Every reporter: Dong Tianyi Every editor: Pei Jianru
The "small, scattered and chaotic" pain points of the automobile maintenance market may be accelerated to be eliminated.
In October last year, the Ministry of Commerce and other nine departments jointly issued the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the High-quality Development of the Automotive Aftermarket" (hereinafter referred to as the "Opinions"). This is the first time that Continental has issued a guiding document for the automotive aftermarket, which clarifies the overall goals and main tasks of the development of the automotive aftermarket, and will systematically deploy at the top-level design level to promote the high-quality development of the automotive aftermarket.
Involving the part of the automobile maintenance industry, the "Opinions" make it clear that the circulation environment of auto parts will be optimized and the quality and upgrading of automobile maintenance services will be promoted, and specific policy measures include the formulation and implementation of auto aftermarket parts circulation standards, encouraging the development of chain management and other parts circulation models, and accelerating the construction of new energy vehicle maintenance technical standard system and improving the ability of auto maintenance digital services.
"This large-scale policy enactment for the entire (automotive) aftermarket has injected a 'booster' into the industry, and we are happy to see this. Talking about the release of the "Opinions", Liu Xiao, director and general manager of Shanghai Fuchuang Industrial Development Co., Ltd., told the "Daily Economic News" reporter that the "high-quality development" mentioned in the "Opinions" is in line with the development direction of Mobil 1 car maintenance, which is also the key to its differentiated development route.
According to Liu Xiao, in 2023, the number of third-level store network expansion of Mobil 1 car maintenance will be 3.5% higher than planned, the number of selected stores will exceed 1,000, and the gross profit margin of the store-end new retail business will increase by 5% year-on-year. At the same time, in the context of the rapid expansion of the store network, the maintenance of Mobil 1 car in 2023 still maintained 96% consumer satisfaction.
Large subsidies are not the whole story of "Internet car maintenance".
In fact, the current competition in the domestic automotive aftermarket is no less than that of the new car sales market. On the one hand, "Internet car maintenance" companies are accelerating their expansion. For example, Tuhu has released the "Thousand Counties Development Plan" and the "50 Million Special Promotion Funds for the Sinking Market" to maintain the expansion of franchise stores with the efforts of the sinking market and large subsidies, while JD has divided the 2023~2025 plan into three parts, one of which is to complete the full coverage of high-tier cities and sinking markets.
In addition to "grabbing land", the "subsidy war" and "price war" that "Internet car maintenance" is better at also appear in the automotive aftermarket. For example, during the "Double 11" period in 2023, Tuhu will issue large coupons for tires, maintenance, beauty washing, car products and batteries, as well as activities such as brand tires and all-synthetic small maintenance "9.9 yuan starting time and seconds". Jingdong car maintenance launched the "tire maintenance really 5% off" activity, and before that, some products of Jingdong car maintenance also launched the "shock tiger price", and the promised price is 5% lower than that of friends.
"Although the vast majority of consumers care about price, in the balance of price and quality, segmented consumer groups will have their own preferences. Liu Xiao told reporters that in combination with consumer demand, in recent years, Mobil 1 car maintenance has also observed more consumers' pursuit of quality and professionalism, preference for convenience and peace of mind, and more willingness to pay for service and experience.
Image source: Shanghai InQuartik Industrial Development Co., Ltd. official website
One of the prerequisites for ensuring user experience is the standardization of performance, which is also a common problem faced by automobile maintenance chain enterprises. To this end, Mobil 1 vehicle maintenance chooses to start with the basic links such as supply chain quality control and talent training, supplemented by standardized service processes, to unify the service quality and professional experience of its stores. For example, Mobil 1 car maintenance has completed a systematic, innovative and online talent training layout, and built a talent training system of "one training goal, five basic competencies, four job types, and four training modes" to ensure the high-quality implementation of services.
It is understood that based on the front-line business needs, InQuartnik uses a series of small and flexible business units such as the digital committee and the product committee to quickly respond and output solutions. At the same time, the team is encouraged to adhere to professionalism and continue to discuss the details of business operations based on the company's long-term goals to create the best solution.
In addition, Mobil 1 Car Maintenance not only has the advantages of genuine engine oil, but also creates a total of 18 standard processes covering the owner's appointment, pick-up, maintenance operations, delivery, return visits, etc., to create a professional label.
"The embodiment of professionalism is not achieved overnight, it is not like the low-cost route can quickly see the results, but a process that needs to be polished for a long time, it needs to be passed on to consumers through people, services and products. Shen Nan, executive deputy general manager of Shanghai InQuartik Industrial Development Co., Ltd., said that next, the planning of Mobil 1 car maintenance is to implement professional details into each service product and concretize the label of professional service experience.
"It is imperative to deploy new energy"
With the increasing number of new energy vehicles in mainland China, automotive aftermarket service providers are also accelerating the layout of this field.
According to data released by the Ministry of Public Security, as of the end of September 2023, the number of new energy vehicles in the country has exceeded 18 million, accounting for 5.5% of the total number of vehicles. Among them, the number of pure electric vehicles is about 14 million, accounting for 76.9% of the total number of new energy vehicles.
According to the "2023 Automotive Aftermarket Maintenance Industry White Paper" released by the F6 Big Data Research Institute, the proportion of new energy vehicles entering the factory has also increased significantly in recent years, from 2% in 2020 to 5% in 2023. It is estimated that the scale of new energy after-sales maintenance will be nearly 40 billion yuan in 2023 and is expected to exceed 80 billion yuan by 2025.
"Judging from the increment of the entire new energy vehicle market and the number of vehicles at this stage, it has actually exceeded 18 million. Although the age of new energy vehicles is generally less than 2 years, in the next few years, we also think that it will usher in a small peak of insurance. Shen Nan said that for the layout of new energy vehicle maintenance services, Mobil 1 car maintenance is imperative.
The reporter learned that in 2024, Mobil 1 car maintenance will be "more flexible" and "smarter" to lay out the new energy vehicle maintenance business. In terms of business strategy, it mainly focuses on the key point of "raising". In terms of service items, the "expansion of general projects" and "pilot characteristic projects" are superimposed to do incremental additions to help traditional maintenance stores expand the customer base of new energy vehicles.
Image source: Shanghai InQuartik Industrial Development Co., Ltd. official website
According to Shen Nan, Mobil 1 is discussing with shareholders the implementation of Mobil EV fluid product line, and based on the demand for new energy vehicles, it is discussing cooperation with brands in the fields of batteries and tires. In addition, Mobil 1 is currently independently developing a new energy vehicle maintenance training system, as well as a three-electric system-related inspection and maintenance course.
"Mobil 1 vehicle maintenance's current layout and business drive are still driven by traditional fuel vehicles. The maintenance needs of new energy vehicles are completely different, but they still exist for tires, chassis and car beauty. Liu Xiao told reporters that from the perspective of the basic business structure, in the next two or three years, the support of the vast majority of Mobil 1 car maintenance business will still come from fuel vehicles.
"We are cautiously optimistic about market expectations for 2024. In 2024, we will continue to invest in the construction of the Mobil 1 car maintenance service brand, and at the same time, we will continue to expand the national network in an orderly manner, and will adjust the specific implementation steps and rhythm according to the market situation. Liu Xiao said.
National Business Daily