A question that has hardly been explored socially in the sports car segment and is part of our daily, practical work.
Dear readers, in this article, as the managing director of Supercar Sharing AG, I will express myself personally and share with you on a technical level of expertise on the topic of "Shared Mobility in the Supercar Segment". In addition to our passion for shared luxury vehicles and supercars, it is also our concern to inform you about important developments in the field of co-ownership and to provide insights behind the scenes of our work at Supercar Sharing®.
Introduction:
The automotive industry has been undergoing major changes for several years and is facing rapid challenges that will effectively influence mobility behaviour in the next 10-20 years. Sharing is therefore not a trend or a temporary fashion; as a provider, we are consistently confronting future challenges, taking into account various research aspects and new requirements for the realisation of the UN 2030 Agenda (United Nations) with regard to sustainable development goals (SDGs). These include geopolitical, environmental and societal aspects as well as technological challenges. All these influencing factors are regularly monitored by us and have been part of our long-term, international business orientation since day 1. Because, in the future, the market for supercars will be characterised by far-reaching restrictions and requirements imposed by authorities, which we must contest now in order not to have to forgo the driving pleasure of our beloved companions in the future.
Megatrends & Development
The development of new automobility concepts, alongside investments in alternative drive technologies, is a driving force behind the innovative power of our automotive industry.
While a megatrend has crystallised in the area of "economy shared mobility" with significant signals for the future, the premium sector for luxury vehicles and exclusive sports cars has remained largely untouched. This is also understandable when one looks at the market development as well as the market volume of the shared mobility segment. According to a report by the ETH Zurich, IVT (Institute for Transport Planning and Systems) by Francesco Ciari and Henrik Becker, we have achieved a market penetration of only 2.5% in Switzerland, despite the exemplary, nationwide Car-Sharing infrastructure - (How disruptive can shared mobility be?).
In other countries such as France, the UK or Germany (20% market penetration), the willingness to share is much higher, according to a study by the European Commission and the Federation of Consumer Organisations. The global market turnover in 2022 amounted to CHF 1.44 trillion, of which 75% of the market volume is turnover from shared vehicles (sharing). The area of co-ownership, which is currently being developed, is not included in this study.
In the area of exclusive sports cars, on the other hand, hardly any empirical market research was undertaken. The reason for this is the relatively minor market size in relation to the economy market mentioned above and the budgets available for research.
It was through Supercar Sharing® that independent market studies and preference cases in the area of "Premium Shared Mobility" and, for the first time, qualitative, quantitative as well as empirical research in the area of Supercar Co-Ownership were undertaken. We will publish further insights on this topic in the course of the year.
The biggest question of our co-ownership system was:
How is it possible to harmoniously unite car sharing with the upper luxury segment and what mental challenges do market participants have to face with their previous thinking structure?
After almost 2 years of operational management, expansion, research and market development in the field of supercar co-ownership, I can say the following:
"Sharing a supercar is a mental process and above all a matter of attitude. You need a certain financial maturity, trust, willingness to rethink and a liberal as well as efficiency-oriented attitude towards movable assets. Acceptance of the change in mobility is also an important influencing factor in this process".
However, the detailed results of our empirical market research - which could provide ample material for technical colleges - would go beyond the context of this article. In the following, we will therefore focus on a few important aspects of our research work in the field of co-ownership of supercars.
Public Car-Sharing vs Co-Ownership
Within the segment of "Shared Mobility", Car-Sharing is an established term from a social perspective. While car-sharing service providers in a quantitative context specialise in offering vehicles to the broadest possible mass for shared use, co-ownership - especially the co-ownership model of Supercar Sharing® - specialises in offering exclusive and limited vehicle models to a private group of people (co-owners). The co-ownership of the asset and the resulting advantages in terms of economy, safety and efficiency of use of the luxury asset for the users are the most significant arguments for the use of co-ownership offers. In the qualitative context, both models (sharing & co-ownership) focus on resource-saving methods and the development of sustainable solutions for the mobility chain.
There are marked differences here with regard to individual motives as well as the demographic and economic circumstances of the target groups.
Our financially experienced clients.
Confronting the attitude to sole ownership.
More than 95% of our clients are financially experienced individuals, self-employed managing directors, CEO’s and people with management positions in large as well as medium-sized companies in Switzerland and around Europe, who have experienced a number of processes in the past 10-20 years with vehicles in the luxury segment.
Here we only address the processes in the purchasing behaviour of sports cars: While luxury vehicles and sports cars were previously purchased or leased on their own, due to societal norms and lack of options in the market, it has become the norm to purchase vehicles this way. This purchasing process is part of general social conformity. Co-ownership, on the other hand, despite its growing success in the real estate and yacht sectors, has not yet reached the supercar industry. The challenges, conditions and requirements of such a system for the vehicle industry have been too complex and costly to develop.
Education, time, a solid system, broad network and a strong trust in us as the first provider in this industry are essential criteria to build up the co-owner market in the long term. After all, this is about the responsible and resource-conserving handling of shared assets with an enthusiastic character.
Sharing in this segment is therefore viewed critically, both rationally and emotionally.
All our clients have therefore consciously confronted their attitude towards asset ownership and questioned the efficiency of sole ownership. If they had not done so, there would be no reason for the supercar sharing segment. However, the benefits are so substantial that we have been able to deliver significant added value to our experienced clients in this relatively small segment. Extensive information material on our Supercar Sharing® website provides helpful approaches and rationally addresses the topic of co-ownership and sustainability in the luxury segment.
Rationality VS Emotionality
When we talk about a mental process in vehicle purchasing behaviour, we are talking about factual knowledge in the handling of sports cars. Therefore, co-ownership is in our current empirical social research, in the last stage of the behavioural purchase cycle:
Stage 1) New sports car buyer, vehicle is purchased for purely emotional reasons. Cost points and other factors are hardly taken into account here.
Stage 2) Buyer sells the sports car again after 2 years due to low use, depreciation or other priorities in the course of life. However, the sports car remains a passion.
Stage 2 a) Buyer acquires more sports cars and goes through losses due to facing the reality of the sports car market. At this stage, sports car is not just a hobby, but part of lifestyle.
Stage 3) Buyer searches for more efficient alternatives based on the previous stages and makes a balanced rational and emotional decision. Co-ownership meets all the criteria to venture into new purchases in this area.
Today's experienced sports car driver, however, is much more cost-conscious and strives for greater efficiency in the use of sports cars.
After all, according to our 2021 market study, these are used significantly less often (30-50 days per year). For new vehicles, depreciation is capital-intensive, the resale process is long and the service responsibility is intensely increasing.
Co-ownership is a matter of attitude
This brings us to the conclusion of this publication. Co-ownership is not only a matter of experience, but above all a matter of personal attitude. Luxury and sharing can be harmoniously combined. Without a doubt, we provide practical proof of this in the supercar segment. Because if you have and rethink, you can also share with like-minded people. The fact that for the budget of a single sports car, you get the opportunity to participate in 5 to 8 different vehicles is already an immense imagination that has yet to establish itself in our target market and in the minds of many brilliant people and vehicle lovers.
Also, the acceptance that the market is transforming in multiple aspects and that we, as a collective, need to prepare for the future according to alternative ownership models, is another insight, in addition to the previous user experience with sports cars, which will reinforce the decision for co-ownership as one of the most important future instruments in the luxury market.
Deivis H. Valdes
Supercar Sharing AG
Chairman of the Board of Directors & CEO