Recently, Joye Kwon wrote a blog on Mercedes-Benz’s new CLA Sedan. This car will cost just from $31,000 which is targeted towards the middle-class populace to increase sales. According to Joye, this is an insufficient marketing strategy because Mercedes-Benz “is a brand of exclusivity” and this new release will only “diminish the company’s luxury image”. However, I believe that although Joye made a reasonable point, the CLA Sedan is potentially a good strategic move for the future of Mercedes-Benz. The lower cost will broaden the brand’s target audience, resulting in an increase in price and profit. The main issue brought up of the diminishing luxury image which is a point of difference for Mercedes Benz, can be counteracted. The company can still maintain its high-end reputation without having to be completely exclusive; they already released smart cars, Smart For Two, costing around $25,000 and the brand is still associated with class. They can sell a variety of cars, including the expensive AMG models and the more affordable CLA Sedan, to a wider range of customers. Also, Mercedes-Benz can still soldify their reputation among the car-buying populace by maintaining their quality and design (valued points of differences by customers) in the new cars. For example, car company Toyota, has a luxury car devision called Lexus for a specific range of customers. I believe that Mercedes-Benz can follow suit without damaging their reputation and that the CLA Sedan will benefit the company in both sales and reputation among middle-class buyers.