Mercedes-Benz Italia has decided to pamper its customers with a new Best Customer Experience, a program of exclusive events by invitation and tailored to the dealership and the context in which it operates. These are one or two day appointments in which dealers host up to 20 people at their own expense to let them experience more than just the pleasure of driving.
“Mercedes – explains Livia Massara, Head of Events & Retail Marketing – becomes a means of discovering the territory”. Driving is only one of the aspects through which the manufacturer wants to transfer the potential of his brand, destined to become more and more “aspirational”. Mercedes is courting the new multitude of rich people who will triple in China, double in the United States and also grow in Europe for a total of 95 million in 2030 (now there are 52 million).
Mercedes is no longer satisfied with just being a premium brand, but aims for luxury: “If there is a brand entitled to do so, there is no doubt that it is ours”, summarizes Radek Jelinek, president of the Italian branch of Mercedes- Benz. Jelinek, descendant of the Mercedes that gave the manufacturer its name, explains that the house with the star draws inspiration from the world of fashion, changing not only communication but also content. It is no coincidence that Marco Gobbetti, CEO of Ferragamo, was appointed on the board to join the Supervisory Board.
Luxury and fashion inside the car, Gobbetti appointed for the Mercedes Supervisory Board
Mattia Eccheli
The numbers have already proved Mercedes right, which last year sold fewer cars, but recorded many more profits, 23.4 billion net, six times that of the previous year. In 2021 in Italy it marketed 1,045 EQ cars, i.e. electric and intelligent (Progressive Luxury), 4,650% more than in 2019, when the offensive had just begun. AMG, synonymous with Performance Luxury, delivered 1,905 cars (+ 30% on 2019) and in March this year closed 300 contracts: “In the best years – smiles Sergio Vettor, AMG Sales Manager in Italy – we uncorked the sparkling wine when we reached one hundred ”. Exclusivity increases interest and increases the desire for luxury. That the manufacturer also declines in Maybach (Ultimate Luxury), in Mercedes-Benz (Modern Luxury) and G-Class (Adventurous Luxury), the expensive off-road vehicle sold in 412 units in the beautiful country last year.
The experience linked to Mercedes appeals to the curious, who often become customers: one in five of the participants in the various driving events signs a contract. Also for this, but not only for this reason, the national branch has developed a Best Customer Experience program, based this year on water and fragrances. The selected customers (twenty for each event) invited by the dealers (about forty throughout Italy) will be guided by a hydro sommelier on a water tasting itinerary and will then conclude the aquatic experience aboard a catamaran. Thanks to a master perfumer, the exploration includes the discovery of perfumes and essences.
The dealers choose who (and also why) to invite on this journey in search of the contamination between the Italian excellence of flavors (a meal with a starred chef is also always provided) and the German one of engines. “In this process, the role of our local sales network is fundamental, able like no other to intercept the needs of customers and help us translate them into engaging brand experiences”, summarizes Mirco Scarchilli, Head of Marketing Communication Experience at Mercedes-Benz. Italy.
The project, concentrated for reporters in a few hours at Villa d’Este and on Lake Como, is a national pride, born to combine passion, reason and emotion and thus overcome the simple test of the car. That remains, however, the reason why people approach Mercedes.
