Many people are curious about who buys new energy vehicles, especially those who spend 300.000 to 500.000 RMB on domestic emerging car brands. For example, the NIO ES8 is priced between 476.000 and 558.000 RMB, and the ES6 between 358.000 and 468.000 RMB, which are quite high compared to other domestic electric cars. So, who exactly are the people buying NIO cars?
After all, the automobile industry is capital-intensive and demands high standards in research, technology, and manufacturing. What drives these people to spend so much on what some might consider "immature cars" from an "immature industry" produced by "immature companies"?
Note: "Immature industry" refers to the new energy vehicle industry, which is just beginning compared to the century-old traditional automotive industry. "Immature companies" refers to emerging car brands, usually only a few years old. "Immature cars" refers to the first models from these new brands, which lack extensive car manufacturing experience.
At the end of last year, Li Xiang, the CEO of another new car brand with similarly high-priced products, Li Auto, stated on Weibo that many people are curious about the user profile of the Li ONE. He revealed that the actual characteristics of the car owners matched 99% with their target demographic from four years ago.
Previously, the media also revealed details about NIO’s elite car owner club, EPclub, offering insight into who buys NIO cars. EPclub members are divided into annual and quarterly members. Annual members automatically join after purchasing an EP9. which costs 1.48 million USD (nearly 10 million RMB). Each year, based on community engagement, additional annual memberships are granted. Quarterly experience members were introduced in 2020 to allow more users to experience the EPclub’s premium services. These members are the top 10 users with the highest NIO value growth each quarter.
One car owner who bought the 580.000 RMB NIO ES8 Founders Edition said he already had a Mercedes S400 and a BMW 3 Series for daily use. The cars met his family’s needs, but he faced a car shortage, especially during his commute. He gave the S400 to his wife and the BMW 3 Series to his son, so he bought the NIO ES8 for himself.
Another netizen described an ES8 owner in a small town: “Our boss (born in the '80s) bought one. He owns a Bentley, S600. Alphard, G350. Harley...basically all good cars. He considered a Tesla but didn't want to wait in line, so he ordered the ES8. He drove it less than 500 kilometers in total. Most of his business trips are to the provincial capital, which is 110 kilometers one way. It was impractical for long trips, so he left it for company use. Another colleague installed a charging station and uses the car for commuting within the city.”
A netizen bluntly stated, “People who buy these cars are those who wouldn’t flinch at losing 600.000 RMB. They see it as a toy.”
From the above information, it is clear that most users of NIO and Li Auto are not short of money or cars. These cars are often not their primary vehicle, and they typically own two or more cars.
