Chevrolet opens Motorama, celebrates 5 years in PH

Chevrolet Philippines aka The Covenant Car Company, Inc. (TCCCI) celebrates its fifth year as the exclusive distributor of Chevrolet cars in the Philippines. TCCCI announced that sales for the Chevrolet brand has grown by 41 percent on average each year since it began operations in October 2009. The company opened the Motorama event featuring Chevrolet cars yesterday, and it will run until October 12. The event takes its name from the traditional Chevrolet display that began in 1949.

For this year, the fifth staging of the Chevrolet Motorama happens once again at the Ice Skating Rink of the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City. The 2014 Chevrolet Motorama is open to the public for free, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. from Oct. 10 to 12. Classic cars and pickups as well as current models are on display.

Alberto Arcilla, president and managing director of Chevrolet Philippines, said: “Celebrating another year of innovative design and engineering, this year’s edition of Chevrolet Motorama marks the beginning of a three-month Chevy auto festival participated by our dealerships nationwide.

“Starting tomorrow Oct. 9, we will once again give our customers the full Chevrolet VIP treatment that will include on-the-spot, easy ownership promos, exclusive freebies, selfie photos with everyone’s favorite Bumblebee at the Chevy photo booth, a showcase of Chevrolet Merchandise collections available at the Chevy Shop, a display of classic Chevy pickup trucks, the latest Chevy vehicle lineup, as well as the entries to the first ever Transform Your Ride: Chevrolet dealer build-off competition,” he said.
TCCCI has introduced 10 new Chevrolet models in the past five years and more than doubled Chevrolet’s market share. To date, TCCCI has sold more than 20,000 Chevrolet vehicles in the Philippines, rising from the 12th spot in 2009 to eighth overall in the market.

“We are very pleased with the performance given the limited segments we currently participate in. TCCCI’s accomplishments demonstrate Chevrolet’s brand strength, the exceptional support of our 25 dealer partners and the enduring relationships we have built with clients, our stewards, our regional partners and the media over the past five years,” said Alberto Arcilla, president of TCCCI.

Chevrolet posted a record-setting performance with a total of 5,954 units sold from January to September 2014, a 73.5-percent gain over the same period last year and well ahead of the industry’s growth of 26 percent (August YTD). On a month-over-month basis, sales surged by 49.1 percent in September as Chevrolet Trailblazer, Colorado and Spin continued to attract customers. The brand expects to achieve its target of 8,800 units this year.

Starting with 12 dealerships, Chevrolet Philippines will have 25 operational dealers nationwide by the end of 2014 and aims to open four new dealerships by the first quarter of 2015, bringing the total of Chevrolet dealerships nationwide to 29.

Due in part to TCCCI’s efforts to promote the brand, Chevrolet has won several Car of the Year awards in the past five years. TCCCI also was heralded as the “Best in Aftersales Service” by J.D. Power Asia for two years in a row (2011 and 2012). Representatives from Chevrolet Philippines also emerged as champion and second runner-up in Chevrolet’s annual regional service technician competition known as “Best of the Bests”.

“There is so much to look forward to, and with optimism and pride, we shall continue to advance and work hard towards the success and growth of Chevrolet in the Philippines. The past five years have provided a solid base on which to chart further growth. Filipino buyers can look forward to exciting new offers from Chevrolet. We are working towards expanding our product line in 2015 to cover two more segments in the automotive industry. We are committed to offer the best cars and trucks to our customers in terms of quality, performance and value for money. TCCCI is also equally committed to ensuring top quality aftersales service for its customers, backed by our strong dealer network,” Arcilla said.

Tim Zimmerman, president of GM Southeast Asia Operations, said: “As we refine our product mix in the region, we also reaffirm our commitment to providing the highest quality products and services possible by listening to the voice of our customers. We want all our customers to feel proud of their Chevrolet vehicles and confident about our brand. Ultimately, we want to make Chevrolet a leading brand in the Asian automotive industry by building brand recognition and introducing more Asian customers to the Chevrolet ownership experience.”

Joining Tim Zimmerman were Tadashi Wakamatsu, General Director, General Motors Southeast Asia, Chee Sing Cheong, Director for Export and Distributors Operations, General Motors Southeast Asia and Dante Reyes, Country Manager for the Philippines, General Motors Southeast Asia.