This year is the 90th Dealership Representatives Meeting. Bringing leaders of dealerships together: 'The local community is our greatest strength.' Real talk as the Chairman and President join the roundtable. Are we OK here? What if they're recording this?
The National Toyota Dealership Representatives Meeting is about to begin. This is the first time it is being held at TOYOTA ARENA TOKYO.
The Dealership Representatives Meeting started in 1936. This year marks its 90th milestone, with approx. 280 participants from across the country.
Thank you for joining the National Toyota Dealership Representatives Meeting today. Last year, we began by reflecting on the meaning of the word 'arigato' and resolved to turn our gratitude into action. Over the past year, global business has only grown tougher, starting with U.S. tariffs. Despite this, we have pursued a wide range of efforts for customers and for the future. Dealers across Japan have also faced many challenges, yet they have stayed true to putting customers first in every car sold. I'm truly grateful.
I will never forget what I heard from staff when I visited dealerships. 'Selling cars is our job, yet there are so many order limits that we can't offer the full lineup.' It pains me to see how much those on the frontlines are suffering. To change this situation as quickly as possible, we will step forward and take decisive action.
Last year made each of us reflect on the future more than ever before. I had the chance to speak with representatives from each region at the dealership contract signing ceremonies. You shared your aspirations, concerns, and hardships as business leaders. And I heard the resolve in each and every one of you. After much reflection on the legacy we want to leave for the future, we arrived at one answer: To protect and foster the relationship between dealerships and the manufacturer.
With each visit to a dealership over the past 3 years, I have come to understand how hard it is to deal with customers and sell cars. I've felt firsthand how much your efforts on the ground support us. I have also heard your wishes to bring more vitality to your communities. In Fukushima, I saw you leading the charge toward a hydrogen-powered future. In Noto, I saw you press on to support customers and aid recovery. In each region, I saw dealerships learning from one another in the pursuit of improvement.
Last year, I attended the Kyushu and Chugoku-Shikoku chapter meetings. I felt this passion keenly as I watched the earnest discussions there. The people at our dealerships have taught me what it truly means to be the best in town. Looking ahead, we must build stronger relationships and create an environment where those on the ground—at both the manufacturer and the dealerships—can fully focus on cars and customers. I believe that is the role of everyone in this room.
There may be times ahead when we hit a wall. But if we keep pushing forward together, things will change. I want us to lead by example so that we can inspire one another. Let us continue, as two wheels working in tandem, to make ever-better cars, to sell them with pride, and to change the future of cars together. Thank you for listening.
President Sato, thank you for that powerful message about changing the future of cars as two wheels working in tandem. We at the dealerships are on the frontlines, serving our customers every day. Over the past few years, we have had quality and delivery issues that have inconvenienced them. There are two things that I regret.
The first is that fewer than 1.5 million units were sold last year. To produce 3 million cars in Japan and sell half of them—1.5 million—in Japan is a line we must defend at all costs to preserve Japanese manufacturing. That we failed to achieve this last year fills me with deep regret.
The second is something I experienced at the Toyota WORLD ARIGATO FEST.2025. We had planned to present the efforts of Japanese dealerships to our Toyota colleagues worldwide at the World Convention in 2020, but it was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 2025 was a perfect chance to share what we've been doing with our colleagues around the world, but unfortunately, the efforts of Japan, the host and home of Toyota, were not given the spotlight. We missed out on the perfect opportunity to show the world the future of Japan, driven by Toyota.
Let this frustration fuel us. Toyota in Japan still has much room for growth. The manufacturer alone cannot do this at the community level. It requires the power of Toyota dealerships, who know and love the community better than anyone. Leading the world in building a new mobility society across land, sea, and air is an inspiring challenge that only Toyota would let us take on. To all dealerships, let's make it happen!
I declared us a mobility company for the first time at CES 2018, when we unveiled the e-Palette. It was a time when the industry was seen shifting from combustion engines to BEVs, from manual to automatic, and from hardware to software. I didn't realize it at the time, but being a mobility company embodies Toyota's founding vision.
For my New Year's calligraphy this year, I chose the character 'ba.' I chose 'ba' rather than 'genba' because each person has a different 'place' of their own. For me, the genba, the plants, the market, and the sales floor—all of these were my main battlegrounds, and at times, places of intense struggle. For you, it might be what we call 'jiba,' your local community. You have put down roots in your communities and supported not only your hometowns but all of Japan as part of people's everyday lives. That, I believe, is what 'jiba'—Toyota's greatest strength—truly means.
Also, since our foundation, we have valued this 'place,' the Dealership Representatives Meeting. The first Representatives Meeting was held in 1936. Kiichiro and the other founding members of Toyota gathered with your predecessors. What they affirmed and shared there was the desire to create a thriving Japan through domestic car production. To bring that vision to life, they each took action in their own ba or place. This year marks the 90th anniversary of the Representatives Meeting. I believe each of you here today must turn this shared resolve into reality through action in your own 'ba.' I look forward to another great year with you.
I'm not speaking as one company to another. I'd like you to understand that this is a person, Akio Toyoda, speaking to each of you as a person. We must move beyond the divide between manufacturer and dealerships, and instead collaborate to pursue the possibilities of mobility and the sustainable coexistence of humanity and our planet. Let us fulfill Toyota's mission of producing happiness for all. To move forward toward the same dream and to pass the torch of hope to those who come after us. If you're ready to commit to the future I've spoken of, let's move forward together. To all of you who heard me through to the end, I offer my deepest gratitude. Thank you.
At the last meeting, I closed by saying, 'I only ask those of you who believe we must change.' I said this because I wanted, above all else, to convey my resolve. It may have been blunt, but I summoned the courage to say it from this stage. From the podium, I could feel the audience lean in. Leaving a path that is merely an extension of the past and building a new future with our own hands is no easy task. But our predecessors accomplished just that. If we have inherited their spirit, there is no reason we cannot do the same. However, it requires a clear resolve to build a new future, not leave it to chance. That is precisely why I had to say, 'I only ask those of you who feel the same.'
We have always been allies, and that will never change. Because we share the same conviction, we can take bold leaps into new territory. And because we take those leaps, we hold these convictions all the more close to us. We may not see any tangible results during our time. But if the next generation can look back and say, 'We are where we are because they took on that challenge,' then let us, as the leaders of these companies, hold to an unwavering conviction, always return to our origins, and keep stepping up to the plate. We, the manufacturer, will also give it our all. Everyone, let's do this together.
1936. Toyoda Model AA Unveiled. Units Sold: 1,404 units.
We're supposed to end with the video, but I came to say thank you. The video you just saw looked back over my speeches about 'ba' at past Dealership Representatives Meetings, sharing various messages with you. I want you to notice that the further back we go, the more often I ended my speeches with 'Let's do it.' But the origin of 'Let's do it' came from the first Dealership Representatives Meeting. I think everyone here has inherited that spirit.
As Chairman Kaneko said earlier, when we planned WORLD ARIGATO FEST. 4 years ago, I said I wanted to showcase Japan's dealerships to the world, and many dealerships really improved. Canceled by COVID-19, it still hadn’t happened 4 years later. Chairman Kaneko and I were both very disappointed about that. There will be another ARIGATO FEST. in a few years. When that time comes, I hope even one or two of you will step forward carrying the 'Let's do it' spirit and showing the world what Toyota Japan stands for.
I value your strength. Dealerships and manufacturers are truly two wheels. Now is the time for those wheels to show their strength. I hope you will join us as a partner in building the future of mobility. Thank you for coming today.
After that comes the award ceremony. Dealerships received the J-ARIGATO Prize for boldly transforming Toyota into a mobility company and setting an example for others. These 10 dealerships were awarded: AGH Toyota Sapporo, Weins Toyota Kanagawa, Toyota Corolla Nankai/Netz Toyota Nankai, Osaka Toyota South, Toyota Corolla Himeji, Nara Toyota, Netz Toyota Setouchi, Fukuoka Toyota, Fukuoka Toyopet, Toyota Corolla Kagoshima, Toyota Rental & Lease Okinawa.
It's day 2 of the meeting. Today, we also covered it on-site, and a session was held to discuss how TSL can evolve further and broaden the base.
The Toyota Production System (TPS) has been adapted for dealerships as the Toyota Sales Logistics (TSL) system. By sharing case studies, companies strengthen on-site capabilities and improve work quality. At the venue, 4 representatives took the stage to discuss their TSL activities. Then came a surprise. President Sato appeared. And more!
I don't think Mr. Sato knows about this, but there's one more person. He wants to join the panel. You knew about this? I just found out myself, so I'm a little nervous... but may I invite one more guest?
Hello. I don't want to join. It's not about wanting to. I don't want to join. The chairman and president of the company don't join in this kind of thing. It's just not done. Go ahead. I'll be the MC.
Alright, please do. Now what's going to happen?
Go on, keep going. What do we do?
Ask them something. Everyone sat up straight.
Who's been working on improvement the longest?
I first got involved in kaizen or improvement in 1998.
Was I there at that time?
Of course. The three of us were there.
When you led the C.S. Creation Dept., Mr. Tomoyama was staff leader.
Why did you come to the C.S. Creation Dept. at that time? Now I'm the chairman. Back then, I was just a manager. You thought I was a spoiled child of the founding family.
And Tomoyama was there. Back then, most of the people in this room were opposed to operational improvements, or kaizen. Weren't you wondering why we still wanted to do it?
Tamura went first, and he seemed to be having fun at the genba.
It was fun, really fun. They used to call us the 'jacket brigade.'
They wouldn't let us in the Nagoya Office in work jackets. Service workers wore them, so they told us to go in through the back door, not the front.
I got to go to many places with the people on the genba. To be honest, it wasn't always fun. But I was happy when people agreed with what I did.
