Don Romano is the president of Mazda Canada. (Photo by Brian Harper/Canwest News Service)
TORONTO -- There's no surf in Richmond Hill, Ont., where Mazda Canada is located. But Los Angeles native and avid boarder Don Romano, president of the company, has learned there are other compensating factors -- such as six consecutive years of sales growth and a market share that is much higher in this country than in the United States.
Then there's the imminent launch of the most important vehicle in the company's lineup. Romano, who was appointed president in April, 2006, recently sat down for an interview.
Brian Harper: Do you consider yourself a car guy?
Don Romano: While I consider myself a car guy, I'm not a muscle car guy, I'm not a Detroit car guy. I grew up (during) the age of imports. And when I was young, they (imports) were nothing. They were small and edgy, and they were nothing our parents ever owned. But the kids were interested in them.
BH: Give me a status report on how Mazda Canada is doing.
DR: We're doing well. We're poised to set another record this year (in sales). We're on track for about 90,000 sales for the fiscal year, which ends in March. We're going to get 89,000 for the calendar year, so there's not a whole lot of difference, but the new Mazda3 comes out in January.
We've been growing at five per cent for the last two years; this year will be closer to two per cent. Most of that is because of capacity constraints. (Mazda) has been doing well in other markets and (Canada) hasn't been able to get the product.
We're short on 3s, we're short on 5s -- everything has done well that has a four-cylinder in it.
BH: Has it been that dramatic a shift to smaller cars and engines in Canada because of the recent spike in gasoline prices?
DR: Totally. Last year, Tributes were up (in sales) no matter what model.
This year, my V6 models are down, while the four-cylinders are growing -- we can't get enough four-cylinders. The same thing (is happening) with our trucks; the demand is absolutely skewed toward the four-cylinder. We have a big demand for fours for our Mazda6, even though the model is five years old and the new one is coming out this month.
BH: Despite having a lineup that is fairly well represented with fuel-efficient engines, when it comes to discussion of initiatives such as hybrid or diesel powertrains, Mazda appears to be noticeably absent.
DR: If you look at Mazda as a company globally, we're a lot larger in Canada than we are on a global basis. So, we rely greatly on our Ford partnership for the development of a lot of our future technologies. Ford has invested significant amounts (of money) and our engineers work hand-in-hand with theirs. There are good synergies for that long term. The other thing is that our cars are fuel-efficient by nature because they are very efficient four-cylinders. But we're also a company that still believes in differentiation. Our new Mazda6 will get 6.8 litres per 100 kilometres on the highway from the 2.5-litre engine. That's fantastic. But that won't be the main thrust of our marketing (for the car). We're going to be marketing the ride, the handling and the fun-to-drive (aspect).
BH: The Mazda3 is due for a redesign. Given that it accounts for 50 per cent of Mazda's sales and that the existing model was such a success, how do you follow that act?
DR: I'm confident and paranoid at the same time. This is what keeps me up at night. There cannot be one aspect of bringing this car to market that can be left to chance. Every "t" has to be crossed and "i" dotted. It will be our biggest launch in history by far -- bigger than the CX-9, bigger than the CX-7 and even bigger than the Mazda6, which we are embarking on right now.
We are now dealing with a car that, in Canada, has such an incredible reputation that, with its launch, will determine where we are going with our brand and the strength of it. (We) can't make a mistake with this car because then we are really making a mistake with (our) whole brand.
But I'm confident because the product is fantastic. And now it will be strictly up to me and (my) team to introduce it properly to Canada. That is going to be a major task. And we are going to be doing it in the wintertime.
BH: How do you see Mazda in 10 years time?
DR: I don't ever see Mazda as being a mainstream company. We were (once) a mainstream company and we failed. We found our souls when we realized we weren't going to out-Toyota Toyota or out-Honda Honda; when we decided we were going to be our own company. That part of our soul that we found back in 1999 to 2000 is going to lead us for the next 10 to 20 years, so that we continue to push ourselves (toward the) enthusiasts, the people who are emotionally connected to their cars (and who are) not just buying transportation. (This) will help differentiate us from other players that are going to enter the market that are not here today as well as those companies that are here but are trying to be everything to everybody. We are the brand choice for automotive enthusiasts. We're not trying to be the biggest.
Canwest News Service
Curriculum vitae
Name: Don Romano
Age: 47
Born: Los Angeles
Title: President
Company: Mazda Canada Inc.
Education: Bachelor's degree in business administration from California State University, Long Beach; MBA from Pepperdine University, Malibu.
Previous work experience: Vice-president of marketing for Mazda North American Operations (MNAO), Irvine, Calif., 2005-April 2006; general manager of business operations, MNAO's Western Region, 2003-2004; zone manager for California and Hawaii, MNAO, 2000-2002
Personal: Married, four children; pastimes include surfing and skiing
First car: 1965 Ford Falcon Futura
Drives: 2009 Mazda6
Role model: Father (a professional musician, who, Romano says, instilled in him that one should never take oneself too seriously)
Favourite quote: "Hard pressed on my right. My centre is yielding. Impossible to manoeuvre. Situation excellent. I am attacking." (Marshal Ferdinand Foch)
