Should Mercedes Move Downmarket?
Posted by joe
Mercedes Benz has struggled in recent years in its battle with other Germany luxury carmakers — with BMW and Audi both passing the fabled brand. In “A Mini Mercedes with Big Ambitions” (BusinessWeek, September 22, 2011), you can read about a new Mercedes Benz the B-Class. This smaller and more affordable Mercedes targets a “younger, hipper clientele” than the traditional Mercedes target market.
The move is an example of expanding a product line downmarket — which has implications for Mercedes positioning and brand equity. What do you think about Mercedes risk to its classic positioning? What could Mercedes have done — or could they still do — to minimize such concerns? What other promotion ideas do you have to help Mercedes as it aims at a new target market?