TOYOTA has Lexus and Nissan has Infiniti – luxury spin-off car brands that offer next level luxury and performance – designed to tap into a completely different market to their mainstream product.
Now the two major players in the ‘alter-ego’ market have a competitor, following the announcement Hyundai will launch its own luxury brand.
To be known as Genesis, the new brand will deliver ‘human-centred’ luxury through a range of new models that feature the highest standards of performance, design and innovation.
Created for a new generation of discerning consumers, Genesis will be a stand-alone brand that operates alongside the company’s popular Hyundai marque.
Capitalizing on its success in the fast-growing global car market, Hyundai Motor will launch six new Genesis models by 2020 and will compete with the world’s most renowned luxury car brands.
The Genesis brand will seek to create a new definition of luxury, one that will provide a new platform for future mobility centred on people.
By anticipating human needs at every touch point, Genesis models will embody four key aspects: Human-focused innovation, refined and balanced performance, athletic elegance in design and hassle-free customer experience.
Genesis models will boast outstanding driving dynamics and design, with innovations tailored to closely-meet the needs of customers.
To elevate and differentiate the Genesis brand from Hyundai, a distinct design identity, emblem, naming structure and customer service offering is being established.
Genesis models will be badged with a new wing-type emblem, redesigned from the version used on the current Genesis model to create an even more luxurious look. This emblem firmly cements the Genesis models as a collective family of luxury models under the Genesis nameplate.
The Genesis brand will also adopt a new alphanumeric naming structure. Future models will be named by combining the letter ‘G’ for Genesis with a number, 90, 80 or 70 etc., representing the segment.
To develop a distinctive and differentiated design for the new Genesis brand vehicles, Hyundai Motor has also created a Prestige Design Division.
From mid-2016 Luc Donckerwolke, who was previously responsible for the design of Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, SEAT and Skoda models at the Volkswagen Group, will lead this new division alongside his role as Head of the Hyundai Motor Design Centre.
The work of the new Prestige Design Division will be overseen by Peter Schreyer, as part of his group-wide design responsibilities as President and Chief Design Officer (CDO) of Hyundai Motor Group.
The name ‘Genesis’, which also means new beginnings, hints at the new values and performance standards that the brand will bring to the global luxury car market.
Initially on sale in the Korean, Chinese, North American and Middle Eastern luxury car markets, the Genesis brand will expand its reach to Europe and other parts of Asia as the model range grows to full strength.
