Author: Zhang Yi

If there is a history of marketing, then May 19, 2001 is an unforgettable day.

On this day, the first Apple retail store in the world opened in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia, changing the history of computers only being sold in dirty and cluttered computer cities. It created a user-centered shopping paradise in more densely populated commercial centers for the first time, making Apple synonymous with fashion and trends.

The method of redefining brand image and positioning through location, environment, and experience has not changed in 20 years and has been regarded as a model by countless brands across various industries. And now, Aiways, who has been pursuing high-end dreams, can be said to be well-versed in this approach.

Recently, Aiways’ Shanghai Plaza flagship experience center opened, located on the most “Shanghai-style” Huaihai Middle Road, with the latest AI arrow logo of Aiways hidden among the French plane trees, and facing the only Hermes store in China across the street.

After launching China’s first mass-produced hypercar, the Hyper SSR, the official opening of Aiways Shanghai Plaza flagship experience center can be said to be another great move by Aiways in entering the high-end market, and a big success.

As we often say, “If you associate with good people, it’s like entering a room full of fragrant orchids.” Located on Huaihai Middle Road, where high-end luxury brands abound, and frequented by top-tier users with money to burn, this big move by Aiways will undoubtedly strengthen its high-end brand image in the eyes of these users.

Moreover, for users who are unfamiliar with or completely unaware of Aiways, this will create a subjective impression that Aiways is already a high-end brand, shaping a high-end brand tone in their hearts.

Similar to NIO HOUSE of NIO, Aiways Shanghai Plaza flagship experience center is not limited to products, but further lands and extends the brand’s tone and services through space. It includes four major areas: Urban Reception Room, Trendy Technology Museum, Art Life Collection, and AION Home.

The Urban Reception Room is a space for regular events such as parties, salons, and financial and economic sharing. Through a variety of high-end social activities, Aiways on the one hand creates a high-end social circle with the brand as its core, achieving deep penetration at the intersection of brand and users. On the other hand, by gathering high-end figures, the brand image is further promoted.

The Chao Wan Technology Museum features the latest cutting-edge products and technology experiences, such as the metaverse AR interaction. Additionally, the newly launched Hyper SSR supercar by AION is also exhibited here. The Chao Wan Technology Museum will be a space where AION’s technological strength is concentrated and showcased, strengthening AION’s technological attribute.

As for the Art Life Hub, it focuses on enhancing AION’s living attributes. In the Art Life Hub, AION will create a temporary and comfortable space for users through the currently popular and elegant ways, and in some sense, even serve as a replacement for the Hermes back garden. For example, when users park their car in the Experience Center for charging and then go shopping at Hermes, by the time they return, the service staff has already prepared a cup of coffee to greet them.

In comparison, the premium AION Home is quite ordinary, and is basically the same as NIO HOUSE, providing car owners with a dedicated rest area, while also regularly holding city car owner events and various parties to allow users to find a sense of belonging and form a stronger connection between the brand and users.

Overall, the AION Shanghai Square direct operation Experience Center is a place that provides users with integrated value and experience, such as socializing, entertainment, purchasing cars, leisure, etc. By using the offline Experience Center, users can connect their life with the brand’s services.

In fact, not just AION, more and more brands are expanding the possibilities of experience center spaces, evolving the space for selling cars into a space for selling quality of life. While the car itself may still be the protagonist, it gradually becomes less central.

However, similar experience centers are not necessarily better. The more there are, the higher the operating costs will be. At the same time, due to poor management, the service quality may decrease, which may cause great harm to the brand. Therefore, it’s best for the distribution of experience centers to be few but exquisite, achieving the effect of a single point that influences the whole. AION just implements such a mindset.

EAON plans to project its strength into a network of 28 supermarkets and 17 car cities in Shanghai with EAON Shanghai Square directly-operated experience center as the core base. By continuously building dedicated EAON supercharging stations, EAON is creating a 15-minute pure electric travel ecosystem in Shanghai. At the same time, EAON will cooperate with 123 supermarkets and 124 car cities in the Eastern China region to upgrade experiences to form EAON’s experience matrix and service system.

The EAON Shanghai Square directly-operated experience center is not only the bridgehead for EAON in Eastern China to carry out high-end marketing services and comprehensively attack the C-end market, but also an important fulcrum for EAON to break away from its reliance on sales in southern China and leverage national sales while going north.

As a representative new energy automobile maker in Guangdong, EAON’s sales have depended on the region for a long time. In Guangzhou, EAON’s market share has reached as high as 36%, almost unchallenged. However, the further north EAON goes, the more limited its market becomes.

Therefore, although EAON’s sales have grown rapidly in recent years, they are prone to bottlenecks. As the saying goes, there is no advantage without entering the tiger’s lair. To delay encountering bottlenecks and open up sales channels, EAON must go north and engage in positive confrontation with popular brands, such as Tesla, in Shanghai, a bridgehead for new energy automobiles.

With the launch of the Hyper brand and related products, EAON also needs to continuously adjust its offensive posture and transition from selling products in the B-end market to comprehensive strategies that sell lifestyles, services, brands, experiences, and products in the high-end C-end market.

The competition between different brands is becoming increasingly fierce, and EAON has already pulled off its gloves, utilizing its trump card technique. The second half of the new energy era promises a more exciting battle.

This article is a translation by ChatGPT of a Chinese report from 42HOW. If you have any questions about it, please email bd@42how.com.