Abstract
After the “Lehman Shock” occurred in 2008, the Japanese automobile industry began facing several difficult situations. Domestic production, domestic sales and exports have been staying at lower levels compared with those before 2008. In addition to this, Japanese car makers have not yet developed effective strategies for introducing new products into emerging markets when compared with their counterparts in Europe (such as Volkswagen) or America (such as General Motors). Moreover, the lasting effects of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 have aggravated this situation.
In order to overcome such obstacles, this paper indicates three challenges that Japanese automobile makers need to meet. First, Japanese automobile makers must grapple with the development of next-generation vehicles. Second, they must clarify their business strategies for each segment of the automobile industry, from luxury automobiles to ones for the general public, while considering markets in both advanced and emerging countries. Third, when reconstructing their business strategies for markets in emerging countries, they should take into account the different tastes in automobiles in each country. Such customer preferences should also be considered in the domestic market as well.
