Few lovers car dealership. They’re tense and tense, and it’s hard to shake the feeling who are getting a rough deal. But as the auto industry grows increasingly electric and moves online, companies like Honda are rethinking every aspect of the buying process — including the space in which it takes place.
Honda announced today that it will be rolling out a new dealership design, one that takes up less space and is modular and flexible; What used to be a gallery space, for example, could be converted into an office for employees. It will also feature electric vehicle chargers, as the company aims to sell half a million electric vehicles in the US by 2030. “Our dealers are looking for ways to modernize and digitize their business.” Mamadou Diallo, vice president of automotive sales at Honda USA, told reporters last week. Recent experiences, he said, have taught the automaker that selling cars “won’t take up a lot of space.” And they’re not the only ones looking to cut out square footage.
Like so many recent transformations, this change is partly a reflection of the pandemic. Car manufacturers have struggling with semiconductor chip shortage, a serious problem for vehicles that need hundreds and sometimes more than a thousand to operate. The bottleneck of the supply chain This means new car dealerships have fewer cars to show off to customers. Meanwhile, inspired by a series of new electrified direct selling companies, such as Tesla and Rivian, major automakers have begun experimenting with allowing customers to pre-order and even buy their cars online. Ford made the first sales of its electrified sports car, Mustang Mach-Eon the internet and made a reservation online for myself electric pickup truck. Volvo said last year that its electric car—Which products the automaker says will make up 100% of sales by 2030 — will be sold exclusively online.
That may make buying a car more convenient, but it makes sell They are also easier. Building cars to fulfill customers’ online orders will make vehicle production more unpredictable, which means fewer unexpected unpopular models will eventually wear out — and finally sold at a reduced price — on the showroom floors. Jim Farley, Ford’s CEO, told investors last summer: “We’ve learned: ‘Yes, it’s not only possible to operate with fewer vehicles, but it’s also good. more for customers, dealers and Ford”. “But we are also driving a significant increase in the number of customers configuring and ordering their vehicles online, so we have better visibility into actual demand.”
The adjustment in this pandemic era has not always been in the favor of car buyers. Dealer report that the combination of a tight car market and limited inventory means they can offer less discounts to customers who hope to boost their new purchases. Buyers pay more and dealers make a higher profit per sale. However, industry experts remain divided over whether those conditions will last beyond the public health emergency and related supply chain struggles.
However, the era of rows and products, styles and colors may be over. “A dealer doesn’t have to be the Taj Mahal on a highway somewhere,” said Mike Anderson, president of Rikess Group, an automotive consulting firm. Dealers with whom Anderson consults have begun taking cars to potential customers for a test drive, then returning to their homes or offices when they close the deal. Automakers like Tesla, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and BMW are also testing mobile service or having technicians come to customers’ cars. In some places, “many guests won’t see the dealership at all,” says Anderson.
It can take years or even decades for dealers to physically change because it takes time and money to retrofit a building. Diallo, the Honda chief executive, said the automaker’s new dealership design “is not a program we force dealers to adopt”, but rather a direction Honda wants dealers to take. their own as they renovate and update. Volkswagen America’s vice president of network operations, Brian Kelly, said the company was looking at similar regulatory measures. “We see growing EV adoption, more consumers preferring to buy vehicles through digital retail solutions, and the rise of mobility and vehicle delivery services — among a series of industry-wide changes — which will have a forward impact on the overall size and layout of dealership facilities,” he said in a statement.
