Youth was the driving force for the Datsun GO-Cross concept unveiled here at a global premiere on Thursday evening.

Touted as the cool crossover that brings a new sense of style, adventure and fun, it has been created to meet the needs of young people who have their own dreams and aspirations.

Long, steady walk

In the process, it has marked a rapid shift from the image of a no-frills brand launched by Nissan Motor with much fanfare in India last year followed quickly by Indonesia, Russia and South Africa. Youth power in emerging markets like India is on the rise and the GO-Cross concept reflects the likely road ahead for Datsun.

Thus far, it has made a stronger connect with customers in the 40 plus age group while the larger potential clearly lies with those who are at least 15 years younger. The challenge, though, is to ensure that they loosen their purse strings for a brand which has not taken off on the right note so far, at least in India.

From Vincent Cobee’s point of view, the job is to drive home the message of modern Japanese technology to an emerging middle class. As Global Head of Datsun, he reinforces the point that the brand was launched in four diverse markets which only meant that it was going to be a challenging job to get customers on board. “It is a long, steady walk and not a dash,” said Cobee soon after the unveiling.

India, a challenging market

At an earlier roundtable at the Tokyo Motor Show on Wednesday, he said India remained a challenging environment where one player (Maruti Suzuki) rules the roost. “It is an Indian mystery that I have not understood,” admitted Cobee about a market where people are tech-savvy and far more flexible otherwise with their choice of smartphones, television brands and washing machines.

It is this fierce loyalty to Maruti that Nissan would ideally like to displace with the Datsun except that its paltry sales numbers hardly translate into even a marginal threat. Yet, the company would derive some encouragement from the fact that its global ally, Renault, has hit pay dirt with the Kwid compact where bookings are close to the 50,000 mark.

Pulling out all stops

The new Datsun, scheduled to be launched in India early next year, will be hoping for a similar reception and this is where Nissan plans to pull out all stops with branding and advertising. A beginning has already been made through the tie-up with the International Cricket Council where the brand could be pitched strongly in tourneys.

“We are faced with staggering diversity across India and need to work on awareness within customers,” said Cobee. There are some positive signs like Kerala whose residents have been exposed to Datsun during their work tenure in the Gulf. Likewise, people in the northeast like to use the GO for its durability in comparatively rough terrain.

“Everything we do in life is half empty and half full. We could have done worse and my belief is you can keep improving. If you don’t learn, you will die in this industry,” said Cobee. Going forward, Nissan plans to bring “greater emotion” into Datsun through its campaigns which will convey a far more vibrant and youth-centric message.

Cobee added that the brand would now explore new geographies in the ASEAN region with Indonesia as the mother plant. Free trade pacts would facilitate the process with markets like the Philippines and Myanmar being top priority. In addition, Datsun could head out to Africa (with India in all likelihood as the export hub), Latin America and the Gulf countries. By the end of the day, emerging economies are the growth drivers of the future with Europe, Japan and the US tipped to remain flat in the coming years.

The writer is in Tokyo on an invitation from Nissan

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