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ISUZU Ute has announced the arrival of a new managing director for the burgeoning Australian arm
Hiroyasu Sato, whose four-year tenure guided the brand through the pandemic and the supply line turmoil that has gripped the sector, will pass the reins of the small but strong importer to Junta Matsui, a 15-year veteran of various global Isuzu and Mitsubishi Corporation divisions.
He will commence as IUA’s new Managing Director in late March.
From Yokohama City, Japan, Matsui joined the Isuzu Business Division of Mitsubishi Corporation in 2008, before tackling new business developments across the Auto and Mobility divisions of Thailand, Indonesia, Russia, India and Africa.
In a statement, the company says that Matsui will continue the customer-centric approach which has earned the brand awards for customer satisfaction that Sato focused on during his tenure.
2022 saw the brand finish ninth overall for sales in the Australian market; a remarkable achievement in the face of supply line issues and with just two vehicles on the local roster.
The brand also scored plaudits from Roy Morgan and Canstar Blue, which awarded Isuzu back-to-back ‘Car Manufacturer of the Year’ titles, at the 2020 and 2021 Roy Morgan Customer Satisfaction Awards and the ‘2021 Canstar Blue Customer Satisfaction Award for New Cars’ title at the 2021 Canstar Blue Awards.
Sato will move back over to Thailand to assume the presidency of Mitsubishi Company (Thailand) Ltd and Thai-MC Company in Bangkok, Thailand.
At the annual IUA National Dealership Meeting, Sato said he was “sincerely thankful for the support over the years, proud of IUA’s resilience and tenacity during the last few turbulent years and is confident in Mr. Matsui’s business development experience across numerous global markets the key to continuing to lead IUA to future success.”
“IUA’s position in the market has never been as strong as it is today, and we have our Dealers and Customers to thank for that,” he said.
“Undoubtedly, Mr. Matsui’s extensive history of leading various global mobility divisions for Isuzu fills me with absolute confidence that, under his leadership, IUA will continue to go from strength to strength.”
Matsui’s team includes Takeshi Yasui who oversees Parts, Aftersales and Accessories operations, Koichiro Yoshida who oversees Sales, Marketing and Product Planning functions, and Reiko Sato, who leads the Finance, IT, HR and Administration areas of the business.
Matsui remarked that “the leadership team have been instrumental in steering the brand through one of the most challenging periods in the last decade.”
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“Under Mr Sato’s watch, there have been clear results thanks to the continued to focus on sustainable sales growth, whilst also concentrating on customer satisfaction and retention—three crucial areas that I plan to continue driving forward,” he said.
“With the market showing promising signs of recovery and both the D-MAX and MU-X proving popular towards the top of their respective segments, I’m hopeful we can build on the momentum that Sato-san has set for IUA,” Matsui concluded.
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