The arrival of new brands, particularly Chinese, is shaking up the French automotive landscape somewhat. In the space of four years, MG Motor, owned by the giant SAIC, has become an important player. In 2023, it had a market share of 1.9%, a penetration much higher than that of many brands established for decades. For its part, BYD (Build Your Dreams), present in France since the summer of 2023, does not hide its enormous appetite. And if they have started to make a place for themselves among individuals, these players have strong ambitions in the business market. Especially since they are also arriving with electric utility vehicles. Maxus, another SAIC subsidiary, offers a complete range, while BYD has just presented the ETP3, an urban van. “The perception that BtoB customers have about the origin of labels has profoundly evolved. They are less and less hesitant about Chinese brands which not only offer products with good value for money, but above all which are available very quickly,” comments Guillaume Maureau, deputy general director of sales at ALD Automotive LeasePlan.
Companies are now used to new entrants. Tesla opened the way a few years ago, and more recently the Korean brands, helped by French manufacturers, Stellantis in the lead! The group's strategy, followed to a certain extent by Renault, to suddenly stop the protocols reserved for fleets in 2022 has in fact cooled more than one fleet manager and had the consequence of shifting purchases to other manufacturers.
“Many customers turned to brands that were not necessarily in their visibility zone
,” notes Arnaud Vauzelle, head of BtoB development at BYD, who himself worked at that time for a Korean brand. Nature abhors a vacuum, so these “new” brands, including Chinese players, took the opportunity to place their pawns. Especially since they are not starting from scratch. They have indeed been able to recruit employees who have worked in this sector for many years.
“We rely on teams who have fifteen to twenty years of experience and who have a comprehensive address book
,” notes one of them.
Because the most important thing is to reassure the customer.
“When we explain to him that BYD is the world's leading battery producer, that it supplies Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and even Peugeot, that it is among the top 10 global car manufacturers and that it has sold in China last year 3 million electrified cars, we have an attentive ear
,” notes Arnaud Vauzelle.
The network is also one of the key factors in the development of these newcomers.
“MG Motor has a network of 200 points of sale in France
,” recalls Jacky Delorme, fleet sales manager at MG Motor. Wide coverage which reassures SME managers in particular.
“The latter generally have purchasing behaviors quite similar to those of an individual. For this clientele, proximity is an important guarantee of safety
,” continues this MG Motor manager.
Moreover, MG Motor and BYD rely heavily on the network to develop their fleet activities.
“Our distributors will be challenged on the subject
,” indicate the two Chinese brands each in their own right. Present in France for only four years, MG Motor ensures 21% of its registrations with companies. If today they are fairly supported by short-term rentals,
“in order to have visibility on the roads”
, underlines Jacky Delorme, the brand intends to actively develop on company sales, whatever their size. For large accounts, these new entrants recognize that their action nevertheless takes more time. “This is in-depth work,” says one of them, who is now actively structuring herself to respond to this challenge.
For example, BYD is present at all trade shows intended for fleets to make itself known.
“We have to install our prospects in our cars, let them try it
,” continues Arnaud Vauzelle. And rely on one model, while having a wide range in your portfolio. At BYD, it's the Seal, a direct competitor to the Tesla Model 3, while the MG4, a compact C-segment sedan, wears the colors of MG Motor.
“And with the arrival of the MG3 next June, we will be at the heart of the market,” says Jacky Delorme. This is a B-segment hybrid sedan, which will position itself as an alternative to the market leaders. This model will allow us to more easily fit into the car policies of companies that are not yet ready to go all-electric
,” he adds. The only downside to this active development: the calculation of residual values. Without vehicle history, it remains quite complicated.