Lexus Derby Receives 2021 European Kiwami Award Honouring Retailer Excellence

• Lexus Derby among 10 European Lexus retailers to receive a 2021 Kiwami Award
• Awards acknowledge exceptional business performance by Lexus’s retail partners and the maintenance of Lexus omotenashi customer service, despite the trading challenges of the past year
• Judging process examined every aspect of the customer journey and business performance

Lexus Derby is one of 10 Lexus retailers judged to be the best in Europe in the 2021 Kiwami Awards. The honours reward all-round excellence achieved in the most challenging trading conditions the brand has ever experienced.

For this, the fifth year of the awards programme, the exacting judging standards took into account the way retailers have adapted their procedures and their premises to ensure the health and safety of customers and staff and compliance with local restrictions and guidelines.

The principles of Lexus’s omotenashi customer service – treating a customer as you would a guest in your home – are central to the brand and have been successfully maintained as businesses changed their ways of working. New methods have been developed quickly and effectively to ensure people can still access the services, support and information they need, both for vehicle sales and repairs and maintenance, with peace of mind that all necessary health and safety precautions have been taken. Video consultations with sales executives and test drives respecting social distancing and hygiene requirements are among the concepts that have been introduced or significantly developed.

The assessment of retailers’ performance for the awards included enquiries and visits by mystery shoppers who examined every aspect of the customer journey, including this year the strict observance of Covid protection measures. These elements were in addition to the monitoring of courtesy, promptness and thoroughness of response, the quality of the facilities and the services provided. Lexus has around 300 dealerships across Europe, among which the Kiwami winners are acknowledged as the finest (the award takes its name from a Japanese word meaning “ultimate”).

Pascal Ruch, Vice President in charge of Lexus Europe, said: “Our retail partners have had to address unprecedented circumstances in the past year, prioritising the health and safety of their teams and their customers, while also doing their utmost to maintain the finest Lexus omotenashi guest experience. Their efforts have been exceptional and I am proud of how they have maintained such impressive standards of customer care and business quality in such a challenging operating environment.

“The Kiwami Awards reward those who have achieved the greatest all-round performance, but our sincere thanks go to all our retailers who have worked tirelessly in the past year in support of the Lexus brand.”

Receiving the award on behalf of Lexus Derby, Nick Dughan, Centre Principal, said: “The Kiwami award is the most prestigious customer experience recognition and I am incredibly proud of all the team members at Lexus Derby.

“Omotenashi is at the heart of everything we do here, it’s in the roots of our culture. We don’t just provide our guests with outstanding service, we take pride in anticipating and fulfilling their needs, delighting each one of them at every contact point.”

With the Covid pandemic precluding the hosting of the traditional awards celebration, each winner was sent a personalised video message celebrating their success, together with their award.

The 2021 Kiwami winners are:

• Lexus Tblisi – Caucasus/Georgia
• Lexus Dijon – France
• Lexus Filderstadt – Germany
• Lexus Kifisias – Greece
• Lexus Padova – Italy
• Lexus Romerike – Norway
• Lexus Trójmiasto – Poland
• Lexus Krasnodar – Russia
• Lexus Sabadell – Spain
• Lexus Derby – United Kingdom

(winners by country in alphabetic order)

ENDS