2023, opportunities and challenges coexist.
to Public Security Bureau statistics, the national vehicle population reached 336 million vehicles in 2023. At the same time, with the increase in vehicle age and mileage, the demand for vehicle maintenance and care has also increased accordingly. It is expected that the maintenance industry's output value will reach 1.2 trillion yuan in 2023. In the fierce competition of the trillion-yuan track, the automotive aftermarket is becoming increasingly "intense."
The four protagonists brought today have all "excelled" to different heights in 2023, truly reflecting the reality behind the aftermarket: Stick to the original intention, looking forward to better days after hardships.
1.“Intense” is the norm, next year will be even more intense
“We start bustling at 7 a.m. every day, picking up goods... delivering goods... following orders... after-sales... until 7 p.m. when orders are cut off, everyone is still handling after-sales for customers”, this busyness has become the daily routine of Lao Guo's team.
Lao Guo is one of Baturu's million franchisees. He relied on insurance business to usher in the golden era in the Xiamen market, with the peak monthly transaction customers exceeding 200.
In 2023, the market environment became increasingly severe. For example, insurance policy adjustments forced Lao Guo to personally participate in all business links to stabilize performance. “Insurance companies' profit margins are squeezed, and we're no exception. Now we need to be more proactive in securing business to seize opportunities. 2024 will only be more intense”.
“Xiamen market is different from other cities. There's a dedicated claims assessment point here for on-site inspection and assessment. Our sales reps directly ‘station’ there to facilitate customer inquiries”. Lao Guo candidly stated that currently, his platform offers the highest quote rate, best timeliness, and transaction rate ranking in the top three in the entire Xiamen.
The integration of insurance and auto parts has natural traffic opportunities. “Just from cooperating with one insurance company, we get over 300 inquiry orders a day, even in the most intense year (2023). It's tough, but the volume is still increasing”. Currently, 60%-70% of Lao Guo's performance comes from insurance business.
2.Not “busy enough”, only busier can satisfy
“Sort out the things at hand and go home early for the holiday.” On the last day of 2023, Lao Chen instructed his staff a few words, then picked up his phone again to handle new orders.
Equally "intense" is Foshan franchisee Lao Chen.
Lao Chen is one of the early franchisees to join Baturu. As a native of Yangjiang, he chose Foshan in 2015 as his first stop in the auto parts industry for two reasons: First, Yangjiang, as Baturu's pioneering city for deep cultivation in the regional auto parts market, already had fellow villagers achieving good results, which inspired Lao Chen a lot; second, in the Pearl River Delta, Foshan's vehicle population ranks in the top three, so he immediately signed the Foshan franchise market.
This year marks Lao Chen's ninth year in the industry. He smiled and said: “My entrepreneurial career is dedicated to two industries: ten years in aquatic products, nine years in auto parts. The auto parts road is still long, and I will continue to walk it.”
In 2023, Lao Chen's team increased performance by 25%, steadily ranking among Baturu's million franchisees. From 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. are their busiest periods of the day, but he thinks it's still "not busy enough": This year's performance has grown overall, but hasn't reached my goal yet. I hope 2024 to be "busier."
Talking about next year's plans, he more concretely described a real "scene": Watching the van loaded full of goods departing every day would satisfy. To this end, he plans to recruit a few more experienced sales reps next year to prepare fully for further expanding the Foshan market.
3.Market is growing, yet walking even more "cautiously"
Also an experienced franchisee, Huang Ge, a local from Qingyuan, had "walking on thin ice" as his keyword for 2023.
Before 9 a.m. every day, Huang Ge's team delivers goods to customers on time, day after day, without holidays throughout the year.
“No matter what, this year (2024) we must take it to the next level”, Huang Ge stated his goal for 2024, which sounds like making up for the regrets of 2023. But actually not, “Although 2023 was like walking on thin ice, our business performance still grew.”
Facing the increasingly robust Qingyuan auto parts market, Huang Ge places great emphasis on standardized team management. He divides the work among the 7 team members, with dedicated personnel for specific tasks. “The platform is powerful, we can't lag behind. Service means addressing customers' urgent needs, thinking what they think, responding to everything, and accounting for every matter”. Every Sunday, he takes advantage of business downtime to sit down with the team for one thing: tea and review.
In reviews, he pulls weekly data from the Baturu system, striving not to miss any business detail. In one review this year, he found a 4S store's procurement amount dropped from over 20,000 to 2,000. The reason was a misunderstanding in communication with the supplier during a procurement, leading to an extra payment for parts matching support fee. After understanding the ins and outs, Huang Ge immediately had the sales rep deliver the money to the store manager, “We'll cover this cost; we can't lose customer trust over a small misunderstanding.”
He has been in the auto parts industry for ten years, but in 2023 he better understood that "walking on thin ice" is not just being cautious, but more prudent and attentive, not losing the big for the small.
4.“Self-improvement”, forging a strong mindset
“If I go home, what can I do?”
This question lingered in Lao Huang's mind countless times. Now, he can be considered a representative of "returning home to start a business." In 2020, nearing 40, Lao Huang, introduced by a fellow villager, secured the Wuzhou franchise qualification, ending his wandering and wage-earning life outside, and started an auto parts business in his hometown.
With 8 years of auto repair experience and his local advantage, under the headquarters team's support, he quickly opened up local auto parts market.
Every day around7 a.m., Lao Huang starts rushing around various districts, first picking up goods from logistics then delivering to repair shops. Often, before customers open, he has delivered the goods. By 8 a.m., he starts handling new customer orders, single-handedly completing customer development, operations, and delivery.
“Before franchising, I rented a 300+ sqm warehouse for tire wholesale, very tiring, and profits were always squeezed, couldn't sustain it”. Now without inventory and unsold goods pressure, he changed the former 300+ sqm warehouse to the current 100+ sqm, mainly for returns and light stocking. One phone handles the entire auto parts business.
Talking about his 2023 keyword, Lao Huang sincerely gave "self-improvement." Three years of franchising have made him familiar with every corner of this small county. “I'm very familiar with the repair shops here; customer development doesn't exhaust people, it exhausts cigarettes—three or four packs a day.”
County-level markets are relatively stable, making customer relationship consolidation extremely important. With the platform's supply strength plus his repair skills, he has become the "old technician" customers rely on, and he sees this "reliance" as a form of self-improvement.
Finally
According to F6 Big Data Research Institute statistics, the average mileage in 2023 will return to over 10,000 kilometers, showing travel enthusiasm after pandemic reopening, while mid-to-large chain stores achieved positive growth.
As the growth momentum strengthens, 2024's challenges will ultimately turn into opportunities, ready to ignite.
Currently, Baturu 2024 franchisee recruitment has begun, releasing more blank areas in the auto parts market, continuously building the "Million Franchisee Club", inviting more "warriors" to join 2024 and create a aftermarket career together!
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