Rolls-Royce is a luxury car brand created in 1906. It is historically the main supplier of luxury cars to the great dignitaries of this world. It started manufacturing aircraft in 1924 and is now the second largest manufacturer in the world.
Suffice to say that just when the Rolls-Royce brand or its abbreviation "Rolls" was announced, it evoked the world of luxury and presence. This is due to a long tradition of treating the Customer in an exceptional way that the brand has built its image. However, this has not been without its blunders. We then tell you a story that serves as an example in marketing classes on the attention that a brand must have towards its customers.
The story begins in 1920 in London, United Kingdom, in the Rolls-Royce dealership, while India was still a British colony. Jay Singh Maharaja of Alwar who ruled the state of Alwar in Rajasthan in India from 1922 to 1933, visited this city incognito dressed in civilian clothes with the traditional turban. He entered the Rolls-Royce dealership, interested in the model on display which was the only model at the time, an RR Silver Ghost, but whose options varied on each model, he then asked the salesman for information on the vehicle and asked to take a test drive. The latter, judging the prospect by his attire, immediately threw him out of the dealership, taking him for an opportunist coming to pique his curiosity and have fun driving the luxury brand. Outraged, the Maharaja returned to his hotel, and sent one of his servants to organize an official royal visit this time. The reception was quite different, where the red carpet was rolled out for a period of 2 hours where the Maharaja could see all the cars at his leisure. The Maharaja asked to buy all 6 cars exhibited on the condition that the seller who had welcomed him the first time go to Delhi to the Maharaja's place of residence for the official reception. This was done, but to the great surprise of the latter, the RR Silver Ghosts were transformed into garbage collectors' cars to sweep the streets of the city. The goal was for the Maharaja to take revenge by destroying the image of Rolls-Royce in the world, India being one of RR's main markets and the Maharajas the target audience. An action that made a lot of noise at the time, that even on the other side of the world, the parent company took echo and could not remain indifferent to such an incident that greatly tarnished the image of the brand that was now linked to garbage collectors. Thus, potential buyers of the time often asked sellers if the model sold was the same one used in India for garbage collection and the answer was yes, since RR had the single model policy.
The rest was expeditious, the staff of the London dealership was thanked and as an apology and repentance, Rolls-Royce Limited sent Maharaja Jay Singh a letter of apology accompanied by 6 RR Silver Ghosts offered.
The story begins in 1920 in London, United Kingdom, in the Rolls-Royce dealership, while India was still a British colony. Jay Singh Maharaja of Alwar who ruled the state of Alwar in Rajasthan in India from 1922 to 1933, on an incognito visit to this city dressed in civilian clothes with the traditional turban. He entered the Rolls-Royce dealership, interested in the model on display which was the only model at the time, an RR Silver Ghost, but with various options on each model, he then asked the salesman for information on the vehicle and asked to do a test drive. The latter, judging the prospect by his attire, immediately threw him out of the dealership, taking him for an opportunist who had come to pique his curiosity and enjoy himself at the wheel of the luxury brand. Outraged, the Maharaja returned to his hotel and sent one of his servants to organize an official royal visit this time. The reception was quite different, where the red carpet was rolled out for a period of 2 hours where the Maharaja could see all the cars at his leisure. The Maharaja asked to buy all 6 cars on display on the condition that the salesman who had welcomed him the first time go to Delhi to the Maharaja's place of residence for the official reception. Which was done, but to the latter's great surprise, the RR Silver Ghosts were transformed into garbage collectors' cars to sweep the streets of the city. The aim was for the Maharaja to take revenge by destroying the image of Rolls-Royce in the world, India being one of RR's main markets and the Maharajas the target audience. An action that caused a lot of noise at the time, that even on the other side of the world, the parent company took note and could not remain indifferent to such an incident that greatly tarnished the image of the brand that was now linked to garbage collectors. Thus, potential buyers of the time often asked sellers if the model sold was the same used in India for garbage collection and the answer was yes, since RR had a single model policy.
The moral of the story shows the importance of the discernment that sellers must make when faced with the strength of the Customer because the consequences can be heavy for the company. However, the story was not remembered because to this day, big brands suffer the wrath of their prestigious customers following poor service, for example, this Chinese billionaire who destroyed his Maserati in public and in front of the press.
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