Chinese brands on the way up: some people leave the scene in disgrace, some people turn over

Header image source: Network

"Our competitors will not only be Mercedes-Benz, Toyota or Stellantis Group, but also Tesla, Foxconn, Apple, LG Electronics, Uber and others." A year after volkswagen group unveiled its "NEW AUTO" strategy, the head of diess spoke out again on the group's board of directors.

At the same time, a PPT is particularly eye-catching. The content roughly lists the main competitors of Volkswagen Group in the field of vehicles, technology platforms, software, batteries and travel, while the figures of China's new power brands such as Weilai and Xiaopeng are prominently listed.

On the one hand, there is an automobile giant with a volume of nearly 10 million, and on the other hand, there are new faces whose annual sales have just entered 100,000 vehicles. It's hard to imagine that players with such disparities in sales would one day be able to sit at a table and have a "conversation" in this way.

BYD, Weilai and Xiaopeng entered Volkswagen's competitor list| image from Weibo

More importantly, who would have thought that the chinese brand that can represent the confrontation between the traditional giants is not The Great Wall, Geely and other Chinese head automobile groups, but Weilai and Xiaopeng, which were once considered to be "on the table" of the "PPT car" new players. Whether you admit it or not, the wave of electrification and intelligence has completely changed the rules of the game in the automotive industry.

Of course, the beginning of the story goes back to 2017. That year, Chinese brands were not yet seen in Volkswagen's opponent list; Tesla's market value had not yet surpassed Toyota; new players such as Weilai and Xiaopeng had just taken the stage and were still looked at coldly by the outside world. It was this year that the China Brand Day was officially established.

Looking back at 2017, there is no doubt that it was the most brilliant year for the Chinese auto market. This year, China's automobile sales reached 28.879 million units, another record high. Among them, the cumulative sales of narrow passenger cars in the whole year reached 23.7644 million units. Since 2018, China's auto market has begun to fluctuate, and at the same time, it has ushered in a large-scale "reshuffle" of car companies. In the following 5 years, the players at the table have changed a bit. Some people left the stage in disgrace, and some people took the stage strongly.

#上

Those "lost" brands

For many second- and third-tier Chinese brands, 2017-2022 is a "lost" 5 years.

That year, Zotye, who specialized in the "leather ruler" technology and relied on the "cottage" luxury car, and more than 300,000 fans, continued to realize the dream of many young people's luxury cars. However, 2018 took a sharp turn for the worse, with sales falling to 230,000 units. By 2020, production and sales will be only more than 1,000 vehicles. Zotye, which was on the verge of death, was eventually forced to carry out bankruptcy reorganization.

The Porsche BOSS | at the SR9 booth in The Thai Image from the web

That year, brilliance China market performance, although it has declined, still has a high degree of brand attention. With the in-depth cooperation with BMW, a series of new products have been launched. At that time, China Intelligent Factory also appeared in the second episode of the documentary "Brilliant China", endorsing Brilliance AutoMotive Group's adherence to scientific and technological innovation and industrial transformation and upgrading under the background of the national blueprint of "Made in China 2025".

That year, Borgward, a German brand that claimed to be on par with the BBA, was "revived" on Chinese soil and ushered in its own highlight moment, with annual sales of 44,000 vehicles. But in the blink of an eye, there was a sharp decline in 2018, and after reaching its peak in sales in 2019, it basically slowly fell silent. During this period, although there was a small episode of "selling oneself" to Shenzhou, it was difficult to escape the fate of bankruptcy in the end.

In that year, the new energy market was full of BAIC New Energy, with sales reaching 103,199 vehicles that year, an increase of 98% year-on-year, becoming the first pure electric vehicle company in China with an annual production and sales of more than 100,000 vehicles. This achievement was basically on par with Tesla at that time. Today, the "champion" throne has been snatched away by BYD.

BAIC BJEV is the first pure electric vehicle company in China with an annual production and sales of more than 100,000 vehicles

Scene after scene flashes back and forth in front of your eyes like a movie. Senbao, Phantom Speed, Xenya, Junpai, Bisu, Lifan, Qoros, Seahorse, Cheetah... One after the other, it has faded or is slowly fading out of people's vision.

Looking back at these brands, before they "exited", a large part of them were still immersed in the mania of SUVs, harvesting a huge low-end market with low prices, large space and other selling points. However, as the market shifts to stock competition, it is obviously not so easy to continue to enjoy the dividends of SUVs.

The cruel competition of "you live and die" finally made them overwhelmed by the core competitiveness and accelerated their exit.

Many people in the industry say that their elimination is inevitable. The whole market is evolving, and they are stagnant. Wu Xiaobo, a well-known economic writer, once said that the new generation of consumers is no longer price sensitive, but more rational and more willing to pay for good quality and service.

"The development of these brands has benefited from the development of the entire Chinese market, the Chinese market is constantly expanding, and if people want to buy a car, they occupy some markets with a low-price competition model." However, as the entire market becomes more and more perfect, consumers pay more and more attention to the quality of products, and do not completely value the low price. For consumers, there are better products to choose from, and these low-quality products will naturally be eliminated. Xu Haidong, deputy chief engineer of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, said to the car market Story.

In his view, the core reason is that its own research and development, product quality, brand maintenance, and development process have not kept up with the rhythm of the market. "Simply put, if the product is done well, consumers will definitely recognize it. On the basis of a good product, the price is more appropriate, so that competitiveness is formed. ”

#中

The bipolar reversal of the identity of the new forces

In any case, these "lost" brands have made a certain contribution in the popularization stage of the car, meeting the car purchase needs of many Chinese consumers and cultivating the early Chinese automobile consumer market. Let the next Chinese car market become more vigorous.

In the wave of electrification and intelligence, a new automobile group - "new car-making forces" began to appear in front of people's eyes. A series of new brands such as Weilai, Xiaopeng, Ideal, Weima, Guoneng, Byton, and Yundu have broken in one after another. According to incomplete statistics, hundreds of new car-making forces have poured into this track.

After 5 years of sand and sand, the market has left some quality brands with its clever screening rules. Familiar ones are Weilai, Xiaopeng, Ideal, Nezha, Weima, Zero Run, etc.; there are also many "retreats" in the middle of the road, such as Byton, Bo County, Sailin and so on.

The NIO ES8 was officially unveiled at the 2017 Shanghai Auto Show | Image from the web

Obviously, the influence of these new power brands has gradually expanded. Once questioned as "PPT" cars, they are relying on their strength to come to the front of the stage and become an important representative of Chinese car brands.

At the same time, the representative of the successful transformation of traditional car companies - BYD. Five years ago, it was not seen on the sales charts of the Association. However, after 5 years, it has become the first traditional car company to stop selling discontinued fuel vehicles, with monthly sales climbing at more than 100,000 units, and new energy vehicle sales are firmly ranked first.

Traditional car companies that were once unruly had to face this reality calmly, and even had to learn from those who were new entrants. To this day, I don't know if these traditional car companies have remembered that "the Internet (car-making) is blind all day long", the new forces are unreliable in building cars, and it must take time to precipitate and accumulate experience to build a good car. ”...... These are criticisms that come from one's own mouth.

The Krypton brand was officially released in April last year

Along with this, one new brand after another backed by traditional car companies, such as Aian, Zhiji, Feifan, Extreme Krypton, Polar Fox, Avita, Lantu, Euler, Salon, etc. have sprung up. At the same time, concepts such as direct sales models, communities, and OTAs that have been hyped by new forces have also become the focus of their learning.

New science and technology, new thinking, new models, these are the characteristics of new forces, but also the advantages. Offline stores in the form of urban exhibition halls, automobile supermarkets, and directly operated stores have blossomed everywhere. Feng Sihan, CEO of Volkswagen Group China, once praised, "The products of the new car-making forces often have colorful shapes and a large number of innovative functions. ”

From the object of the previous bombardment to the object of learning today. The bipolar transformation of the identity of the new car-making force has exhausted the evolution of China's automobile brand pattern in the past 5 years.

"In the wave of the era of electric drive transformation, the competitiveness of Chinese brands has been significantly improved, and it has attracted the attention of the world's automotive industry. Behind this glory is the continuous exploration and accumulation of Chinese brands. However, the road to innovation is, after all, obstacles and long. In the face of the white-hot market, only by continuously improving the independent capabilities such as system architecture, core components, and performance calibration, and getting rid of dependence on foreign suppliers, can the foundation of Chinese brands be solid and have the opportunity to go to a broader world. Wang Xin, associate professor of the National Professional Laboratory of Automotive Dynamics and Emission Testing at Beijing Institute of Technology, said to the Car Market Story.

#下

Brand change

The driving force behind the upward development of Chinese brands

The players at the table changed stubble after stubble. In every era, there are brands that carry the mission of each era. Just like the former FAW Xiali, it opened the door to the private car development avenue.

The Chinese automobile industry, which started late, is soaring in such a stubble of brand change. The increase in market share is the best proof.

"From 2017 to 2022, it is the right time for Chinese brands to develop upwards, and Chinese brands can only survive if they continue to rise." Especially under the competition of the stock market. Lin Jie, senior vice president of Geely Automobile Group and general manager of the sales company, who is in the midst of a five-year period of change, said, "In 2021, the market share of Chinese brands will hit a new high in nearly five years. The increase in market share is the best proof of the high-quality development of Chinese brands, especially in the past five years, Chinese brands have collectively moved upwards, reflecting strong tenacity, momentum and motivation. ”

Geely "China Star" series

According to Lin Jie, when Lynk & Co was born, the most asked question was "Does the world need a new brand?" Today, this question no longer needs to be answered. The achievements of Chinese brands upwards speak for themselves. According to the terminal sales data from January to March this year, the market share of Chinese brands has expanded to 42.9%.

At the same time, he also believes that car companies should not be satisfied with building good cars, but also need to build a shared car ecology with consumers. Chinese auto brands are also more actively exploring interactive positions for communication with users, including online channels such as their own Apps and short video platforms, as well as offline channels such as supermarkets and experience centers, forming more contact points of interest to users and building a "moat" for Chinese auto brands.

Looking at the change of Chinese auto brands, it is more like looking at the process of "metabolism" of China's auto industry, perhaps only in this way can we truly show the majestic vitality of China's auto industry.

"There is no doubt that the past five years have been a period of rapid development for Chinese brands, especially Chinese smart car brands." Li Pengcheng, vice president of Xiaopeng Automobile and general manager of brand public relations, said to the car market Monogatari.

In his view, there are three reasons for this situation: first, with the development of the Internet, in-car intelligence, and intelligent assisted driving, China's intelligent cars have surpassed traditional competitors in many aspects, including foreign brands; secondly, China's new brands without brand baggage have indeed used their own advantages and more novel means to create a number of classic cases in brand building. In addition, the younger generation of Chinese consumers has stepped out of the "brand cult" of the previous generation and begun to choose young and cool Chinese brands.

"With the continuous improvement of new energy penetration, Chinese smart car brands have also ushered in unprecedented opportunities. In terms of brand labeling and brand upwards, Chinese brands still have a lot of room. In the next 5-10 years, I firmly believe that there will be a number of Chinese intelligent car brands that will participate in the core competition of global automobiles. ”

Youth can bring endless possibilities. Young Chinese car brands also hide unimagined potential. Although the market volume of Weilai and Xiaopeng is still small, it has received the attention of the global traditional car giant Volkswagen.

Looking ahead to the next five years, there are still many brands in the market that are catching up. The intelligent electric vehicle market is still in the development stage, and the competitive pattern is far from formed, which cannot be said to be a mature market. There are still many possibilities in the future, maybe there will be other new brands rising, and of course, there will be brands that will continue to fall.