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For Christmas, you can get a Lexus _ big red bows and all(Orlando Sentinel, The (FL) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) ORLANDO, Fla. _ These past eight years, the sight has become synonymous with the holidays: A Lexus with a huge red bow on top. This Christmas season is no different _ Lexus is airing three different TV commercials, two radio spots and three print ads backing its "December to Remember" campaign, which began Nov. 21. In one of the new commercials, a husband tricks his wife into thinking that he is unable to pick up their son from hockey practice. When the frustrated wife steps outside their home, she receives, says Lexus, "the surprise of a lifetime _ a Lexus for the holidays," adorned, of course, with a bow. So, do people really want those big red bows when they buy a Lexus? Yes, indeed, said Lexus Prestige Communications Manager Nancy Hubbell. "They're iconic, part of the Lexus tradition." Lexus says that nearly 10 percent of its vehicles sold during the holidays are purchased as gifts, and many of the 223 Lexus dealers stock up on the bows, which are supplied by the company, to either give, sell or loan to customers. The campaign has spread far outside the United States _ Lexus of Borneo is delivering cars this month with the big red bow attached. Lexus of Orlando has its own bow program. "I'm looking at about 65 of them right now," said Mysti Stange, an executive assistant there. These bows are slightly smaller than the huge red bows in the Lexus commercials, though. "We just get a couple of those from Lexus," Stange said, "and we use them in the showroom." But the smaller bows, designed especially for the dealership, are free to any customer who buys a car. Lexus of Melbourne, Fla., handles it differently. They don't stock bows, but a local party store does, and they'll get one there _ if a customer requests it. Of course, big red bows are not exclusive to Lexus. At least one supplier wholesales them to any dealer willing to pay $80 apiece, Still, you think of big red bows, cars and Christmas, you think of Lexus. By the way, when you think of Lexus bows, you're thinking in a fairly exclusive price range. The base price for the entry-level Lexus, the IS 250, is $31,625. ___ (c) 2007, The Orlando Sentinel (Fla.). Visit the Sentinel on the World Wide Web at http://www.orlandosentinel.com/. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. Copyright 2007 The Orlando Sentinel |