Toyota is the largest Japanese auto manufacturer by far and produces more than 5.5 million cars a year.
Toyota History
Toyota is the third largest auto manufacturer in the world when you consider unit sales. The company also has to be the most consistently profitable car maker in the world.
This has a lot to do with the revolutionary approach to manufacturing called just-in-time manufacturing that the company has been associated with, which has attracted the interest of management and production gurus from all over the world.
Considering all these amazing achievements it is hard to believe that the company had very humble beginnings as a mere loom manufacturer. The company sued to be called Toyoda Automatic Loom Works Ltd.
Founder Kiichiro Toyoda greatly admired Henry Ford copying his assembly line ideas and with time improved on them. Since then the car manufacturer has always placed great emphasis on research and development.
This is the real secret behind the most successful car manufacturer in the world. One of the really fascinating aspects of Toyota Motor Corporation has been the consistent ability of it’s executives to predict market trends well ahead of anybody else.
For example in the 1990s a deliberate effort was made towards producing a very wide range of different vehicles. Larger and more luxurious cars were added to the line up.
Toyota also started production of the world’s best selling hybrid car, the Prius in 1997. Quality and reliability remain the hallmark of Toyota and has enabled the company to weather many storms in the world car market unscathed.
In Australia like in many other countries, Toyota is the number one best selling car.