The most publically visible element to date of Infiniti's ambitious plans to expand its presence in the premium automotive sector will start in the Middle East. Following an unprecedented 12-month period of strengthening structure, talent, and brand power across the world, Infiniti's new naming hierarchy will now begin to be introduced across the region on its inspired performance range of models. “The vision for Infiniti in the long-term is to build an aspirational brand that people seek out,” said Samir Cherfan, Managing Director, Infiniti - Nissan in the Middle East. “We aim to compete at the top of the premium automotive league with our product, brand appeal and customer experience. In just over 12 months, we have come a long way in making the structural changes required to deliver this.” “Our models are, though, the most visible element of our brand to the public and to deliver on the promise of a broader range we have addressed our naming strategy. In the Middle East, we will pioneer this next phase in the global strategic plan as we roll out Infiniti's new naming hierarchy, which is inspired by our first and iconic model – the Infiniti Q45.” Launched on Nov. 8, 1989 in the USA, Infiniti Q45 not only encapsulated the personality which Infiniti's models retain, passionate design, precise technology and accessible performance, it helped define modern luxury sedans. Equipped with a responsive and powerful V8 engine, Q45 gained immediate critical acclaim for its blend of driver involvement, features and engineering. The Q45 nameplate not only established the brand globally but was also the first Infiniti to be sold in the Middle East. Since day one, the Infiniti range has always featured a model beginning with a ‘Q'. Today, in stark contrast to the early years, Infiniti's range has eight models and is available in approximately 50 countries worldwide. That product and geographic expansion played a crucial part in helping the brand achieve a new sales record of 173,000 units in the 2012 financial year, an increase of 12 percent over 2011 results. While establishing new territories, such as the rapidly expanding Brazil market in 2014, will play a crucial role in achieving the ambitious sales objective, a broader product range will be the most significant factor. The new product nomenclature allows for such an expansion very naturally. Going forward, Infiniti's models will now simply be prefixed either by ‘Q' for sedans, coupes and convertibles or ‘QX' for crossover and SUVs. To communicate a logical model hierarchy, a two-digit number will follow – the higher the number, the higher its place in the model range. Infiniti's new nomenclature strategy will be implemented in logical stages within the existing product range, as new model year variants are introduced - the Infiniti QX70 (formerly Infiniti FX) will be the first in the Middle East. — SG
