Toyota in Europe

Toyota started exporting to Europe a few years after its 1957 entry into the US market Toyota first established operations in "marginal markets"
Had neither domestic car manufacturers nor high levels of competition.

After that, Toyota started to attack Europe's high volume markets like the UK and France

Toyota in Europe
Malta (1959)
Cyprus (1962) Denmark (1963) Norway (1963) Finland (1964)

UK (1965)
Greece (1965) Belgium (1966) Switzerland (1966) Sweden (1968)

Austria (1970)
Germany (1971) Ireland (1973) Gibraltar (1979) Iceland (1979)

Italy (1990)
Poland (1991) Hungary (1991) Estonia (1992) Spain (1993)

Netherlands (1964) France (1968)

Toyota in Europe
Only five countries absorbed more than 3,000 units per year by the late 1960s
Finland, Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland and the Netherlands

In many other countries finding distributors and dealers had proved difficult
Only allowed by law to carry one brand and afraid of the risk of starting a new brand

Toyota in Europe
Where allowed, Toyota tried to encourage "dual brand dealers" In several markets, Toyota took over dealers from discontinued brands
e.g., Talbot and Simca of France

In Germany, Toyota initially relied on a sales network that comprised agricultural machinery dealers, gasoline stations and car repair shops

Toyota in Europe

Mid-1970s In 1976 In 1980 In 1997

Started to acquire the first leasing companies for its vehicles

Toyota exported more than 200,000 units annually to Europe for the first time

The company hit the 300,000 mark

Toyota had the highest market shares in Finland, Norway and Ireland, but Germany and the UK still accounted for 40% of total sales

Across Europe, consumers recognized Toyota for its outstanding quality and responsiveness

The Role of TMME

In 1970
The European operation of Toyota was set up in Belgium, Toyota Motor Company Brussels (TMC Brussels)

In 1987
The company established a technical center

In 1989
The company established a market research center

By 1989
Renamed TMME to "oversee and coordinate Toyota's sales and parts distribution as well as product planning activities"

The Role of TMME

TMC started to acquire stakes in distributors and wholesalers
TMC Owned Distributors: Significant Stakes in Distributors: Hungary Norway Poland Portugal Spain Independent Importers:

Czech Republic Denmark Finland France Germany Italy Sweden UK

Austria Belgium Cyprus Greece Ireland Netherlands Switzerland

The Role of TMME

TMME was still dealing with 24 distributors in 1998
The distributors could select their own advertising agencies or rely on material from TMME
Distributors were free to choose whether they wanted to use material produced by TMME or produce their own material

By 1998, Toyota had 3,700 dealers in Europe