Nissan woos with 'cute' marketing

YOKOSUKA, Japan — Ayano Sasao is defying the conventional wisdom that cars targeted to a niche consumer category like young women are doomed to fail.

The 18-year-old Japanese hospital worker just bought the Nissan Pino, a toylike minicar just 11 feet long with star-stamped upholstery, a hook for a handbag and a chic "milk tea beige" exterior — although she says she almost went with the pink.

"It's so cute. I just love it," she said.

To make sure women like Sasao get the message, Nissan Motor Co. launched a merchandise line for Pino, including pink bear-shaped cushions, seat covers with hearts, a CD case that looks like fat red lips, and a colorful cover for a tissue box.

Ironically, Pino isn't even made by Nissan, Japan's third biggest automaker. It's made by Suzuki Motor Inc.

But under a manufacturing agreement, Nissan packages Suzuki's Alto model differently, with fancier seat fabric, a distinct front design and a hubcap inspired by a snowflake so the wheels appear to sparkle on the road — all touches to give the car that cute look.

Nissan had 5,500 orders for the Pino in the first month since it went on sale in January, more than double the company target of 2,500 a month.

Sasao knew Alto looked a lot like her Pino and was quite a bit cheaper. Pino starts at about $8,600, while Alto starts at $5,600. But she still was willing to spend more — and take out a six-year auto loan — for the Pino because she thought it was so much cuter.

While models such as sports cars or family minivans target segments of the population, auto companies generally avoid producing models aimed at narrow niche markets because they usually don't sell in numbers.

Toyota Motor Corp. officials often say they don't believe in overly specific marketing tactics, which are apt to backfire for an automaker known for best-sellers like the Camry and Corolla.

And in most countries, experts tend to advise against making autos pink or adding other "cute" features to appeal to female drivers partly because that may smack of sexism and turn off women — except in Japan.

Here, young women are extremely powerful in setting trends, and the culture of cute is so prevalent grown men aren't embarrassed about dangling little mascots from cell phones.

Also, Japanese consumers frequently use personal products to show off who they are, often buying designer-brand products to make a statement, said Kazuo Ikegami, marketing expert and professor at Rissho University.