女性购车者-中国新车造型的白衣骑士英-2024-12-市场解读

FemaleBuyers:“WhiteKnights”ofNewCar

StylinginChina

InsightsonPurchase

Decision–Styling(2024)

YicheResearchInstitute

Authors

LijunZhou

Director/ChiefAnalyst

zhoulijun1@

YingGao

IndustryAnalyst

gaoying1@

BenyaShi

IndustryAnalyst

shibenya@

QiangZhang

VisualDesigner

zhangqiang9@

Desireforstyling:buyerpreferenceonthestance,proportion,curvature,surface,coloranddetailneededforstyling(front

fascia,bodyandrear)

Stylingmaynotentirelydictatemarketperformance,butiscertainlyamajorfactorcontributingtosales,andsuperbstylingoftendrivessales.Startingfrom2019,asChina’scarmarketenteredintoanerawhereretentionbecamethenameofthegameandasmorefemalebuyersflockedtothemarket,thedesireforbetterstylingfromChinesecarbuyersbecamestronger,andthatdesirehasbecome

markedlydifferentthanwhatitwasmorethan20yearsago.Coincidentally,carmakerslikeVW,NissanandBuickthatwereslowtoimprovestylingandinsteadstayedwithstatusquofacedseverechallengesassalesdroppeddrastically.Incontrast,carmakerslikeTeslathathaduniquestylingandBYDthat

significantlyimprovedstylingperformedexceptionallywell.Giventhebasiclawsoftheautoindustry,thecurrentcharacteristicsofChina’scarmarketandboththegoodandbadcasestudies,wecan

concludethatChinesecarbuyersarepayingmoreattentiontostyling,China’scarmarketwillenterakeyperiodforstylingoptimizationandconditionsareripefortheemergenceofglobalmodelsand

renowneddesigners;

Tohelpcarmakersbetterimprovestylingandsales,YRIhascomeupwiththisreport.Thiswasa

challengingprojectforYRIsinceitdoesnotspecializeinresearchonstylingandlackstherelevant

theoreticalfoundationforsuchastudy.Butweunderstandusers,andweknowthatmanydesignersatcarmakersinChinalackunderstandingofChinescarbuyers.Therearetonsofcaseswheredesignersatcarmakersaremisdirectedbyso-calledprofessionalorganizations.Knowingourstrengthsand

weaknesses,thisreporttriestoexploredesireforstylingfromauserperspectivemakingbestuseofYRIstrengths,providingcarmakerswithreferencematerialthatoffersadifferentiatedvalueand

independentthird-partyperspective.Hopefully,itcanmakeupforresearchshortfallsatcarmakers;

Basedontheuserperspectiveandintegratingmainstreamsegmentation,YRIhasdefineddesireforstylingfrompotentialbuyersasbuyerpreferenceonthestance,proportion,curvature,surface,coloranddetailneededforstylingduringtheirpurchaseprocess;

ThedatapresentedinthisreportprimarilycomesfromYRIonlineresearchcoveringmorethan50,000datasamplesinthefirstthreequartersof2024,andalsoreferencesonYicheBigDataandYRIoffline

researchdata.

Future

Electrification

21thCentury

Present/20s&30s

Multi-Purpose

Endof20thCenturyEarly21stCentury

HorseCarriageEndof19thCentury

Early20thCentury

Box

20thCentury10s&20s

Streamlined

20thCentury30s&40s

Practical

20thCentury70s&80s

StylingDefinitionSchematic

ProportionStance

Exterior

CurvatureSurface

StylingDefinition

Interior

ColorDetail

EvolutionofAutomobileStyling

MercedesVeloNewFordModelTVWBeetleFordV8FordMustang

Boat

20thCentury50s&60s

Fish

20thCentury60s&70s

Conical

20thCentury60s&70s

TeslaModelSHondaCR-VToyotaCorollaLamborghini

IndividualizationacceleratedinChina’scarmarketin

2021-2024asdesireforstylingfrombuyersreached42.61%in2024,conditionsareripeforcreatingblockbusterproducts

throughstylingoptimization

Overthepast20+yearsorso,thoughannualsalesinChina’spassengervehiclemarketsky

rocketedfromlessthan2millionunitstomorethan20millionunits,notthatmanymodelsstoodout

withdistinctivestyling.Asof2023,theLavida,SylphyandHavalH6haverespectivelysold5.5million,5millionand4millionunitsinChina,nodoubtworthyofblockbusterstatus.However,thestylingofallthreehasbeenrathertimid:theLavidaandSylphyhavebeenmostlyblandwhiletheHavalH6has

stylingelementsreferencedfromcompetitors;

ThereasonwhytheseordinarilystyledmodelscouldsellsowellinChinaoverthelast20yearsis

becausethemajorityofcarbuyersinChinawerefirst-timebuyersandbuyingmostlyontheoccasionofmarriageandpracticaluseofthevehicle,thereforetheydidnotpaytoomuchattentiononstyling.Overthepast6-7yearsorso,astheshareoffirst-timebuyersdrasticallyfellandthecountry’scarmarketenteredintoaneraofcustomerretention,thatdrovethevigorousdevelopmentandgrowthofdistinctivemodelssuchasthosethatarecute&small,refined&stylish,streamlined&sportyand

off-roadandmacho.Theshareofend-usersalesofthesemoredistinctiveproductsrosefrom12%in2018to26%in2023,whilethatofeconomyblandproductsshrankto35%.Themarketperfor-

manceofmostoftheordinarilystyledproductsliketheLavida,SylphyandHavalH6weakened;

ThisseriesofchangesinuserstructureandproductstylingpresentedcarmakersinChinawithaclearandstrongmessage:Chinesecarbuyershadachangeofheartasthedesireforstyling

reached42.61%in2024.Asthesayinggoes,“onceawomanmakesadecision,nothingcan

changehermind.”Similarly,Chinesecarbuyershavealsochanged.CancarmakerslikeVW,Buick,NissanandHyundaigetthemback?

Pre-PurchaseDesireforStylinginChina’sPVMarket2024

\

PriceBrand

Styling

Safety

42.61%

\

/Quality

Other/Energy

Saving

ShareofFirst-TimePurchase,Trade-InandAdditionalPurchaseinChinaPVEnd-UserSales2014-2023

First-TimePurchaseTrade-In

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

AdditionalPurchase

0%

2014201520162017201820192020202120222023

100%

80%

60%

40%

ShareofProductAttributesinChinaPVEnd-UserSales2014-2023

Sturdy&Commercial

Grand&High-End

Off-Road&Macho

Classic&Retro

Economy&Bland

Noble&Luxury

AvantGarde

Refined&Stylish

MainstreamQuality

PremiumBusiness

Streamlined&Sporty

Small&Cute

20%

0%

2014201520162017201820192020202120222023

Source:YRI

Theducksarethefirsttoknowwhentheriverbecomeswarminthespring,Chinesecarmakerslikewiseaggressivelypoached

designtalentin2022-2024becausetheyknewnewstylingwouldsell

Confrontedwiththis“changeofheart”fromChinesecarbuyers,mostofthecarmakerschoseto

proactivelyrespondwithconcretemeasures,oneofwhichisaggressivelypoachingglobalrenowneddesigners:in2022,StefanSielaff,formerdesigndirectoratBentley,joinedGeelyAuto.Inthesameyear,formerJLRdesignerAlisterWhelanandformerSEATdesignerJoaquinGarciajoinedNIO;in2023,KlausZyciora,formerglobalheadofdesignforVolkswagenGroupjoinedChang’anAuto;in2024,formerBMWdesignerBenoitJacobjoinedGACGroup.Whilethesecarmakersareaggres-

sivelycourtingglobalrenowneddesigners,theyarealsomakingeffortstocultivatedomesticdesigntalent,thishasresultedintheemergenceofprominentChinesedesignerslikeGACGroup’sZhangFan,SAICMotor’sShaoJingfengandNETA’sChangBing;

AsglobaldesigntalentcontinuetoflocktoChinesecarmakersanddomesticdesignersbecomemoreprominent,carmakersinChinaintroducedorupdatedtheirowndesignlanguages:BYD’sDragon

FacefortheDynastyseries,LYNK&CO’sTheNextDayandGACTrumpchi’sHiddenEdgein

Run,justtonameafew;Chang’anAutooverthepast5-6yearsrefreshedtheirdesignlanguage

numeroustimes:from2.0in2017to3.0in2020and4.0in2022,creatingamulti-branddesign

aestheticssystemincluding“acrossallthings”forChang’anAuto,“symbioticaesthetics”for

Deepaland“lightaesthetics”forQiyuanA0series.Astheybecomemorefamiliarwiththenew

companiesthattheyhavejoined,thesedesignersalsomadeeffortstounderstandtheneedsof

Chinesecarbuyers.ORAdesignerAndrewDysonsaysthatthedesignphilosophyofORAistotrytoutilizeclassicelementstobringtrueemotionalhealingandinnerpeacetoChineseconsumers.

SelectSamplesofStyling&DesignLanguage

In2017Chang’anenteredtheeraof“Design2.0”andcreatedproductsliketheCS75andEadobasedonthe“DynamicLife”designphilosophy;

In2020Chang’anenteredtheeraof“Design3.0”andcreatedproductslikeUNIseries,2nd-genCS55PLUSandCS75PLUSbasedonthe“NewTech,SmartandAesthetics”designphilosophy;In2022Chang’anenteredtheeraof“Design4.0”andcreatedamulti-branddesignaestheticssystemincludingthe“acrossallthings”forChang’an,“symbioticaesthetics”forDeepaland

“lightaesthetics”forQiyuanA0series.

ORAdesignerAndrewDysonbelievesthebrand’sdesignphilosophyistoutilizeclassicelementstoprovideconsumerswithtrueemotionalhealingandinnerpeace.

GlobalRenownedDesignersThatHave

JoinedChineseCarmakersinRecentYears

2022

2023

2024

StefanSielaffjoinsGeelyAuto

Previouslyworkedinstyling&designatprominentcarmakersincludingAudi,DaimlerandVW.BecameheadofdesignatBentleyin2015

JaguarF-Type&F-PACEdesignerAlisterWhelanandSEATdesignerJoaquinGarciajoinNIOtolendsupporttoVPofdesignKrisTomasson

KlausZyciorajoinsChang’anAutoasvicepresidentinchargeofglobaldesign.

PreviouslyheldtheroleofglobalheadofdesignforVolkswagenGroupandwasbehindthedesignofmanyclassicsoverthepast30yearsincludingthePassat,BugattiVeyronand

5th-8thgenerationGolfs,ledthedesignofVWID.familyofelectricvehicles

JuanMaLopezjoinsXpengasvicepresidentofstyling&designresponsiblefor

managementanddesigndecisionsattheDesign&StylingCenter.WaspreviouslyinchargeofGenesisDesignEurope,headofexteriordesignatFerrari,headofinteriordesignatLamborghiniandinteriordesigneratAudiresponsibleforthedesignof

numerousgloballyrenownedsupersportscars

BenoitJacobjoinsGACGroupasglobalexecutivedesigndirectorinchargeofdesignatGACResearchInstitute.HejoinedRenaultin1994andVolkswagenin2001

responsibleforthedesignofprojectslikethePassat,AudiR8,SEATandLamborghinimodels;in2004hejoinedBMWandledthedesignoftheF303Series,F32/F334

Seriesprojects,in2010hewasappointedheadofdesignforBMWi

LatestStylingDesignLanguagesofSelectBrands

Brand

StylingDesignLanguage

Brand

StylingDesignLanguage

BYD(Dynasty)

DragonFace

EXEED

WindAesthetics

BYD(Ocean)

OceanAesthetics

JETOUR

ActionDefinesJourney

FangChengBao

LeopardAesthetics/FutureStarship

Roewe

DigitalRhythm

Denza

EleganceinMotion

MG

EmotionalDynamism

LYNK&CO

TheNextDay

Hongqi

NewMobility&Exquisiteness

ZEEKR

HiddenEnergy

VOYAH

FreedomInspiresDesign

Chery

LifeInMotion

GACTrumpchi

HiddenEdgeinRun

ORA

RetroFuture

Xpeng

Robotface

NIO

X-Bar

Carmakerslaunchedaslewofproductswithnewdistinctive

stylingin2022-2024,butmanyofthesearestilltryingtobreak

intothemarket,improvingsalesconversionfromstylingremainschallenging

Withthecontinuedarrivalofrenowneddesignersandintroductionofnewdesignlanguages,anewgenerationofproductsliketheLightningCat,Yep,ZEEKRX,HyperGTandLiMEGAthatare

distinctivelydifferentinstylingfrommodelsliketheLavida,SylphyandHavalH6thathavetraditional

blanddesignhaveemergedontothemarket.ButasofQ32024,mostofthesemodelshave

performedbelowmarketexpectations.Improvingsalesconversionfromstylingremainsachallengeatthesecarmakers;

From2020to2024,BYD’sannualglobalsalesjumpedfrommerely400,000unitsto4millionunits.

Designplayedamajorrole,butitwasn’tovernightsuccess.FormerAudiDesignDirectorWolfgang

EggerjoinedBYDinSeptember2016inchargeofstylinganddesign.Itwasn’tuntil4-5yearslaterthathewasabletosmoothoutBYD’sdesignsystemandincorporatethenewDragonFacedesign

languageintomodelsliketheTang,SongandHan.Itwasn’tsmoothsailingatfirst.StartingfromApril

2021,ascompetitivenessinmanykeymetricsincludingpricing,energyconsumptionandquality

improvedsignificantly,productsbasedonthenewdesignlanguagebecamepopular.Withthishuge

marketsuccess,BYDfurtherstrengthenedinvestmentintoanditerationspeedofstyling,andlaunchedseveralnewdesignlanguagesdedicatedtoindividualbrandssuchasthe“LeopardAesthetics”for

FangChengBaoandEleganceinMotionforDenza,creatingadifferentiatedmulti-brandmatrix;

Thevisionofcultivatingproductswithnewstylingsoundsniceandall,buttheprocessgettingthereisquitearduous.Carmakersmustbepatientandtrynottocutcorners.AsofQ32024,thoughmostof

theproductswithnewstylinghavenotsoldthatwell,thecurrentroundofstylingtransformationin

China’scarmarketisquiteexciting:first,itcoversawiderangeofSUV,MPV,carandsportscar

productsinmicro,small,compact,midsize,midtolargeandlargeclasses,affectingmainstream

carmakerslikeBYD,GreatWallMotor,Geely,Chery,SAICMotorandDongfeng;second,carmakersarewillingtobeveryboldandtakegreatrisks,newbrandsthatareaggressivelytryingnewstyling

suchasZEEKR,AVATR,IM,FangChengBaoandDenzaareallbrandsbeingheavilycultivatedat

carmakers,andsomeareevenrepresentdesperateattempts;third,stylingisiteratingveryrapidly:

overthepast3-4years,thedesignlanguageofnewbrandslikeLiAuto,NIOandZEEKRhasallbeenupgradedanditerated…

Goingforward,thekeywillbetoimprovetheconversionbetweennewstylingandsales,thebreak-throughpointofwhichistocapture“corepayingcustomers.”

NewModelswithDistinctiveDesignsinChina’sCarMarketOverPast3Years

ORA

BalletCat

GalaxyE8

DeepalG318

ORA

LightningCat

LUXEEDS7

icar03

BaojunYep

STERRAES

LiMEGA

smart#3

HyperGT

XpengX9

ZEEKRX

NIOET7

HiPhiX

MGCyberster

Polestar4

AVATR12

End-UserSalesofSelectProductswithNewStyling2022-August2024(units)

ZEEKRXsmart#3

ORABalletCat

ORALightningCat

MGCyberster BaojunYep

DeepalG318HyperGT

LiMEGAXpengX9

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0

202201

202204

202207

202210

202301

202304

202307

202310

202401

202404

202407

Source:YRI

FemalecarbuyershaverapidlybecomethenewdarkhorseinChina’scarmarketinrecentyearsandhavestrongdesireforstyling,carmakerslookingfor“whiteknights”ofthisroundofnewstylingshouldnaturallyfocusonfemalebuyers

Whatstartedthisroundofnewstylingtransformationwastheintroductionofsmall&cuteandrefined&stylishEVs.TheWulingHongguangMINIEVin2020,theORAGoodCatin2021,theDolphinandYuanPLUSin2022,theSeagullandBingoin2023andtheYuanUPandGeelyGalaxyE5in2024becameimmediatehitsassoonastheyhitthemarket.Thesingularsecretbehindtheirsuccess?

Theyallcateredtofemalebuyers.Inaddition,streamlined&sportymodelsliketheLUXEEDS7,

STERRAESandGalaxyE8thattriedtoattractaverageJoesinsteadbecamepopularamongyoungfemalebuyers,evenLeiJunhadtosuccumbtoaddressingtheneedsoffemalecustomersafter

XiaomiSU7’slaunchinearly2024;

Thereasonwhythisroundofnewproductandstylingtransformationhasattractedsomanyfemale

buyersisdirectlycorrelatedtotheevolutionofthefemalecarmarket:itexpandedoverthepast6-7

yearsfromjustover20%ofthemarketin2017tomorethan30%in2019andtonearly40%in2023,

becominganewforceinChina’scarmarket.Femalebuyersintheoryhavebecomeastrongforceindrivingthisroundofproducttransformation;femalebuyershavestrongerdesireforstyling,reaching

47.69%in2024,whilethatformalebuyerswaslessthan40%.Femalebuyersactuallyhaveverystrongdemandforproductswithnewstyling.Carmakerslookingfor“whiteknights”ofthecurrentroundof

newstylingtransformationshouldprimarilytargetfemalebuyers;

Lookingbackatoveracenturyofdevelopmentoftheglobalautoindustry,femalebuyershavelongbeenthemainforcedrivingproductandstylingtransformation.ModelslikeMINI,smart,Fiat500,Beetleand

Golfbecameclassicsbecauseoffemalebuyers.Questionssuchaswhethertomakecarsspecificallyforfemalebuyersandwhattypeofcarstotomakeforthemhadbecomekeytopicsfordiscussionat

EuropeanandAmericancarmakersevenpriortotheWorldWarIIduringtheheydaysofbrandslike

AustinandMorris.FemalebuyersevencontributedtoclassicmachoproductsliketheJeepWranglerandMercedesG-Classduringthe70sand80s…Appealingtofemalebuyerswasaneasywayfordesignerstobecomeprominent;

Butthatdoesn’tmeangivinguponmalebuyers.TheinternalstructureofChina’smalecarmarkethaschangeddramaticallyoverrecentyears,astheprimarybuyingforceshiftedfromfamilyyoungmalefirst

timebuyerstoboomersmostlylookingtotrade-in.Theblandstylingthatmettheneedsoffamilyyoung

malebuyersbeforenolongersatisfiedthenewdesiresfromboomers,whosoughtcharacteristicssuch

asmainstream,modern,grandandsteadiness.Thiscreatedgoldenopportunitiesfortherapidriseofnewhigh-endbrandssuchasLiAuto,AITOandDenza.

Pre-PurchaseDesireforStylingbyGender2024

60%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

50%

MaleFemale

ShareofEnd-UsersinChina’sPassengerVehicleMarketbyGender2014-2023

Male

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

Female

0%

2014201520162017201820192020202120222023

Source:YRI

In2024,youthandwealthycarbuyersespeciallyyoungandwealthy

femalecarbuyersalsohadhighdesireforstyling,carmakersthereforemusttargetfemalebuyersastheir“whiteknights”whenitcomes

tonewcarstyling

Besidesgender,ageandincomearealsocorelabelsforuserinsights:fromanageperspective,for

youngbuyersbelow35yearsold,theyhavethestrongestdesireforstylingat46.6%in2024,with

youngfemalebuyershavinghigherdesireforstylingthantheirmalecounterpartsat52%;froman

incomeperspective,wealthycarbuyerswithannualhouseholdincomehigherthanRMB500Khave

thestrongestdesireforstylingat52.39%in2024,andagainwealthyfemalebuyershavestronger

desireforstylingthantheirmalecounterpartsatover60%...Beityoungfemalebuyersorwealthy

femalebuyers,theyareallfemalebuyers,whichattheendofthedayaretheonesthathavestrongerdesireforstylingintheyouthandwealthycarmarkets.Theyouthandwealthycarmarketsaretwo

relativelyindependentsub-segments,buttherearestrongdesireforstylinginbothsegments,whichmeanstherearediversifieddesiresforstyling,andthisisconducivefortheemergenceofmore

distinctiveproducts;

Overthepast20yearsorso,theshareofsalesfromfemalebuyersinboththeyouthandwealthycarmarketsincreasedrapidly:in2007,thatshareintheyouthcarmarketwasslightlyover5%butroseto

nearly14%in2013andtopped40%in2024;in2007,thatshareinthewealthycarmarketwasjustover11%,butrosetonearly24%in2014andalmost50%in2023;

Bothyoungfemaleandwealthyfemalebuyershavestrongdesireforstyling,andhavebecomethenewcorebuyingforceintheyouthandwealthycarmarkets.Proactivelycateringtothesebuyerswillhelpcarmakersadvancetheirgo-youngandhigh-endstrategies;

Bythesametoken,cateringtothesebuyersdoesnotmeangivinguptheirmalecounterparts.Theinternalstructureoftheyoungmaleandwealthymalecarmarketsarealsoundergoingtremendous

transformation:therearemoresinglesandaverageJoesintheformer,whiletherearemore

family-orientedbuyersinthelatter.Thiscreatesnewchallengesforcarmakersintermsofstyling,andtheymustallocateappropriatestylingassetsaccordingtotheirowncapabilitiesandmarket

positions.

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

50%

40%

30%

20%

Pre-Purchase

DesireforStylingbyAgeGroup2024

Pre-PurchaseDesireforStylingbyGender(Young)Group2024

ShareofEnd-UserSalesofYouthCarMarketbyGender2007-2023

Male

100%

Female

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

YouthMiddle-agedElderly

Pre-PurchaseDesireforStylingbySocialStatus2024

70%

60%

BlueCollar

Middle-Class

Wealthy

10%

0%

60%

FemaleMale

70%60%50%40%30%20%10%0%

Pre-PurchaseDesireforStylingbyGender(Wealthy)2024

Female

Male

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

200720142023

ShareofEnd-UserSalesofWealthyCarMarketbyGender2007-2023

Male

Female

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

2007

2014

2023

0%

Source:YRI

Young:<35,middle-aged:between35&55,elderly:>55;bluecollar:<RMB150Kinannualincome,

middle-class:betweenRMB150KandRMB500Kinannualincome;wealthy:>RMB500Kinannualincome

Besidestheirinherentloveforbeauty,Chinesefemalebuyershavehigherdesireforstylingbecausemoreofthemhavehadhigher

education,liveinmidtolargecitiesandhavehigherhouseholdincome

Theirnaturalpenchantforbeautyandpursuitofthelatestfashiontrendsarekeyfactorswhyfemale

buyersingeneralhaverelativelystrongerdesireforstyling.Buttherearealsootherfactorsatplay:moreandmoreChinesefemalecarbuyershavehighereducationlevels.From2020to2023,theshareof

thesebuyersthathavejuniorcollegedegreesoraboverosetomorethan80%.Theoretically,thehighertheeducationlevel,thehighertheappreciationforaesthetics,andthehigherthedesireforstyling;manyofthesefemalecarbuyersliveinlargetier-1,newtier-1andtier-2cities:theshareofthesebuyerslivinginthesecitiesfrom2020to2022remainedatroughly60%,andincreasedtomorethan66%in2023

followingthepandemic.Theoretically,womenlivinginlargecitieshavehigherappreciateforaestheticsandthereforehigherdesireforstyling;mostofthefemalecarbuyersinChinahavemiddle-classand

wealthylevelsofannualhouseholdincome:from2020to2023,nearly60%ofthefemalecarbuyersaremiddle-classorwealthy.Andusuallythehighertheirhouseholdincome,thehigherthechancesthat

thesefemalecarbuyersoptfordifferentiatedstyling…Inthenextfewyears,thesecharacteristicswill

remaininplaceandbecomemoreobvious.Ifwomenboughtcarsformarriagebefore,nowthestandardisbuyingthemastheygraduatefromcollegeandheadtotheworkforce.Thistrendisonlygoingto

becomemorepopular;

Theaccelerationofelectrificationoverrecentyearsalsocreatedmuchbiggeropportunityforcarmak-erstocomeupwithmorediversifiedanddistinctivestyling.Thenaturalandacquiredfactorsfor

femalebuyingbehaviorsandelectrificationtogetheroffersasolidfoundationforcarmakerstocreateanewstrategicpathcenteredon“graspingnewopportunitiesinChina’scarmarketthrough

optimizingstylingtoattractfemalecustomers.”

ShareofFemaleCarBuyersbyEducationLevel2020-2023

Master

Bachelor

JuniorCollege

HightSchool/VocationalMiddleSchool&Below

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

2020202120222023

ShareofFemaleCarBuyersbyCityTier2020-2023

Tier1

NewTier1Tier2

Tier3Tier4Tier5

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

2020202120222023

ShareofFemaleCarBuyersbySocialStatus2020-2023

Wealthy

Middle-ClassBlueCollar

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

2020202120222023

Source:YRI

Bluecollar:<RMB150Kinannualincome;middle-class:betweenRMB150KandRMB500Kinannualincome;

wealthy:>RMB500Kinannualincome

Focusingonfemalecarbuyersandoptimizingstylingwillbeconducivetocarmakersadvancingtheirelectrificationstrategies

Rightnow,electrificationwithoutaquestionisacorestrategyateverycarmakerinChina.ButasoftheendofQ32024,mostcarmakers(especiallyjointventurecarmakers)exceptBYD,TeslaandLiAutohavelargelystruggled；

ResearchdatashowsthatfemalecarbuyershavestrongcorrelationwithEVs:in2023femalebuyerscontributed67%ofsalesintheBEVmarket;BEVsdominatedthetop20rankingsofmodelsinfemalepenetrationandfemalecarmarketshare…BEVsarealsocloselyassociatedwithstyling:thedesireforstylingforBEVsin2024reachednearly49%,higherthanthatforPHEVs,EREVsandICEVs;

Becauseofthesecorrelations,femalecarbuyers,EVsandstylingcouldformaclosedloopwhere

attractingfemalebuyersthroughoptimizingstylingcantranslatetoEVsales.Inthefirstthreequartersof2024,thetopsellingBEVsintheChinesemarketweremostlyproductswithdistinctivestylingand

cateredtofemalebuyerssuchastheSeagull,YuanPLUS,HongguangMINIEV,WulingBingo,Model3andDolphin;

Iftheabovelogicisproven,italsoexplainswhymostoftheEVsthataremarketedfortheiradvancedtechnologiessuchas800VarchitecturesandautonomousdrivinghavestruggledonthemarketwhileEVswithdistinctivestylingandtherightpricinghaveflourished.Inthenextfewyears,electrification

remainsasthecorestrategyatcarmakersinChina,andtheymustturntheirattentiontofemalebuyers

andstylingoptimizationtobesuccessful.

Pre-PurchaseDesirefor