In recent years, a new group has emerged in China , the new middle class. Regarding the definition of the new middle class, many people can't say why. However, we can start by analyzing consumer behavior and roughly sketch their portraits.
In the matter of buying a car, the new middle class is now very anxious.
Why?
Next to where I work is a private infant and toddler nursery. In order to help those young parents who are busy with work to reduce the burden, the childcare service for infants and young children aged 1-3 is provided here, and the annual tuition fee is 80,000-100,000 yuan.
Every morning at 8:30 a.m., the outside of the park is full of private cars that come to deliver children. I looked at it, and most of them were luxury brands. And many of them are personalized, high-performance cars that only people who know how to call names.
This is the first phenomenon.
The second phenomenon is that almost every child wears very decent and exquisite, and the shoes they wear are rarely common Brands such as Nike and Adidas. I paid special attention to the fact that many children wear Mikihouse, a brand of professional infant and toddler walkers from Japan, with an average price of 800-1200 yuan per pair.
The third phenomenon is that these young parents are not at all popular in their dress. You can't see coconuts, and you can't see LV's baseball coat. Either a classic brand like Ralph Lauren or a cutting-edge like Alexander Wang.
These phenomena project a highly consistent view of consumption in these new middle classes: personality, professionalism, tradition and fashion.
After talking about the consumption concept of the new middle class, we try to define them: most of them are post-80s who have received higher education, as well as some post-90s elites living in first- and second-tier cities, and their annual personal income is mostly concentrated in 400,000-600,000 yuan.
So, back to what I said at the beginning of buying a car. The reason why the new middle class is anxious is because they can't find the model that best highlights their consumption concept. Under expediency, you can only buy a more special version.
It has to be said that the Grecale came at the right time, and this Maserati's youngest SUV is tailored for this group of people.
01 The "first car" of the new middle class
At present, in many first- and second-tier cities in China, many consumers, including the new middle class, can only buy one car because of the restriction on purchases.
This premise determines that this car must meet many of their needs at the same time, such as personality, luxury, practicality, technology and so on.
To be honest, in this era, there are fewer and fewer personalized cars, and car design is becoming more homogeneous.
Split headlights, through-type taillights, integrated screens or several "iPads" that are not modified and directly placed in the car....Under the leadership of the trend of scientific and technological minimalist design driven by electric vehicles, even if many new cars are still camouflaged, the above "net red" design elements will most likely appear.
Although few people are dissatisfied with this, just like the folding screen mobile phone breaks the homogenization of smart phones, when the newly debuted Maserati Grecale does not carry any "internet celebrity" elements, it makes people feel innovative.
The Grecale uses integrated headlights, split taillights. Unlike levante, the headlamp and hood are located on a flat surface, and the shape area is larger, which looks a little cute. The taillights are narrower and longer than levante, and they are very sharp. If you look at Grecale from the front, you will feel very affinity, but if you follow it, you will feel that this guy is not good.
It can be considered that this is a contrast that the designer wants to convey specifically: the Gregare in the eyes of the owner and the Gregare in the eyes of others.
Compared to Maserati's predecessors, the Grecale interior has fewer physical buttons, as the car's operation is also fully digitized, with multiple operations built into the large screen. But compared to those crazy straight screen models on the market, Grecale has folded the 12.3 + 8.8-inch central control screen, just like those pointed houses in Italy, the "sunny side" is used to process multimedia and navigation information, and the "yin side" is the convenience and operation of air conditioning and comfort functions. While achieving clear functional partitioning, it also conveys a unique design aesthetic.
Looking at these design elements, it may be a little different from most people's impression of Maserati, but the magic of The Gregale is that it "kneads" the innovation with the classic design very well.
The first is the "trident" elements embellished just right: the trident logo suspended in the grille, the trident-shaped wheel hub, and the classic "shark gills" located on the front fenders;
Then there are the classic design elements that represent Maserati, which has been passed down: the lower grille can easily be reminiscent of the MC20, or even the MC12, and the clock above the central control is the same as Levante and the president, but it is digitally presented;
Finally, Maserati's signature extravagant workmanship and materials: the centre panels and door interior panels are made of delicately textured natural materials, as well as the instrument panels, panels and seats are harmoniously complemented by Italian hand-stitched patterns.
The reason why we use "kneading" to describe Grecale's attitude towards innovation and inheritance is because we don't see the sparks after the collision of contradictions on this car, but in a natural way, everyone who sees Grecale will say from the bottom of their hearts: "This is a Maserati." ”
Personality is the attitude of life that the new middle class shows to the outside world. What is left for yourself and your family, then, is passion, fun and comfort.
Maserati's products have always been a joy to drive, and even SUVs have not compromised in the slightest.
Grecale has launched a total of 4 versions: 300 hp GT version, 330 hp Modena version, 530 hp Trofeo version, and PrimaSerie with special color matching first limited edition, zero hundred acceleration time is 5.6 seconds, 5.3 seconds, 3.8 seconds, can be described as the full range of high performance.
In addition, in the second half of next year, the Grecale pure electric version will also be launched, using 400V charging technology, becoming Maserati's first pure electric SUV.
Many people feel that high-performance models are more suitable for "toys" because their space is compromised on performance. Well, let's see if the same is true for Gregare.
With a body size of 4846mm*1670mm*1948mm (excluding the rearview mirrors on both sides) and a wheelbase of 2901mm, the Grecale surpasses many mid-size SUVs, even compared to some medium- and large-sized SUVs. This means that the Grecale has generous horizontal and vertical seating space. According to the designer of the car, the Grecale also has an oversized opening trunk, which further enhances the practical value.
In addition, in order to please Chinese consumers, the introduction of Chinese Grecale will be equipped with a smart car machine system jointly developed with Tencent.
Driving an Italian sports car SUV that blends seamlessly into local life, there's nothing better for a new middle class that can only buy one car than the Gregare.
02 Brands and users, each other are fresh
Compared with those young people who have just left the campus or have not worked for a few years, the lifestyle of the new middle class has changed a lot.
The former also enjoys a cup of 30-40 yuan a day of internet red coffee, occasionally making Pilates, while the latter visits sam's club once a week, and the rest of the leisure time is either hiking, diving, or taking the children to and from various interest classes and early education centers.
It's not that the consumption of the new middle class is more high-end than that of young people. Instead, the new middle class has passed the stage of meaningless consumption, and the purpose of their consumption is to achieve self-ability and value improvement, even if the chicken baby is to improve the comprehensive quality of the child.
Therefore, the value that Grecale brings to them is not only that they can easily accommodate the large package of goods and various infant and toddler products of Sam's Club, nor is it limited to easily taking them to the foot of the mountain or the sea, but also allows them to enjoy the journey more decently, more comfortably and more fun, and can also make them tasteful and not vulgar in the eyes of others.
Maserati fits this state very well. However, in the past, the threshold for buying a Maserati was too high, often more than one million yuan, and the new middle class must have thought about it, but they were pragmatic and could not be bothered to chop their hands.
However, as an entry-level product for the brand, Grecale will effectively close the distance between reality and desire, becoming the first Maserati that the new middle class can reach.
Starting from Grecale, Maserati will also gain a large number of new middle-class audiences in addition to the rich, opening up a broader market space.
03 Together with the new middle class, reinvent the new Maserati
In the past, Maserati's impression on Chinese consumers has always been that the rich are exclusive, ultra-luxury cars, and a small number of people may also know the anthropomorphic title of "supercar queen".
In other words, people have always thought that Maserati is expensive and has nothing to do with them.
As a result, most consumers, including the new middle class, are not willing to learn about Maserati's brand core.
It has to be said that this is a problem that any ultra-luxury brand needs to solve.
Most people are not born rich, and most rich people are exactly the result of struggle. As an ultra-luxury brand, Maserati's mission is not only to meet the needs of current buyers, but also to be a coordinate that inspires the passion of young people.
The supercar MC20 released last year reshaped Maserati's brand image and made the "supercar queen" suddenly become clear and intuitive. With this car as a new era, Maserati has once again opened a new stage of development of the brand.
Grecalle, which fully undertakes the design and technical strength of MC20, is more universal, not only for more people to buy Maserati, but also to pass on Maserati's new era brand image to more people.
Speaking of which, many people may want to ask, what is Maserati's new brand image?
Like the consumer values of the new middle class mentioned at the beginning, Maserati has never been vulgar, not kitsch, not bound by the trend of the times, nor is it bent on welcoming anyone, it just explores and advances along the path it identifies.
Born on the track, it also injects Maserati with an innate spirit of competition. No matter how strong the opponent is and the environment is harsh, Maserati will always move forward with the Attitude of All in.
In short, through its luxurious, beautiful and unrestrained appearance, Maserati has an extreme heart that constantly challenges itself.
With this spirit, Grecale will meet new challenges with the vast number of new middle-class people with similar moods and pursuits in China, even if the challenges of life will never disappear.