The new Lexus UX is another of the marque’s revolutionary reinventions, as we find out at its launch in Stockholm
Stockholm, Sweden is home to the Nobel Peace Prize, the birthplace of Ikea, Abba, Spotify, Skype, Minecraft, the Coca-Cola bottle, the propeller, the zipper, the pacemaker, and hundreds, if not thousands, of incredibly handy things you use every day or simply admire from afar, like the first space camera, the bicycle airbag, and dynamite. It is a progressive and dynamic country that seems to be operating in a different time zone to the rest of the world—and I don’t mean GMT, either. It really does feel like the country is ahead of everyone else, not only in technology but as a society as well.
From almost cashless cities to unisex public bathrooms, Sweden is always pushing an envelope somewhere. It may have only nine million people, but pound for pound, it has produced more inventions, number one hits, and just general wowery than any other place on the planet. So it is absolutely no coincidence that Lexus chose this exact spot to launch the latest addition to its family—the all-new Lexus UX.
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As far as the marque is concerned, the future is all about breaking moulds and being everything that you thought it wouldn’t be. “The reason we selected Stockholm is because the energy and creativity that this city has is world-class,” said Lexus Asia Pacific vice president David Nordstrom. “It’s often referred to as the world’s biggest small town. It’s a lot smaller in size when compared to other European cities like London, Paris, Berlin and Rome. It gives you a small‑town feel with world-class amenities.”
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This, in a nutshell, is Lexus. Old World values, First World technology; a quiet achiever that is constantly evolving and reinventing itself during its relentless pursuit of perfection.
Take the UX. There may be nothing new about a luxury automaker developing a crossover to fill a gap in its line-up, but Lexus’s approach to this is. While it would have been quite easy to stick with the tried and proven Russian doll formula, the marque instead shattered the template and went with a female Japanese designer to ensure it brings something new and fresh to the table. Not because there was anything wrong with the previous approach, but how will you know that there is nothing better out there until you take that risk?