Nissan names top-performing dealers for 2012/13

NISSAN Australia has named Berwick Nissan in Melbourne, led by dealer principal Mark Wright, as its 2012/13 Metropolitan Dealer of the Year.

In the second year that the Japanese brand has awarded a specific Dealer of the Year award as part of its ‘Platinum Dealer’ program introduced in 2005, Nissan also named Muswellbrook Nissan in New South Wales as its Rural DOTY.

This is the first time the company has divided its top dealer award into two categories, after last year awarding a single national DOTY award.

Overall, 10 dealers were honoured as achieving Platinum status in 2012/13, which is based on performance criteria spanning all areas of dealership operation, from sales performance through to customer relations.

Last year’s national DOTY, Ferntree Gully Nissan in outer-eastern Melbourne, reached Platinum status for the eighth consecutive year of the program, and was further recognised with a ‘Nissan Platinum Master Dealer Award’.

The seven other Platinum dealers for 2012/13 comprised three dealers from NSW – Macarthur Nissan, Great Lakes Nissan and Moruya Nissan – and one each from Victoria (Northern Nissan), South Australia (Jarrett Nissan), Queensland (Huston Nissan) and Western Australia (Northside Nissan).

Nissan Australia says that more than 40 dealers have now achieved Platinum status and that the standards for its retail network have increased every year “to the benefit of our entire network, our brand and, of course, our customers”.

The company racked up more than 83,000 new registrations in its 2012/13 financial year (running from April 2012 to March 2013), up more than 20 per cent on the previous year but short of its ambitious goal of achieving a 10 per cent market share and becoming the number-one full-line importer by this stage.

For the 2012 calendar year, Nissan recorded 79,747 sales, up 17.4 per cent on the previous year for a 7.2 per cent market share.

This year, Nissan’s sales are up 10.6 per cent to the end of May, with 34,900 sales YTD, which gives it a 7.7 per cent share and places it in third position among the full-line importers.

Mazda remains the clear leader with 42,720 sales YTD and a 9.4 per cent share. Hyundai is next best, with 38,065 sales YTD and an 8.4 per cent slice of the market.