There will be many changes to many different industries in light of the pandemic of 2020. Only a small handful of industries may prosper but the majority will be affected especially the motor industry trade. That may have a knock-on effect on car customisation including repairing scuffed or kerbed wheels and other issues that car owners experience.
Having said that, we all still need to drive and cars will need maintaining, servicing, repairing. Car enthusiasts will still have the time and money to customise their beloved motor cars.
Just recently the team at Lamborghini announced to the press that they will no longer be doing motor shows. They will of course still do some public shows but mostly small ones geared towards owner clubs etc.
This is a huge shame for motor show enthusiasts and other companies. Lamborghini will always bring in the big crowds, so in a way, every other motor show stands owner benefits from the additional foot traffic. Without them, attendance is sure to be down affecting each and every car stand and hospitality company.
The pandemic of 2020 has many knock-on effects, noticeably to the financial and economical sector. Many jobs have been lost in the motor trade with many companies needing to cut their costs as much as possible. These cost cuts will affect every car manufacturer’s budget.
Attending a 7-day motor show for a car manufacturer can be a huge cost, a cost that will be the target of budgeting. Many manufacturers will choose to not attend a lot of these motor shows and will decide to place their budget elsewhere where a bigger return on investment can be produced.
All motor trade companies are run for a profit. If they put a lot of money into attending these motor shows but do not get a direct return then they may be just throwing money away.
With the digital age maturing and expanding almost every day, I don’t think it will be too long before physical showrooms become a thing of the past. There’s a lot of money tied up with renting premises and having expensive cars sitting there with multiple sales and administration staff. Showrooms require upkeep, cleaning and also heat, water and facilities to maintain.
I see a future where the showroom becomes a digital artificial intelligence experience. Potential customers won’t need to leave their homes to look around the makes and models on offer.
The experience won’t be 100% digital because when people are looking to buy a car, of course, they want to physically touch it, sit in it and also see what it feels like to take it on a test drive.
A potential scenario could be that a potential car buyer sits at home and uses some type of AI interface to look around at the different makes and models. The car dealers representative could interact with this digital experience so they could answer any questions that the potential buyer had.
Once the potential buyer has their sights set on a particular car, they could complete a form in order to request a test drive. The representatives at the car dealer could then drive the car to the potential buyer so that they can take it out for a short test drive.
This is one potential scenario of how technology and the current pandemic could affect parts of the motor trade.