Autoblog has learned that Nissan is withdrawing its presence from the fiscal 2009 show season, with the following exceptions: Geneva, New York, Shanghai, and Tokyo. That means that Nissan will still have a presence at most of the major international shows that generate the lion's share of media coverage this year, but they will not be attending big shows like Melbourne and Frankfurt in 2009, let alone second-tier, locally-focused events like those in Atlanta, Calgary, and Denver. It also means that the company will miss out on Detroit and Los Angeles next year, because Nissan's fiscal year runs through March 31, 2010. As you may recall, the company was already a notable absentee in Detroit earlier this year.
Scott Vazin, Nissan's U.S. director of product public relations has informed us that:
In a short-term move to address the severe economic challenges to the industry and to consumers worldwide, Nissan has decided to streamline the company's participation in auto shows during fiscal year 2009. As a result, the company has selected Geneva, New York, Shanghai and Tokyo as the four major international shows where the company will showcase offerings from the Nissan and Infiniti brands during the fiscal year.
"This decision has been taken to ensure maximum return on marketing investments in the midst of extraordinary market conditions. We are confident it is the right decision from a company committed to prudent management of shareholder resources.
"Meanwhile, we will continue to monitor market conditions and adjust our marketing strategies and tactics accordingly.
Of course, Nissan isn't the only automaker scaling back its auto show aspirations in 2009. Automakers like Ferrari, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Porsche, and Suzuki have all missed at least one "major" show stop this year, and given the state of the economy and the auto industry in particular, we suspect that Nissan's statement to us is just the tip of the iceberg.
[Image: Koichi Kamoshida/Getty]
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