Industry heavyweight retires

ONE of the most respected figures in the Australian motor industry today retired after guiding Subaru Australia for 19 years of almost constant growth.

Trevor Amery steps down from his post of company chairman, which he has been filling on a part-time basis for the past couple of years, but is being retained as a consultant to the company for a further two years.

The role of chairman was created for Mr Amery and will not be filled in his absence, leaving well-established managing director Nick Senior at the head of Subaru Australia, which has the highest sales penetration of any mature market outside Japan in the Subaru world.

“The rise of the Subaru brand in the Australian market and the continued sales success is inextricably linked to Trevor’s tenure,” said Mr Senior.

“It was Trevor’s vision that inspired the development of Subaru Interactive @ Docklands, recognised as being the most innovative and progressive automotive retail centre in the world.

“On a personal level, Trevor has been my biggest supporter and has been a mentor since I joined Subaru in 1991. More importantly, he is a great friend.

“The brand in Australia owes him a great debt.”

Mr Amery joined Subaru as national sales and marketing manager from Capitol Motors in 1989 before becoming general manager in 1991, then managing director in 1992. He became chairman in 2005. In that time Australia has grown to be the third-largest Subaru market worldwide.

He was instrumental in masterminding the move to Subaru’s purely boxer engine with all-wheel drive strategy in 1997. Ten years of consecutive all-time sales have followed.

Under his management, similar success was achieved in New Zealand, using the same basic strategy, but tailored specifically to that market.

Since early 2007, Mr Amery has worked closely with Subaru parent company Fuji Heavy Industries on its global marketing strategy.

His achievements have been widely recognised in the broader business community, as evidenced by the awarding in 2005 of Australia’s most prestigious marketing award, the Sir Charles McGrath Award, presented annually by the Australian Marketing Institute.

Further to his success as Managing Director of Subaru Australia, and the exponential growth of the company during this time, Mr Amery was appointed chief executive of Inchcape Motors Australasia in 2000 and then chairman in April 2005.

Mr Amery has also served as chairman of the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) Importers Group.