Following a month of market correction in September due to the introduction of Sales and Service Tax (SST), sales for PROTON cars grew by 12.6% in October. 5,093 units were sold, an increase of 569 units over the previous month and a slight improvement over the corresponding period in 2017. Market share as a percentage of the Total Industry Volume (TIV) is estimated at 10.7% which is in line with the average figure for the year.
Sales growth fuelled by promotions and quality improvements
While PROTON’s overall market share contracted in October, the sales volume it achieved is the highest for 2018 outside of the bumper sales period from June – September, which was fuelled by a zero GST tax environment. With the much- hyped Proton X70 launch only occurring later in the year, the growth points towards customers showing renewed interest in the current range of Proton cars.
The increased interest has been encouraged by the attractive pricing policies PROTON currently has. Buyers enjoy zero SST pricing as the Company absorbs the tax amount for all models. This means there has been no change in price despite the GST tax holiday period ending and SST being enforced in September this year.
The increased number of new 3S and 4S outlets has also contributed to the improvement of PROTON’s brand image. As at the end of October, 113 outlet submission approvals were granted, equivalent to a 104% achievement over the target of 109. To man these new outlets, training programmes have been held to ensure all sales and service staff are able to deliver a high level of customer service. The effectiveness of this move was proven in the J.D. Power 2018 Malaysian Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) for mass market automotive brands, with PROTON improving its ranking by three spots.
