Greece

Toyota Hellas is back on track and again dominating the Greek car market. Since its establishment in 1987, the premier multinational auto group has enjoyed a very successful presence in Greece. Toyota controlled the number one market position in 2002 in Greece for the sixth year since 1990, and it has never gone below the number two position in that period.

Toyota Hellas is a member of Inchcape Holdings Hellas and Inchcape Plc Group of Companies - the largest international independent automotive services group in the world. Toyota Hellas distributes Toyota and Lexus vehicles in Greece, and is also the official distributor of Toyota in Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Romania.

Currently leading Toyota Hellas is Nick Drollas, its CEO and managing director. Drollas has an impressive history with the Toyota group, beginning in 1986 as after sales and dealer network development director with Toyota Hellas. In September 1993, he relocated to Brussels to oversee numerous operations for Toyota Motor Europe.

During this time he served concurrently as Toyota Europe's after sales director, deputy general manager, general manager of conversions and accessories division, general manager of parts logistics division, and parts logistics director. In April of 2001 he returned to Toyota Hellas, this time to assume his present role.
Nick Drollas, chief executive officer and managing director of Toyota Hellas

Toyota's domination of the Greek automotive market is due not only to its high-quality products, but also to its excellent after sales customer service. Toyota Hellas has been a sectoral innovator with its Dealers Network Concept - which consisting of modern dealership units all over Greece that provide the full range of automotive services.

These include: sales of new vehicles, trade-offs and sales of used vehicles, spare parts and accessories, service, bodywork and painting. "What we offer is more competitive than any other company because of the value we provide. We create a one stop shop for the consumer," explains Drollas. It is proud to call this the "Toyota Experience", unmatched by any other sector player.

The company has invested over $11 million to create a modern parts distribution center. This enables Toyota to achieve immediate response to demand, and ensures that 96 percent of their customers receive their spare parts when needed.

In addition to quality service, technological superiority and reliability, all Toyota models include a six-year guarantee. Drollas emphasizes, "Toyota has always enjoyed a high image in Greece because it is an ownership experience that is unique."

Meanwhile, the car company continuously seeks new ways to satisfy the needs of the Greek consumer. "The relationship between Greek consumers and their cars is passionate." Drollas explains. "There is a lot of emotion involved, but it is an investment. Greek citizens' buying power is much less than that of the average European consumer, so a feeling of confidence must be instilled when making a purchasing decision."

This attention to customer needs is why Toyota Hellas is successful in retail sales, and operates four dealerships in Greece. It has also created a network of subsidiary companies which provide the entire range of automotive needs, including financing through Tefin and Unitbank, insurance through British Providence, long term leasing through Eurolease, and used car sales and service through T-Autotrust.

Looking ahead, Drollas says: "2003 and 2004 will be challenging years for us, it is unknown how the market will react to the Olympics and Olympic sponsorships. In turn, 2005 will be an exciting year for us because we will be entering the small vehicle market and will have a new weapon to capitalize on as well as the new design of our number one model -- the Corolla. This should increase our market share even more."

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