About Suzuki

Suzuki Motor Corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation based in Hamamatsu’s Minami-Ku district. Suzuki makes cars, four-wheel-drive vehicles, motorbikes, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard marine engines, wheelchairs, and a range of other small internal combustion engines. 

Suzuki’s journey began in Hamamatsu, Japan, in 1909, when Michio Suzuki began manufacturing looms. 

Michio Suzuki believed that diversification would assist his company, despite the success of his looms, and he began looking into new items. He thought that the most realistic new endeavor would be to manufacture a compact car based on market demand.

In 1955, the business designed and manufactured its first motorcycle (Colleda).

Products of Suzuki

Suzuki has been in the automobile industry for more than a century and deals in:

• Engines Manufacturing
• Assembly and Manufacturing of Cars
• ATVs
• Automobile Components and Parts

Close Competitors of Suzuki

Suzuki competes on a global level with many other mass car manufacturers. The top 5 competitors of Suzuki are:

• Hyundai
• Honda
• Kia
• Toyota
• Ford

Now that we understand the company’s core business, let’s delve into the SWOT Analysis of Suzuki.

SWOT Analysis of Suzuki

A SWOT analysis determines a company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. It is a tried-and-true management paradigm that allows Suzuki to compare its business and performance to competitors and the industry as a whole. 

It’s an excellent tool for determining where the company excels, where it falls short, developing countermeasures, and determining how the company can grow.

So let us start by expanding on the Strengths of Suzuki:

1. Strengths of Suzuki

An organization’s unique capabilities that give it an advantage in capturing more market share, attracting more customers, and maximizing profits are referred to as its strengths. Following are Suzuki’s strengths:

• Distribution and Reach: Suzuki has a large number of outlets in almost every state, backed up by a strong distribution network that ensures its products are easily accessible in a timely manner to a large number of customers.
• Cost Structure: Suzuki’s low-cost structure enables it to produce at a low cost and sell its products at a low price, making it affordable to its customers.
• Dealer Community: Suzuki has a strong relationship with its dealers, not only supplying them with everything that’s necessary but also promoting the company’s products and providing training.
• Financial Position: Suzuki has a strong financial position, with five years of consecutive profits and profit reserves that can be used to fund future capital expenditures.
• Automation: Automation of various stages of production has allowed for more efficient use of resources and cost reduction. It also allows for consistency in product quality and the ability to scale up and scale down production in response to market demand.
• Skilled Labor Force: Suzuki has invested heavily in employee training, resulting in a large number of skilled and motivated employees.

2. Weaknesses of Suzuki

Weaknesses are aspects of a business or brand that should be improved. Suzuki’s major flaws are as follows:

• Research and Development: While Suzuki spends more than the industry average on R&D, it spends far less than a few industry players who have benefited significantly from their innovative products.
• Workforce diversity: At Suzuki, the workforce is dominated by locals, with only a small number of workers from other racial groups. Lack of diversity makes it difficult for employees of different racial backgrounds to adjust at work, resulting in talent loss.
• Integration: Due to Suzuki’s current structure and culture, various mergers aimed at vertical integration have failed.
• Low current ratio: The company’s current ratio, which measures its ability to meet short-term financial obligations, is lower than the industry average. This could imply that the company will face liquidity issues in the future.
• Market Research: Suzuki has not conducted market research in the market that it serves in the last few years. As a result, it is making decisions based on data that is years old, despite the fact that customer needs may have evolved over time.

3. Opportunities for Suzuki

Opportunities are potential areas of focus for a company to improve results, increase sales, and, ultimately, profit.

• Internet: The number of people who use the internet is growing all over the world. This means that Suzuki has the opportunity to expand its online presence by interacting with its customers via the internet.
• E-commerce: There has been a new trend and an increase in the e-commerce industry’s sales. As a result, many people are now making purchases online. Suzuki can generate revenue by opening online stores and selling products through them.
• Social Media: There has been an increase in the number of people using social media around the world. The three social media platforms that have seen the greatest increase in monthly active users are Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Suzuki can use social media to promote its products, interact with customers, and gather customer feedback.
• Technological advancements: Technology provides numerous benefits in a variety of fields. Costs can be saved by automating operations. Technology allows for better data collection on customers and improves marketing efforts.
• Transport Industry: The transportation industry has been thriving in recent years and has significant growth potential in the future. This has reduced transportation costs, which benefits Suzuki by lowering its overall costs.

4. Threats of Suzuki

Threats are environmental factors that can be harmful to a company’s growth. The following are some of Suzuki’s threats: 

• Suppliers: As the number of suppliers has decreased, suppliers’ bargaining power has increased. Suzuki’s input costs may rise as a result of this.
• New entrants: A slew of new players have entered the market and are gaining market share by absorbing the market share of existing companies. Suzuki faces a threat because these new entrants may steal its customers.
• Increasing competition: The industry’s competition has increased, putting downward pressure on prices. If Suzuki does not adjust to the price changes, it may lose market share.
• Competitor technical advancements: New technological advancements by a few competitors within the sector constitute a threat to Suzuki since customers who are drawn to this new technology may switch to competitors, reducing Suzuki’s overall market share.
• Political Instability: Political uncertainty in the country can be a hindrance to business, causing performance to suffer and extra costs to be incurred.

For large brands like Suzuki, a SWOT Analysis is a great way to break down their complex existence into simple to understand managerial risks and rewards.

Conclusion

Suzuki is a well-known automaker with a significant global presence. In the SWOT Analysis of Suzuki, we observed that the company is heavily reliant and enjoys strong brand recognition and trust with its customers. It has a strong logistical basis and has reached across all the markets it serves, but suffers from an increasing number of manufactures in the same space and better R&D efforts by its competitors.

With increasing competition in a saturated market such as automobiles, companies are left to battle it out by winning over their customers with better marketing efforts. In a changing landscape where digital marketing is of utmost importance, being well versed in the field is a must for all marketing enthusiasts. If you are interested in learning more and upskilling, check out IIDE’s 3 Month Advanced Online Digital Marketing Course to know more.

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