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TOYOTA
hit yet another home run of sorts on January 28. Why?
Because, aside from its usual lavish Thanksgiving Party
for the media, Toyota used the night to unravel the
all-new Corolla Altis in a glittering bash of glitz and
glamour that drew ohs and ahs from a packed audience at
the Sofitel Philippine Plaza.
“I have
never seen one like this before,” said Jennifer Aubrey
Brown Yting, the station manager of Home Radio in
Cagayan de Oro City. “This is such a once-in-a-lifetime
experience for me.”
Be the star.
Toyota’s all-new
Altis is the latest Corolla to join an illustrious line
of cars that have continuously captured the fancy of
buyers over the last 40 years.
--PHOTOS BY WINSTON
BALTASAR
The
occasion, hosted by the charming, ex-beauty queen Miriam
Quiambao, was even aptly titled “Two of Us,” coined no
less by Toyota’s certified Beatlemaniac Daniel M. Isla,
the ever-creative first vice president of Toyota Motor
Philippines (TMP), in honor of the ’60s Beatles’ hit of
the same title.
Inspiring speech
As Isla
put it in his inspiring speech for the night: “Toyota
and Media: Two of Us Getting Better All The Time.”
The chief
speaks.
Toyota Motor Philippines president Hiroshi Ito
addresses the guests from the media.
“It’s
Getting Better All The Time” was another Beatles No. 1
in the ’60s, and Isla again struck the bull’s-eye by
highlighting that song to reinforce his punch line for
the night.
“Your
reviews, commentaries and transparency always inspire us
to be better,” Isla said. “You encourage us with your
good words, you challenge us to work harder when you
tell us we’re missing something somewhere. What we have
together is just ‘Getting Better All The Time.’”
Lusty
cheers
That
line drew thunderous, if not lusty, cheers from Raymond
Rodriguez, Dex Pasion, Jing Atienza, Sonny Guerrero,
Rommel Gutierrez, Dax Avenido, Elijah Sue Marcial,
Michelle Bayani and Ana Agregado, all Toyota stalwarts,
all dressed-to-kill for the night.
Beauties galore.
Former
Binibining Pilipinas-Universe Miriam Quiambao(top) lent
glamour to the event, while pop group Kitty Girls (left)
provided the glitz.
Held
yearly since 1997, the Thanksgiving Party has been, in a
nutshell, Toyota’s way of saying “thank you” to the
motoring media. It is held in place of a Christmas
party the year past, drawing a broad spectrum of
journalists from broadsheets, magazines, tabloids, the
TV and radio, and even online media from Metro Manila,
Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.
In the
words of Alfred V. Ty, the youthful TMP vice chairman,
“The Thanksgiving Party is held in honor of our media
friends, to express our gratitude for your unwavering
support the past year.”
Milestones
Ty, who
is also the president of the booming real-estate firm
FederaLand, went on to grab the occasion to highlight
Toyota’s
feats in 2007. Among them was the launch of Toyota’s
two passenger cars, the Yaris Hatchback and the locally
manufactured all-new Vios. As everybody now knows, the
Vios became the best-selling passenger car in 2007,
sparking five record-breaking sales milestones for
Toyota
in just one year. These
are:
1.)
Last
October
Toyota breached the 500,000-unit sales mark since the start of
Toyota’s operations in 1989;
2.)
Last
December
Toyota sold over 5,000 units, the highest recorded sales in a
month.
3.)
The
annual sales of over 45,000 surpassed the highest sales
record of 41,802 units in 1996.
4.)
On a
per-model basis, four of the country’s five best-selling
vehicles are all from Toyota, led by the Innova in the
MPV segment with 10,544 units sold, followed by the Vios
in the Compact Sedan category with 8,717 units sold, the
Fortuner in the SUV division with 7,216 units sold, and
the Avanza with 6,257 units sold.
5.)
Toyota
ended 2007 as the undisputed leader in overall total
sales, passenger car sales and commercial vehicle sales
to score a smashing sixth consecutive Triple Crown feat.
Excite
the market
Said Ty:
“These milestones are, in large part, because of you,
our dear friends in the media. We greatly appreciate the
support you have given Toyota over the years. Rest
assured that Toyota will continuously strive to excite
the market with quality vehicles and excellent customer
service.”
When it
was his turn to speak, Hiroshi Ito, the bespectacled
president of TMP, smilingly said: “Since Mr. Alfred Ty
had spoken already about the magnificent sales
achievements of Toyota the past year, let me just say,
thank you once again for your support, and I hope we
will continue to be good partners this year and in the
years to come.”
Like Ty
and Isla, Ito also received a warm round of applause.
All-new
Corolla Altis
The
all-new Corolla Altis comes seven years after its
predecessor, whose birth in 1966 revolutionized the
concept of sedan driving in the world.
With
current Hollywood heartthrob Orlando Bloom as its model
and with the battle cry “Be The Star” embellishing
Toyota’s new babe image, the new Corolla Altis comes in
five variants: 1.8 V A/T (P1.035 million); 1.6 V A/T
(P910,000); 1.6 G A/T (P854,000); 1.6 G M/T (P818,000);
and 1.6 E M/T (P774,000).
With a
sustained positive growth recorded in the economy
despite impending recession in the
US,
Toyota expects the all-new Corolla Altis to yet score
sales targets the way its predecessors did the past 42
years. |
