Lavish car launches worth it, say luxury brands

Several luxury car launches stood out last month, not only for being different but for their big budgets, which their organisers say were well worth the expense.

The most recent was the introduction of the Porsche Panamera at Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre. The second-generation of the big Porsche limousine was unveiled on March 22 in an exhibition hall to 1,300 guests, who were given a choice of parking just beside the hall or using the valet service - both complimentary.

Dinner with wine and beer was served at the event, which included an aerial ballet performance and a violin quartet.

The price for one evening? A spokesman for Porsche distributor Stuttgart Auto declined to say but such single-day events can run up to as much as three-quarters of a million dollars.

So was it worth it?

"Yes, because the Porsche Panamera is a key model and the launch befits the product and our clientele's expectations of the brand,"' said the spokesman.

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It was also worth it for the total number of orders collected. The spokesman said that there were about 50 pre-orders before the launch, and another 10 the first weekend after that.

He added: "But more than that, such a large-scale event with a huge turnout fulfils both our aims and our guests'. It is a desirable model that we want to show, and they want to be the first to see it."

Another launch that was deemed a success was that for the McLaren 720S supercar in mid-March. Also held at an MBS exhibition hall, the evening event for the S$1 million model treated 600 guests to a presentation and buffet.

Karsono Kwee, executive chairman of the Eurokars Group, which represents McLaren, would not give any details, only saying it cost "several hundred thousand dollars" to organise. But he said that the launch was "well-received".

"It was a very good response for the very first big McLaren event here," said Mr Kwee. "It is a fantastic car and we have many orders, even without a test drive."

The most elaborate affair, however, would have to be the introduction of the new BMW 5 Series executive sedan at the Mediacorp theatre in early March.

Several waves of more than 4,000 customers and prospects were entertained over three days, each with a "theatrical show of five acts to take people on a journey and make them feel, rather than listen", said BMW Group Asia managing director Axel Pannes.

He added: "We wanted to inspire and awe our guests by creating an immersive launch experience never before seen in Singapore."

The 45-minute-long performance included aerialists, acrobats, dancers and drummers, as well as UN Patron of the Oceans Lewis Pugh, who kicked off the opening act "Believe".

Calling the response "overwhelming", Mr Pannes declined to reveal the number of orders received or how much it had cost to put up the show.

But he said that it was well worth whatever price was paid. "Since then, we have been busy arranging test drives and the response has been extremely positive thus far. We aren't surprised with the response and expect growing interest in the coming months."

This article was first published on Apr 05, 2017.
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