On August 30, 2025, Lexus* celebrated the 20th anniversary of its business operations in Japan.
*Lexus was established in the United States in 1989 as a luxury brand and expanded to Japan in 2005.
Toyota held an anniversary event on September 9 and showed its appreciation to the dealerships that have engaged with customers and shared the Lexus brand history over the past 20 years.
Around 5,000 staff from dealerships nationwide came together at the venue in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture. Although Chairman Akio Toyota was unable to attend in person, he delivered a surprise message of gratitude.
Along with Chairman Toyoda’s request to “play with them,” a mysterious group of men wearing Morizo masks appeared. They even started breakdancing and doing other street performances!
Check out the video for details. The footage can only be seen on this week’s Toyota Times News, so don’t miss it!
The event featured many other can’t-miss moments, including a look back on 20 years of history and a Lexus quiz where participants tried to ID car models based on the sound of their engine. President Koji Sato appeared at the venue to introduce a concept model for a next-generation BEV and to unveil the new IS in its world premiere. Be sure to check it out in the video.
President Sato has been involved in developing the Lexus since 2005, serving as chief engineer before becoming president in 2020. He told the participants, “The Lexus is a brand we all built together. Let’s all discover a new Lexus that we’ve never seen before.”
Some of the dealership staff at the event said, “Lexus feels like part of my life,” and “I’ll give my best as we head toward the 30th.”
In this milestone 20th year, the bond between manufacturers and dealerships has grown stronger. This episode expresses gratitude for the history and shares hopes for the future. Be sure to watch until the end.
