Z356

The 'Porsche Exclusive' team in the US is changing. Sascha Glaeser, its current manager, has been promoted to oversee the 'Porsche Experience Centers' that are currently being built at Atlanta and Los Angeles. Melissa Witek continues at 'Porsche Exclusive' back East but has been tasked also with '918 Spyder Client Relationship' since the departure of Daniel Eastman last Spring. Thus, PCNA has recently promoted Matthew Henry (who was a product planner based at PCNA Atlanta since 2013) to be a 'Personal Design Specialist' and he will be transferred to the 'Porsche Exclusive' office on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, CA next month! That was the CA office of Sascha Glaeser for the past few years. Matthew is a speed enthusiast with a motorcycle racing background. He is young and appears energetic, so hopefully he'll be able to come up to speed re: 'Porsche Exclusive' in a relative short period of time. No decision yet as to who will become manager of this operation after Sascha leaves to devote his full time to the 'Porsche Experience Centers', although it might be someone they transfer from 'Porsche Exclusive' in Germany.

Sascha, Melissa and Matthew at 'Porsche Exclusive' in the US can be reached by emailing them at: <customerconsultations@porsche.us>.

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel

.

Nick

Excuse my ignorance but what role do these people play, if any, in interacting with customers?

Z356

Re: Interaction with Customers: That is an important part of their job. The other is to inform/teach/cajole/beg the US dealers to promote 'Porsche Exclusive' options on their customer's special orders or in dealers spec orders for inventory.

I had extensive contact with both Sascha Glaeser in the US and with 'Porsche Exclusive' in Germany before I finalized my custom-ordered MY2012 Boxster Spyder. I was able to do options on that Spyder that were not done before on that model*. But I am very persistent. Anyone that is custom ordering a gt3 or gt3 RS I would strongly recommend that you get to talk to and communicate directly with one of the 'Porsche Exclusive' representatives in the US or Germany to make sure you order is 'all that it can be'. Some dealers are very knowledgeable about 'Porsche Exclusive'...but these are in the minority. Most dealers know little about 'Porsche Exclusive' and many US dealers actively discourage PTS and other complicated 'Porsche Exclusive' options for a variety of reasons - delays, afraid customer might not take delivery, etc. Seeing a void of accurate information on custom ordering a Porsche in the forums, I started threads on that subject at Rennlist almost two years ago. They have become popular because there is a great curiosity on how the programs works and there is very little information on the subject matter in any one place. This singular thread alone at the 991 Rennlist forum has generated nearly 110,000 views and is still going strong!

https://rennlist.com/forums/991/7085...e-and-you.html

The one on the subject of 981 custom ordering has over 26,000 views!

https://rennlist.com/forums/987-981-...e-and-you.html

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel

*Here is the story on my Boxster Spyder special order if anyone is interested:
https://rennlist.com/forums/987-981-...tom-order.html
.

jcoles

Thank you Eduardo. I have a meeting with Matthew and I think Sascha at the end of the month. My dealership was the one that told me about them and said they have more samples and materials to touch and see then they did. I was also told their configurator can do much more than the dealerships. This is one appointment I will not be late for!

jimmermd

The south Atlanta facility looks like it is still under construction. What will be its final purpose?

Z356

It's the new PCNA headquarters combined with a track for the equally new 'Porsche Experience Center'. The rumors that it would also house a secret 'V2' rocket launch facility (like those of Peenemünde/Nordhausen) are apparently false. I should know since I started those rumors.

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel

.

tradervic

I had the pleasure of meeting Matthew at Parade. He'll do great replacing Sascha.

rijowysock

what do we do if not in those 2 locations, would be nice if they could mail an ipad with deposit for you to mess with.. or have a program to login... i think the latest config is the one they use in europe and on ipad.

i emailed them, lets see what comes of it... i want something different on the 2015!

Dude-

Mellisa was the one who helped me with my order. She is very good and have great suggestions. I believe she also helped me when my dealer was playing around with my allocation back in Nov. To what extent I don't know but when I expressed my frustration on my allocation, it turned up the next day.

Jon H

Eduardo

Question - 2 years ago I inquired about getting a GT3 (997.2) built with a Beige Interior.
I was told that it was not possible to do.
How is it any different from any other interior that one can select for a 911?
I was not requesting any special material or anything - I just don't like black interiors.
I ended up ordering a C2S Coupe with Beige interior.

Thanks, Jon

Z356

Jon: The gt3 & RS models follow different 'interior design tradition' than other Porsche models. You can call it the 'Henry Ford' maxim: any interior color you like as long as it's 'Black' *. In the 997 models, they offered a wide variety of deviating stitching on 'Black'. In the 991, they have so far limited to two deviating stitching colors - 'Platinum Grey' and 'Red'. In the LE 4.0, they went absolutely 'crazy' and offered seat inlays in 'Red' alcantara with 'Red' alcantara headliners. This was the definition of 'wild' for the design team in charge of gt3 interiors! I was told they visited several ***** houses in Amsterdam to settle on the right color for their 'rouge' alcantara...and it shows! It was that 'naughty' of a color...and I happen to like Amsterdam's 'Red Light' district!

So the chances of seeing a 'Luxor Beige' or any other color interior on a Porsche gt3 or RS is probably zero, nada, zilch. The 'Black' and 'Charcoal' alcantara is their tradition and I am pretty sure they'll stick to that! But I could see them playing with the seat inlays again to add something 'special' to the mix, especially in some later RS Limited Edition model! I am just waiting for them to introduce 'Green' alcantara next...

In many ways, it makes ordering a gt3 relatively easy. Just concentrate in the exterior color because you don't have much choice with the interior. And the default stitching in 'Platinum Grey' fortunately goes with ANY exterior color you choose - including most PTS!

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel

*'Black' vinyl, 'Black Leather' or 'Black Leather & Charcoal Alcantara'

jcoles

I thought I would share my experience at Porsche Exclusive In Beverly Hills.

I met with Matthew Henry at the Porsche Design store on Rodeo Drive a few weeks ago. His private design studio is located on the floor above their retail clothing store. He spent over 3 hours with me going over all my options. The studio itself is about 900 square feet and has most of the materials and paint samples Porsche offers. There is a 50"ish TV monitor that he uses during the build. He is also able to explain exactly what each option is and how it will change the car. In addition, they have cars in the parking lot that have most of the options one could choose so you can see a real life example.

Matthew is a young passionate guy that seemed to really take an interest in my build. He also called me the following day to say he just got some new color samples in and asked if I would come down to see them. I am struggling with my color choice. I did and another hour went by talking about the car and my choices. For me, it was a great experience. This is the first Porsche I've ever built and had a lot of questions. If you are building something other than a GT3, I think the experience would be even better since Matthew would have more options for you since we limited with interior.

I got to hand it to Porsche. I think having Porsche Exclusive in Beverly Hills and away from the dealership is brilliant. I tend to get a bit tense in dealerships. However, going to one of the most exclusive shopping areas In the U.S. made the build even more exciting to me. A few hours hanging around that area just put me in the mood to spend money and agree to things I didn't think I needed.

The only knock was Matthew's config. The set up is much better than anything I've seen before but was hoping the paint colors on the screen would be more accurate.

CAlexio

Nice write up! So, irrespective of where you purchase your gt3 you can go to that shop in Bev hills and configure your car?

Z356

Yes but you need an appointment!

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel

.

Lodi

Does the Design Center have anything available that is not available in the Configurator, or do they just have all of the materials and the expertise to know what works? The concept does sound pretty cool. Kinda like going to the Apple store for a GT3!