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The Genesis Electrified GV70 Owning a luxury car with the design, interior finish or even engine power to one's liking is what drivers dream of but seems out of reach for most.Globally renowned brands such as Mercedez-Benz, BMW or Bentley have already unveiled special editions, or bespoke models, tailor-made for individual tastes. Genesis, the independent luxury brand of South Korea’s top automaker Hyundai Motor Co., is joining the club.Next month, Genesis will unveil bespoke models under the brand of One of One, literally meaning unique and irreplaceable for a particular customer or user, according to industry sources.Unlike the numerous Genesis cars with the same specifications churning out of the factory, the custom vehicles will reflect the tastes and needs of individual customers from the powertrain, transmission to seat arrangement, interior and exterior colors and other options, they said.Genesis bespoke vehicles aim to become the Korean version of the Bentley Mulliner, one of the world’s most coveted tailor-made models, according to those in the know. Interior of Hyundai Motor's Electrified G80 “Hyundai is strengthening its bespoke program with an aim to take the Genesis brand to the same or similar level as Bentley or Rolls-Royce,” said one of the people.Hyundai Motor has already experimented with its bespoke sales strategy by producing limited edition GV80 SUV models for a small number of VIP customers.BUILD-YOUR-OWN GENESISUnder the “Your Genesis” program, the Genesis brand allowed customers to choose a GV80 with several combinations in specifications to individualize the car.In Korea, bespoke has become a household name due to Samsung Electronics Co.'s aggressive marketing of its premium line of home appliances. Interior of Hyundai Motor's redesigned Genesis G90 Samsung, which introduced its first bespoke line with refrigerators in 2019, has rapidly expanded the concept across its electronic goods. Currently, its customized product lineup accounts for more than 80% of its entire home appliances sales.Hyundai’s bespoke strategy is also expected to boost the Genesis brand’s profitability with increased sales.Last year, Rolls-Royce sold 5,586 units of its luxury cars, the largest sales figure in its 117-year history, on the back of demand for its tailor-made vehicles. Bentley saw orders for its Mulliner line of cars triple in 2021.“Hyundai, with the bespoke Genesis models, wants to emulate the success of Rolls-Royce and Bentley,” said an industry official.Hyundai plans to start with interior design in offering customized models for a select number of Genesis cars and later expand the concept to exterior design and other options. Eventually, the automaker plans to apply its bespoke concept to all of its Genesis sedan and sport utility vehicle lineups.Earlier this year, Hyundai Motor Chief Executive Chang Jae-hoon said the company aims to triple the global sales of its high-end, flagship Genesis G90 over the next couple of years.Overall, Hyundai targets 220,000 Genesis car sales this year.By Il-Gue KimBlack0419@hankyung.comIn-Soo Nam edited this article.
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