Hansung Motors upgrades VIP membership with maintenance, hotel and baseball perks

The introduction of a direct-sales model by Mercedes-Benz in South Korea is reshaping how the brand's official sales partners compete. With vehicles now priced uniformly across all showrooms, after-sales vehicle care and customer service have emerged as the new battleground.

Hansung Motors, an official Mercedes-Benz sales partner, announced Thursday that it is providing dedicated maintenance services and region-specific perks to vehicle buyers through its premium membership program, Club Hansung Busan & Suncheon.

Mercedes-Benz Korea introduced its direct-sales system — known as "Retail of the Future," or RoF — in April. Under the model, the importer centrally manages vehicle pricing and inventory, eliminating the need for customers to visit multiple showrooms to compare discount offers.

The shift has increased pressure on sales partners to differentiate through service and customer care rather than price cuts. Hansung Motors is pursuing a strategy of maintaining relationships with buyers after the sale to encourage repeat purchases.

The centerpiece of Club Hansung Busan & Suncheon is a one-on-one management program in which a service center branch manager is assigned to each customer.

The branch manager at the customer's primary service center tracks the vehicle's condition, maintenance history and driving environment, and manages the schedule for inspections and repairs. The arrangement spares customers from having to re-explain their vehicle's status each time they bring it in for service.

Members also receive priority booking at service centers, complimentary pickup and delivery while their vehicle is being serviced, and a loaner car for the duration of any repair work.

Hansung Motors says its focus extends beyond maintenance convenience to sustaining customer relationships all the way through to the next vehicle purchase — with the goal of keeping buyers within the same sales partner network when they upgrade.

Beyond vehicle care, the membership includes perks tied to hotels, shopping and sports facilities in Busan and Suncheon.

Partner venues include major hotels such as Signiel Busan, Park Hyatt Busan and Grand Josun Busan, as well as Lotte Department Store's Busan main branch. The program also offers access to Lotte Giants games.

The benefits center on facilities that local customers already use regularly, allowing members to take advantage of the program even when their vehicle does not need servicing.

Mercedes-Benz has also been gaining ground in South Korea's imported-car market. According to the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA), the brand recorded 6,744 new registrations last month, up 23.1 percent from 5,477 in September. The brand also climbed to second place in the monthly brand rankings, overtaking BMW.

As sales partners intensify their competition for customers following the rollout of the direct-sales model, Hansung Motors plans to strengthen vehicle care and locally linked services to reduce customer attrition and build long-term relationships.

"We believe that the quality and trustworthiness of the service a customer experiences after purchasing a vehicle is a key competitive advantage for a sales partner," Hansung Motors CEO Bae Gyu-hwan said. "Building on close cooperation with Mercedes-Benz Korea, we will continue to enhance the customer experience under the RoF framework — offering differentiated benefits and services spanning vehicle care to everyday lifestyle — to further solidify the trust we have built with our customers."