The Chinese are coming, but now for real. One of their new brands is Aiways, completely unknown in their own country until a few years ago. Suddenly it drives through our swampy polder landscape. That begs the question of what Aiways has in mind.
I remember a special ride, not so long ago, at the beginning of September 2019. I was allowed to drive a prototype from Amsterdam to Paris, the Aiways U5, with three Chinese on board and a language barrier whereby their famous wall fades to a curb. I must admit that I entered the adventure with some skepticism, but now, less than a year and a half later, the first five hundred Aiways are on Dutch license plates. What are the plans for the very young brand from China? We ask Alexander Klose, as Executive Vice President Overseas Operations, responsible for all markets outside China, and Hans Kassens, who manages the Dutch market.
Setting up a new car brand in a world full of mastodons. Isn’t that crazy?
Klose: “Above all, it took a lot of guts. If you had asked me five years ago, I would have said it is impossible. But here we are, in the lion’s den, the heart of the German car industry, Munich. It’s a great story and that requires a group of people who dare to do what is rarely done: set up a car brand from scratch. Only Tesla has been able to do that in recent decades, so our founders thought: maybe we can do that from China. Many of the people at Aiways have a background in the automotive industry, where they had seen things that weren’t going the way they thought they should. It wasn’t customer and rider focused enough for them. They also wanted to get away from the combustion engine or even hybrid: it had to be pure EV. Those were the basic values. From the start they were determined to set up their own factory, where you have full control over what you produce and its level of quality. That’s easy to say, but it takes a lot of persistence to walk the talk. The past year in particular was a very difficult time to work on the birth of a brand. It delayed our European launch a bit, but we continued product development tirelessly and we are now there. In short: you need an idea and you have to stick to it. That does not mean that you do not have to tinker with it now and then. For example, our initial idea was to sell the car in Europe exclusively by lease, but we discovered that many customers prefer to buy. So we do that now. The car has also been fine-tuned along the way, although the model was broadly in place from the start. ”
As a typical EV country, should the Netherlands be a honey pot for you?
Klose: “Initially, our preferred list of countries was different. When we started our European campaign very well, we were thwarted by corona and policy changed in many countries. As a result, markets that were previously very interesting were suddenly less, such as Norway. Other countries are more helpful. Even during the toughest restrictions, traffic between our European headquarters in Germany and the Netherlands was relatively free in both directions, while Norway was virtually closed off. Partly because of this, our landscape has changed. You rightly call the Netherlands as a typical EV country, but France has also done unprecedentedly well in the past year and even in countries where electric driving was lagging behind, such as Denmark and Belgium, things suddenly go fast. The Netherlands is also interesting for us because of its limited size and population density, which makes it easy to reach a large audience. Moreover, as you still do here in Germany, you do not feel the need to drive long distances at top speed. EVs are not really suitable for that yet. The infrastructure in Germany is starting to improve, but nevertheless a trip from Munich – Berlin is different from Rotterdam – Amsterdam. Everything is right in the Netherlands, making it a perfect country for EVs. ”
Aiways U5
And then sell online. That did not always go well with other brands.
Kassens: “We have seen from Tesla that something like this can be very successful. Customer experience and satisfaction have always been very important to me, so we tried to use it in a very customer-oriented way. By that I mean that we are an online platform on the one hand, but now also easily accessible. In addition, we maintain good contact with the customer. As a logistics partner, we have Koopman Car Terminal, just like Tesla. They take care of the receipt of the cars, make them technically roadworthy and take care of cleaning. They also deliver the cars on location, so to the driver.
In these covid times it is of course difficult to do a very personal episode, which is why you can find eight instructional videos on our website. One day before delivery, our customers receive an email with a link to those videos. This way he can become familiar with the operation of his new car with his mobile phone in hand. We also advertise online as much as possible: Facebook, Instagram, Google. The reactions and traffic on our site show that it works very well. Furthermore, a lot of buzz has already been given to the brand before the introduction, including by you, and that has also helped noticeably. Our head office is located in Breukelen and our experience center is located in Kudelstaart. There we receive our customers for personal contact; so there is for sure. People can come there, get to know the car and take it for a test drive. This is of course not so easy these days, but we have found a mode in this. So we are really not only available online. ”
We have seen more new Chinese brands popping up at our place lately. What makes Aiways different?
Klose: “To begin with, we are an EV-only startup, where many other debutants are branches of established manufacturers. We do not have the baggage that they, both Chinese and European manufacturers, carry. What sets us apart is that we are the first startup to come to Europe. We already sold some cars last year, but then we were slowed down by covid-19. This year we will strengthen our position with full force. Unlike other startups with European plans, we already know Europe a bit. We also have a different approach from an organizational point of view. I am now in our technical center in Munich, from where we can optimally support this new brand. That is different from just sending cars to Europe.
Another difference with some competitors is that the people behind the brand have a strong international background, so they know the quality requirements that are set for an international brand. You can see that in the U5, which passes all tests, whether it concerns the quality experience or the build quality. They are both top. ”
Who are the Aiways customers so far?
Kassens: “Many business customers, of course, but also private individuals. The great thing about the U5 is that it fills a segment that was not there yet, these dimensions and this level of luxury. At 4.68 meters, it is a very large car, of which the interior space is enormous thanks to the innovative chassis and battery pack. ”
How will Aiways earn those first two letters, artificial intelligence?
Kassens: “The U5 has all safety systems and drives autonomously at level 2. Aiways is constantly working on optimizing those systems. Soon there will also be an app with which you can keep track of the status of your car. What is not yet possible, but will come is that software updates will be done over the air. ”
Most brands already do that.
Klose: “That’s right, but only the top of the range systems and only in their most expensive models. We want to offer all really useful assistance systems in the affordable class. Ai is also the Chinese word for love. Aiways wants to bring back car love and love for driving. But the car will also evolve in a way that you no longer want to drive yourself if necessary, but enjoy the comfort. That also suits electric driving, quiet and clean. ”
You outsource service and maintenance. Why?
Klose: “We looked for a renowned garage formula in every country. In Germany ATU, but also in other countries. So that the customer, even though he has bought his car online, always has an address nearby should something go wrong. ”
Kassens: “Profile was a very logical choice for the Netherlands. It is an organization that has been busy with maintenance of cars for ten years. Of course with an emphasis on tires, but Profile also has cooperation agreements with many large lease companies to maintain cars. Last year they made a major EV battle and trained their technicians in this. Each branch that does maintenance and warranty work for Aiways has various degrees of EV technicians. They have all received NEN training, an electricity safety standard. Each location has a NEN level-4 technician, who is also allowed to work with the batteries. All of this was reason enough for us to choose Profile. In addition, they have national coverage. At the moment eleven Profiles are service points for Aiways, ten of them will also have a static show car and demos to make a test drive, our so-called points of sales. Via our site you can take a test drive near you and you don’t have to come all the way from Maastricht or Groningen to Kudelstaart to get to know Aiways. ”
Aiways U5
What does Aiways have to be embraced by the Dutch public?
Kassens: “Value for money. That works in the Netherlands and that is why we have done everything we can to position the car ready to drive under € 40,000. If you bring something innovative and beautiful, for an acceptable price, then a Dutch person is open to it. ”
What news can we expect from Aiways in the near future?
Klose: “The U6 will arrive at the end of this year, so it is carved in stone. Then there will be a larger model, which mainly targets the Chinese and possibly also the American market. That will be the U7. We are also considering a smaller model. For now we’ll stick to SUVs, but other model types may become interesting in the future. I don’t see a city car coming in the short term. I agree with our more established competitors that this segment is going to be difficult economically. The costs of the batteries are not in proportion to the total price of such a car. Maybe in a few years, when the battery industry is ready. ”
Finally, now that we have come to the future, where will Aiways be in ten years?
Klose, laughing: “World domination. But seriously: we are expanding step by step and will establish ourselves in every European market that is ready for electric driving. And beyond. Like Israel, where we just started. ”
Kassens: “I am confident that Aiways will become an important player. If they stick to the current strategy, come up with new models and remain competitively priced, I believe that once the electrification has really taken hold, Aiways can get into the top ten brands. ”
Ambitious …
Kassens: “Well, then I think of Kia. When they came with their Pride, the whole world laughed at them. Look where they are now. ”
Klose: “We are still small now, but got in at the right time. A few years ago would have been too soon. Tesla has been through tough times; they made it, but many other newcomers did not. We have growth potential to become one of the most important Chinese EV brands in any case. More generally, I think there will be fewer models with less individualization, but more software content. Our U5 is completely ready for this and is thus ahead of many others. After all, it is also to our advantage that we are still small. Large, established brands are much lumbering and have more difficulty changing course than we are. ”