Proton: Engineered to Exhilarate
I visited the Proton Singapore headquarters yesterday.Not that i wanted to buy a Proton car... but its the topic for my marketing project this semester. I need some information regarding the advertiseing efforts of Proton for my report, thus I thought the best way will be to interview an executive who works there.
Anyways, my project requires me to compare between a successful and a lousy brand. If you are a Singaporean, you can probably guess which category we perceived Proton to be in.
I took a cab from NUS to the Proton headquarters in Teban Gardens. It's a darn ulu industrial area, with numerous car showrooms lining the road. I entered the block with the Proton logo overhanging, and saw this huge showroom decorated with gourgeous cars. These are cars that you can only see in magazines, and are seriously the types which can make a man drool. Who needs chiobus when you can have chio cars instead? They won't complain, won't nag at you, and definately won't be as much of a financial drain.
Im quite amazed, however, that Proton actually offers such quality products that captures my attention. I wandered around the place for a while, then I realised i was in the wrong showroom. This is Alfa Romeo's place, and the Proton showroom is the next building.
It figures ...
The Proton showroom is even ulu-er than the street i mentioned above.
I walked inside hoping to find some service crew who will attend to me, but the bloody place is deserted, macam a ghost town. The lights are off, magazines are thrown messily all over the place. It's 2.30pm in the afternoon, and i started to wonder if the Proton people have 3 hour lunch breaks.
I stood there like a lampost for almost a full minute, before a guy appeared from somewhere and noticed me. I politely asked to meet the marketing manager. He informed me that all the executives are away in Malaysia attending to some seminar. I asked for an interview with him, and he kept insisting that he is not authorised to provide any information.
kns, i think he just want to get rid of me so that he can go back to sleep.
....
....
....
see beh suay.
I went down to Proton's 2nd showroom at Leng Kee road. After a bloody long wait, i got to interview a friendly ah pek while he is having his smoke break. To obtain his full attention, i decided to make myself sound important, and bluffed that Im from the Marketing Department of NUS. He asked what my project was about, and i told him i need to conduct quantatative research on a lousy brand in the market.
yeah rite.
I told him my topic of research was "the penetration of a foreign brand into the local market". Muahahaha, Im a gawd damned liar. The Ah Pek was nice, i found out all i need, and left.
Check this out, Proton's latest car with their new Lotus Engine.
The "famed" Gen-2. It looks kinda cool actually... but i dunt know if it falls apart after a few miles.
I took a cab home, and the cab driver was an blur looking Auntie, who told me it's her first week on the job. Wah lau eh, how suay can i get. I tell her i going to Upper Aljunied, then i fell asleep.... it's been quite a day for me, and Im darn shag.
When i wake up, Im at Upper Paya Lebar.
$^@_%+@(@$#&*(
posted by JaNuS @ Monday, March 21, 2005
