Nissan Philippines, Inc. (NPI), the official distributor of Nissan vehicles in the country, recently welcomed its new President and Managing Director Mr. Atsushi Najima. Announced during the Japanese carmaker’s recent handover ceremony dinner, Najima will take over leadership of NPI from Ramesh Narasimhan who has propelled the brand to new heights since 2016.
Najima, who has officially assumed NPI presidency last April 1, will take responsibility of creating new business strategies, maximizing NPI’s already robust presence in the local automotive market, and steering the brand to greater heights as per Nissan’s midterm MOVE Project to 2022.
According to Najima’s bio, he is no stranger to the Nissan brand. That’s because back in 2016, he assumed the role as Deputy General Manager of Nissan Japan’s Regional Financial Management Group. Before Nissan, Najima had a wealthy 18 years of working experience as one of Proctor & Gamble Asia’s finance and general management experts who handle international accounts in Japan, Singapore, and the Philippines.
As of this writing, he is now based in Manila and is reporting to Vincent Wijnen, Senior Vice President for Sales and Marketing of Nissan Asia & Oceania.
Najima’s journey as NPI’s new President is welcomes with much great news, all thanks to the efforts of its outgoing leader Ramesh Narasimhan. Under his command, NPI was able to bring in such vehicles as the Nissan Terra and the Nissan R35 GT-R NISMO. In addition, it also introduced the Nissan Intelligent Mobility, a suit of advanced driver assistance gizmos that improves safety and driving convenience.
But the best part about Narasimhan’s leadership is that he was able to drive the brand from 6th to 3rd in the local car manufacturer rankings last year despite the economic and business challenges. In short, he was able to beef up NPI’s sales performance, making the brand more competitive in the process. According to the latest data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI), NPI closed 2018 with 58.5% growth in March. It now holds 11.3% market share amongst CAMPI members, also increasing from last year’s 6.1%.
The Nissan Navara holds the record as the best-selling NPI model today, accounting for 47.4% of total sales. The Nissan Terra also contributed 16.3% of the total sales since its availability last August. Other models that performed well include the Nissan Urvan and Nissan Almera, contributing 16.9% and 14.9% of the total sales, respectively.
With these being said, Najima has some big shoes to fill, including fulfilling one of Narasmhan’s best projects to date; to push the year 2020 local availability of the LEAF, Nissan’s successful electric vehicle. As for Narasimhan, he will now be assigned as Nissan Thailand’s new President. Congratulations, Atsushi Najima and many thanks/best wishes Ramesh Narasimhan.
Photo: Paolo Lesaca
