making an Old Brand New AgainWhen General Motors
Buick: Making an Old Brand New AgainWhen General Motors
Buick: Making an Old Brand New Again
When General Motors emerged from its financial troubles, many observers thought it might discontinue its Buick line. After all, the company had retired the hundred-year-old Oldsmobile several years ago. Once known as the “doctor’s car” or the “banker’s car,” Buick gradually lost its prestige and became known for its older car buyers. But GM decided to regenerate the 106-year-old brand—with some success. GM’s strategy has been to aim at younger, upscale customers by offering only a few Buick models at first, but equipping them with the latest techology, from its OnStar system to DVD players, navigation systems, and the latest safety features. The Enclave, a large crossover vehicle, is popular with buyers about 55 years old; half of the buyers are women. The 2011 Buick Regal sedan is intended to compete with the Acura TSX and the Infiniti G37. Leather upholstery is standard, as are other luxury features. Designers of the revised LaCrosse sedan made sure the backseat has generous headroom and legroom. Buicks have always been popular in China, and GM hopes that the new LaCrosse will appeal to Chinese executives, who travel in chauffeurdriven cars. Many higher-income American buyers are trading in imports for the LaCrosse. By 2012, Buick plans to introduce two more models. How successful has Buick’s strategy been? It may be too soon to tell for sure. The average age of Buick buyers overall has fallen from 70 to 65. Buick sold more than 102,000 vehicles most recently, but that was fewer than the previous year and only about one-fourth as many as earlier in the decade. But Craig Bierly, Buick’s product marketing director, says, “You have to change the product before you can change opinion. It’s still too soon to really come to a verdict. . . . But nobody can say those are old person’s cars anymore. Because they aren’t.”
Questions for Critical Thinking
1. What stage of its life cycle do you think the Buick brand has reached? How did General Motors extend Buick’s life cycle?
2. How are Buick’s new features part of General Motors’ strategy for these cars?
Sources: Company Web site, http://www.buick.com, accessed May 1, 2010; Barry Silverstein, “Aging Buick Brand Is Young Again,” brandchannel, April 12, 2010, http://www.brandchannel.com; Steven Cole Smith, “Test Drive: Regal Fuels Buick Revival,” Orlando Sentinel, March 11, 2010, http://articles.orlandosentinel.com; Carguide editors, “2010 LaCrosse Breaks New Ground for Revived Buick Brand,” Carguide Canada, February 17, 2010, http://www.carguidecanada.ca; James M. Amend, “Buick Revival Effort Showing Early Results, GM Marketers Say,” WardsAuto, January 20, 2010, http://wardsauto.com.
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