• Irish Toyota dealership, Cogan’s Toyota in Carrigaline, Co. Cork recognised amongst 47 fellow award-winning retailers for providing outstanding customer service
• 2022 Ichiban puts spotlight on high levels of retailer innovation during crisis to maintain most memorable experience
“Ichiban” in Japanese means “Number One”. This is also the name of the prestigious award that Toyota Motor Europe (TME) gives to each of those Toyota Retailers who delivered the highest level of customer experience. This year sees Irish Toyota dealership Cogan’s, Carrigaline, Co. Cork, recognised amongst 47 other retailers from 32 European countries who have also secured this coveted award.
Over 2,500 European Toyota Retailers compete for this award annually and the winners are those who excelled in demonstrating a unique approach and a commitment to become the “Best Retailer in Town”.
Lars Erik Aaroy, Deputy Managing Director of Toyota Ireland commented on the announcement: “We are delighted that Cogan’s of Carrigaline has been recognised for its incredible work and commitment to customer service. Our business is all about people, and Cogan’s has a wonderful, diverse and inclusive team of truly engaged individuals. Winning the Ichiban award is a fantastic achievement, and I am really pleased for the full Cogan’s team to be acknowledged for its best-in-class service.”
Rob Cogan, Dealer Principal at Cogan’s Toyota Cork, said: “It is a terrific achievement to be awarded the prestigious Ichiban award amongst our fellow 43 European retailers. At Cogan’s, we place great importance on ensuring each and every customer that passes through our doors is met with an unrivalled customer experience. Whether it’s helping a customer on their first car journey to recommending new models to long-standing loyal customers, no query is ever too big or too small for our team at Cogan’s.”
During the ceremony Matt Harrison, President and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe recognised all retailers for their outstanding achievements and commendable efforts to provide best in class customer service. The Ichiban winners were congratulated for their energy, dedication, and passion for going above and beyond in providing an unrivalled customer experience.
Didier Gambart, Vice President, Sales, Marketing & Customer Experience, TME commented: "After two years of virtual Ichiban due to COVID pandemic, we were honoured to physically celebrate and reward the best retailers in Europe for their sales performance and customer experience. After two years of virtual meetings, there is even a higher level of excitement to be together as one family!
We also celebrated our retailers’ resilience and agility in these turbulent moments, their energy to go beyond, and finding new ways to constantly adapt ourselves in these uncertain times. Going the extra mile has never been easy, but all of us know that is worth it. Such an achievement does not come easily, and we complement our winners on their hard work. Thank you and let's go beyond together."