Can the price reduction save Skoda?

Skoda, as a brother and sister of Volkswagen, has a completely different fate. In China market, consumers only recognize Volkswagen brand, but never Skoda. Even if the hood is opened and the same engine is used, consumers still don't accept it.

From a mechanical point of view, Skoda is really no different from Volkswagen. They all use the same three-piece suit, but the appearance, interior and configuration are slightly different. However, the fate of Skoda and Volkswagen is different.

Volkswagen's annual sales in the first half of the year was about 6.5438+0.5 million, while Skoda only had 39,000. Although Skoda really lags behind Volkswagen in terms of models, the sales gap between them is not caused by the number of models, but by Skoda's failure in the China market. Skoda is also a car company with complete matrix. As a result, the cumulative sales volume in the first six months of this year was only 39,000 vehicles.

Since Skoda entered the China market in 2007, after 13 years of development, it has not ushered in its own bright moment, but has been declining. During the three years from 2065438+06 to 2065438+08, Skoda's sales in China reached its peak, with an annual sales volume of about 330,000 vehicles. Since 20 19, Skoda's market in China has been getting worse and worse, with a serious decline in sales volume and a continuous deterioration of the market. By 2020, Skoda can only maintain the level of 39,000 vehicles for half a year.

13 years later, we didn't see the growth and progress of Skoda in China market, and with the intensification of market competition, the survival situation became more and more difficult.

At the end of May 2020, in order to reverse its position in China, Skoda took the route of officially announcing price cuts. Price-for-quantity exchange is a common means for every car company, but it is not official, but only the dealer's independent behavior. Although the official acquiescence, it will not be clear to the outside world, and Skoda now officially announces the adjustment of pricing directly, which is extremely rare unless absolutely necessary.

After Skoda officially announced the price reduction, it showed that Skoda chose to make concessions and formed a certain dimension reduction competition with conventional brands. Without careful consideration, I don't believe Skoda will do this.

The fact is that even if Skoda officially lowered the overall price, it still did not reverse the situation. The data in June is the most intuitive portrayal. In June, Skoda won 654.38+0.34 million vehicles, which was one of the few months that broke 10,000 in the first half of the year, but it still decreased by 38.78% compared with the same period last year.

You have to admit that Skoda's position in China has indeed reached the bottom. If this continues, its sales will only be lower, which is the result of the official announcement of price reduction.

Everyone who knows cars buys Skoda, which is just a wishful joke.

Skoda lost in the market for many reasons. Volkswagen brand really makes Skoda breathless. This is undeniable, but it also has a lot to do with itself. It has followed the footsteps of the public for a long time, can't make differentiated products, and adopts peer-to-peer competition in competitive positioning. There is no dimension reduction competition like this. Since Skoda is no different from Volkswagen, why not choose Volkswagen under the same budget? Although Skoda's terminal profit is very large, Volkswagen's terminal profit is not bad, and Skoda is not dominant in price.

In addition, as a standard joint venture car, it is proud of Volkswagen. In front of the public, Skoda will bow its head, but in front of other competing products at the same level, Skoda is still heroic. Skoda can lower its head for the market, but it will never lower its price for the market. Skoda obviously can't benchmark domestic cars.

It is impossible to shake the position of the world's first-line joint venture brand, and it is impossible to benchmark domestic cars in the future. This is the pain point of Skoda, and whether it can go up or down is the biggest sorrow of a brand. In fact, not only Skoda, but also many second-and third-line joint venture brands in China are not as good as Volkswagen, Toyota and Honda, and they are not as good as domestic cars. They would rather be arrogant and firm than reduce the price to the level of domestic cars.

(This article was originally written by the New Media Editorial Department of the automobile industry and written by Lan Zhan. The source should be indicated when reprinting. )

This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.