Youtube VideoToyota’s luxury brand Lexus has a tough battle on its hands in the prestige class, facing as it does the European goliaths of Audi, BMW and Mercedes. But it’s aiming to reinvigorate the Japanese brand’s challenger spirit with the launch of a classy new campaign out of Saatchi & Saatchi called ‘Kokoro Wo Komete’ or ‘Soul Meets Machine.’
The idea is based around the quintessentially Japanese marriage of old school and new school; of tradition and technology; of humans and machines, and it is firmly rooted in the philosophy of ‘Takumi’, or master craftsmen who imbue it with its own lifeforce and “make it just so”. Or, as the ad says: “Inspired by life, engineered with precision, crafted and refined by hand”.
The moody new campaign, which, impressively, was also produced by Saatchi & Saatchi, really rams home the Japanese motifs in the mostly black and white TVCs (but mixes in a few of the obligatory action shots sourced from overseas markets as well). It launched via TV, online, OOH and print, and will be rolled out over the coming months, along with two key Lexus models, the GS and RX.
There’s a bunch of online-only content that gives a more in-depth look at the thinking behind the brand idea—and shows the importance of the human touch.
So far this year, Lexus, which celebrated 21 years in the New Zealand market in 2011, is 19th on the list of new car sales, with a total of 163. In the luxury stakes, BMW is in 12th on 739, just ahead of Audi in 14th on 650 and Mercedes in 15th with 477.
Credits:
Agency : Saatchi & Saatchi
Production Company: Saatchi & Saatchi
Executive Creative Director: Antonio Navas
Director: Matt Campbell
Art Director: Matt Campbell
Copywriter: Matt Simpkins, Simon Pound, Anne Boothroyd
Post Production: Blockhead
Audio: Big Pop
DOP: Mark Pugh
Head of Content: Jane Oak
Producer: Loren Bradley
Group Account Director : Mark Cochrane
Senior Account Manager: Emma Guadagni
Head of Planning : Murray Streets
Clients: Neeraj Lala – General Manager – Market, Product, Used Vehicles
Debbie Patullo – Manager – Lexus NZ
David Rhodes-Robinson – Marketing Manager
Gee Mason – Lexus Marketing