By: Kevin Davis February 08, 2010
James Bond has inspired sales of Aston Martins and BMWs with his super-cool onscreen wheels. Now a vampire who drives a Volvo is getting the attention of young drivers.
Since the release of « Twilight » in 2008, teens and young adults have been drawn to the Volvo C30, driven by the character Edward Cullen.
« All these teenagers were going crazy about the C30, » says Carmelo Scalzo, general manager of Volvo of Oak Park. « After the movie launched, we saw this spike in C30 sales. We didn’t know what had happened until we put two and two together. »
Mr. Scalzo helped market the newer XC60, featured in the series’ second film, « New Moon » (2009), after Volvo caught on and tied the car to the movie through advertisements and guerrilla marketing.
The XC60, at $32,995, has not seen the same spike in sales as the C30, at $24,600, Mr. Scalzo says.
But for some, just seeing one is enough.
« I have people coming in with their kids who are taking pictures with the cars, » say Pat Hubert, general manager of Fields Volvo in Highland Park. « These are younger kids, probably 12 or 13 years old. Their parents say they’ll come back when they’re older. »
Franz Mausser, manager of Barrington Volvo, reports a surge of interest in both models.
« We have seen an increase in interest in both vehicles by the youngest of drivers, teens and twentysomethings, and beyond, » Mr. Mausser says. « Young parents also have been engrossed with the plots and story lines of the movie. »
©2010 by Crain Communications Inc.
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