The first session of the retail stream at the SMMT International Automotive Summit discussed future mobility and car ownership. There was a strong focus on the increasing popularity of car clubs and car sharing in urban areas and what this would mean for the future of the automotive industry.
There are a number of factors influencing drivers’ attitudes to car ownership, including the number of urban parking spaces, multi-modal transport, apps and smartphones. These factors are leading to schemes such as car clubs, mobility services and car sharing becoming prominent in cities, with many drivers putting off car ownership until later in life.
John Leech from KPMG explored how future cars in clubs or mobility services in cities would be smaller, electric and autonomous.
Moving on from car ownership, the next session discussed how future car purchases would be made. It focussed on car dealerships of tomorrow and how dealerships and online should work together.
With online shopping becoming more prevalent, the panel explored how dealerships should become more digital, enhancing the customer experience that they cannot get online. They also looked at how to bring the showroom onto websites with live chat and video experiences aiding car buyers in their decisions.
