A new car with your new jeans? Exhibiting cars in shopping malls is nothing new, but the idea is attracting more and more new car brands, who are settling there permanently in the hope of getting closer to their target customers.
Traditionally, it was mainly the dealers who occupied a space in the aisles of the shopping center in their region for a few days. Given the heavy traffic in these centres, this is an effective way for these merchants to attract consumers who are already shopping to their own facilities.
The opening, in these same centres, of showrooms — and, in some cases, entire service centers — directly by automakers is a game-changer. Companies like Tesla, VinFast and soon Lucid Motors or Rivian are increasingly in the sights of managers of shopping centers like Cadillac Fairview.
Hard hit in 2020 by the confinement imposed during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, shopping center managers have since been trying to redefine themselves and broaden their sales horizons. In recent months, a foray into the specialty food sector has been made; the electric automobile is now another avenue being explored.
fashionable cars
Tesla opened a new regional center a few months ago on the edge of Promenades Saint-Bruno, on the south shore of the Montreal region. The Swedish brand Polestar is also present in this shopping center. Genesis, a subsidiary of the Hyundai group that wants to do battle with these two brands, is present at Carrefour Laval. The Vietnamese company VinFast has already signed a lease at the same location to present the electric vehicles it hopes to sell here from next fall.
“You can expect to see more of them, automobiles, in our centers,” confirms to the To have to Cadillac Fairview vice-president of retail operations, Christian Vézina. “There is no doubt that we have an opportunity to seize. The experience we are currently acquiring will soon allow us to welcome new brands like Lucid and Rivian. »
Like the Californian company Tesla, Lucid and Rivian are American manufacturers of electric vehicles. The marketing of their first products in Canada begins these days. Lucid Motors has just opened its first store in Vancouver to introduce the Air sedan, a high-performance luxury electric car. Rivian, which specializes in pickup trucks, plans to deliver the first vehicles in Canada starting in July.
“Our shopping centers already attract a large public,” continues Christian Vézina. “But for these new brands, it’s attractive, more to increase their visibility than to finalize a transaction. Since these manufacturers sell directly to consumers, they then only have to visit their website to purchase a new vehicle, which will then be delivered to them.
And the dealers?
This direct sales model, which bypasses dealerships, is for the moment mainly the business of certain manufacturers of electric cars.
Their presence remains marginal in the automotive market and does not worry too much the CEO of the Corporation of Quebec Automobile Dealers (CCAQ), Robert Poëti, who recalls that Quebec has “only 120,000 electric vehicles out of more than 4 million” at present. “Shopping centers are a great showcase, but to imagine that it’s the right place to sell and service a car is wrong,” he says.
The pandemic and the lack of parts have made pre-orders of new vehicles more frequent than in the past, and it is done well on the Internet, admits Mr. Poëti. But for everything else, dealerships remain “the best place” to go, he says. “The real question is, ‘Who’s going to do it next?’ Even electric vehicles need maintenance, and their mechanics are extremely sophisticated. Dealerships are essential for that. »
Obviously, the CEO of the CCAQ does not disavow the role played by shopping centers in the marketing strategy of its own members. “It’s a great form of advertising,” he says. The dealers will continue to exhibit in these very public places, but to imagine that they would set up their technical centers between two clothing stores, there is a huge, unrealistic step to take, he believes.
Managers of shopping centers like Cadillac Fairview don’t mind. Relations are good both with current car dealers and with new emerging manufacturers. And the changes that are occurring these days in the world of mobility allow them to diversify their offer and target a wider clientele.
“We have had great success in the automotive niche,” confirms Christian Vézina.