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Subaru: An Innovative Marketing Strategy
Fifteen years ago, chances are that no one in the UK would have known of the small Japanese car marque, Subaru. Those that knew of of these far-eastern autos viewed them primarily as farming vehicles that farmering communities would use to ferry their crops and sheep dogs from A to B when the trusty Range Rover was to wide for the twisty country lanes, they were a less attractive option than van contract hire. Of course now the Subaru brand is widely recognized in Britain, mainly for its iconic now Impreza model, a popular choice for consumers looking into car leasing. What is intriguing is how Subaru gathered followers through a successful spell in top level motorsport, and interstingly, a Video Game.
The young Scottish really driver Colin McRae won his first world championship in a Subaru in 1995, the plucky young scot was a man of little words that let his driving style do the talking, and what style he had! McRae could only be described as frantic, he hustled his car over dirt, dust, ice and snow with reckless abandon, always fast, sometimes to the point of flipping and barrel rolling his car after hitting a rock, only to continue as if nothing had happened.
As McRae became relatively famous, dragging the success of the World Rally Championship with him, the viedo games publisher Codemasters enlisted his help for a console rally game in which McRae and his iconic Impreza took the staring roles. The game was heralded amongst the press for its ultra-realistic handling and beautiful graphics and sold in it's hundreds of thousands. In a direct correlation with the success of the game, Subaru saw interest in the Impreza build and build with sales of the blistering quick WRX version particularly impressive.
Throughout the 2000's the Subaru Impreza in its various guises became the boy racers ultimate dream. The 4WD beast became available to buy in metallic blue with gold rims, echoing the colour scheme of the famous rally car. Today Subaru faces stiff competition from the Mitsubishi Evo X which is widely thought of as the better car and sells well through contract hire firms. But through the World Rally Championship, Colin McRae himself and that hugely successful game, Subaru has been able to solidfiy a niche in the UK car market landscape with a big selection of models from small hatchbacks to SUVs. Subaru is living proof that a strong motorsport heritage can translate into healthy sales figures!
Patrick Kun :: Asian American Model Minority (Motion Graphic)
