Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. (TMP) plans to expand its dealership network this year, which will focus mainly on the provinces.

On the sidelines of the company’s 30th anniversary in the country, TMP senior vice president for marketing Jose Maria Atienza told reporters that the company was aiming a total of 70 dealers this year. As of the end of last month, TMP has a network of 67 dealer outlets.

Most of the existing outlets are located outside of Metro Manila, with 27 dealers located in Luzon provinces; 12 in Visayas and 10 in Mindanao.

The figures already include dealers under Lexus Manila, Inc., Toyota’s luxury car division.

“Our main goal is to offer the same level of services to our customers in our service facilities anywhere in the country,” he said.

Toyota’s commitment to expand the reach of its aftersales service comes as the company celebrated its anniversary on Wednesday night, which had President Duterte as guest of honor.

Company data showed Toyota had invested in the country P58 billion from 1989 to 2017, with over 53,000 workers in the value chain.

The company plans to sell 175,000 to 180,000 vehicle units this year, which is lower than the the sales last year.

Vehicle sales have been on a decline as a consequence of the TRAIN law, among other factors.

Company sales hit 183,908 units last year, 15.9 percent higher than the sales in 2016. –By: Roy Stephen C. Canivel