To provide a deeper understanding of the development of the Chinese chain store and a local ‘in-store’ experience, a visit to one of Tuhu’s outlets in Shanghai was included this year as part of the programme for the invited overseas media by the organiser Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co, Ltd.
Tuhu Shares its Success Story
While Automechanika Shanghai maintains its status as a platform for the entire automotive supply chain, the service sector is particular important to the Chinese market. Car ownership reached 217 million vehicles in 2017, ranking China first worldwide in sales for the eighth straight year.
The automotive service sector is one of the most crucial aspects of Automechanika Shanghai and this is reflected in its growing popularity. A glance of the booths in the Chain Stores Zone, one would find a strong collection of domestic and international chain stores, e-commerce businesses and automotive suppliers. This includes ACDelco, Alibaba, Eurorepar, Lopal and Tuhu, among others.
To provide a deeper understanding of the development of the Chinese chain store and a local ‘in-store’ experience, a visit to one of Tuhu’s outlets in Shanghai was included this year as part of the programme for the invited overseas media by the organiser Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co, Ltd. Tuhu is a leading Chinese online platform for automobile services and products.
Established in 2011, Yan Kun, Southern Region Public Relation Manager of Tufu Marketing Department, said the company’s business covered tyre retail and servicing, car beauty and accessories. Today, the company had more than 13,000 cooperative stores and above 700 factory stores across China, covering 405 cities in 31 provinces and municipalities.
“Unlike European or American car owners who prefer DIY car maintenance, the owners in China prefer sending their vehicles to service providers. With the maturing of E-commerce in China, more consumers opt to purchase online. E-commerce continues to be on a rapid growth path in the Chinese automotive aftermarket industry with the increasing number of car owners who are opened to online maintenance service providers. Apart from offline installation, we leverage on the strength of the E-commerce platforms, such as using website, mobile apps, wechat as our sales platform as well as providing online reservation.”
For instance, he explained that consumers could use Tuhu mobile apps (available on both Android and iOS) and TUHU.CN website to buy tyres and other accessories, or book a car wash at one of its store partners throughout the country.
“Our website registered users have exceeded 27 million. According to the traffic management bureau in 2017, the number of China’s private automobiles is 170 million. That means about 15 per cent automobile owners have registered on our website and the number keeps growing. Our transaction users are more than 8 million. Of course, our clients could also reach us through our call centre,” he said proudly.
Tufu was quick in response once an order was placed online across China. Tyre fitting or spare-parts replacement could be carried out on the same day or the latest by the following day. To ensure fast and efficient service, Yan pointed out that the company was constantly upgrading its warehouse and logistic systems.
“We have more than 30 warehouses strategically located in different parts of China. For offline installation, consumers could use our interactive store locator to easily find the store that is nearest to them.”
All of the products that the company sold, he said, were from certified channels to ensure quality. Tuhu cooperated with many local leading Chinese and overseas brands. For tyres, it carried various brands including Michelin, Continental, Dunlop, Pirelli, Giti, Bridgestone, Yokohama, Goodyear and many more.
The Tuhu outlet in Shanghai was very impressive. Well-equipped, bright, spacious and clean with a cozy waiting area. It is staffed with professional and well trained technicians.
“We provide technical training and evaluation for all of our store partners to ensure quality service. All charges are transparent and clearly displayed on the board, thus clients do not have to worry about unexpected charges. Unlike the traditional tyre shop, we focus our efforts on bringing in seamless connectivity, making tyre, lubricant and accessory shopping an experience for the customers,” he added.
参观途虎养车—中国领先的在线汽车后市场品牌
作为全汽车产业链交流平台，Automechanika Shanghai在中国汽车市场日渐壮大之际，保持了其领先的地位。2017年中国的汽车保有量达2.17亿辆，汽车销售量已经连续8年位居全球第一位。
汽车售后服务领域一直是Automechanika Shanghai的核心组成部分，从它日益增长的欢迎度就能证明这一点 。走一趟“终端服务连锁服务专区”，你会发现该区内汇聚了中国国内外知名的终端连锁品牌、电商平台及汽车供应商等。这包括了上汽通用科德、阿里巴巴、欧洲维修、龙蟠及途虎养车等。
此次，主办方法兰克福展览（上海）有限公司为了让受邀的海外媒体对中国终端服务连锁店有更深一层的认识和体验，特别安排媒体参观中国领先的在线汽车后市场品牌 —-途虎养车 。
途虎养车市场部华南区域公关经理闫坤表示，成立于2011年的途虎养车主要业务覆盖轮胎零售、汽车保养、美容及配件。如今该公司在中国拥有13，000多家合作安装门店和700多家工场店，服务能力覆盖31个直辖市和405个城市。
“不同于欧洲或美国车主喜欢自己动手维修车子，中国车主都会将车子送到服务中心。随着中国电子商务的日趋成熟 ，选择在线购买的消费者也越来越多。电子商务在中国汽车后市场行业里的持续快速增长，导致接受线上汽车保养供应商的车主人数不断增加。除了线下安装，我们利用电商平台，如网站、手机应用程序及维信，作为我们的销售平台，提供在线预定。”
他解释说，消费者除了能采用途虎手机应用程序（Android和iOS）和TUHU.CN官网来购买轮胎和其他配件外，也可预定途虎在全中国任何一家合作门店的洗车服务。
“我们的网站拥有超过2，700万注册用户。据2017年交通管理局的统计显示，中国的私家车达1.7亿辆。这意味着有15%的车主已经是途虎养车网站的注册用户，这个数字正在不断提升。达成交易的用户超过800万。当然，用户也可透过途虎养车呼叫中心联络我们。”他自豪地说。
在接获中国各地的在线订单后，途虎养车会快速作出回应。轮胎安装或更换配件都能在下订单后的同一天或最迟第二天进行。为了确保快速和高效的服务，闫坤指出该公司经常提升其仓库和物流系统。
“我们在中国拥有超过30个仓库，策略性地分布在全国各地。消费者能采用我们的在线商店定位器找出最邻近他们的门店，进行线下安装。”
他表示，途虎养车的所有产品都来自拥有认证的渠道，以确保品质。该公司与中国海内外的许多领先品牌合作。在轮胎方面，他们销售的品牌有米其林、马牌、南洛、倍耐力、佳通、普利斯通、横滨、固特异等。
位于上海的途虎养车门店令人印象深刻。设备完善、明亮、宽敞和干净，并备有一个舒适的等候区，专业和训练有素的技术人员。
“途虎养车会为所有的合作门店提供技术培训和评估，确保优质服务。为了确保收费透明度，我们将所有的收费明确地展示在门店的价格板上，这样一来客户就无需担心任何预期之外的收费。不同于一般的传统轮胎店，我们努力且专注地为客户提供一个轮胎、润滑油及配件的无缝连接购物体验。”
