In the hearts of "classic car" enthusiasts, the Lincoln brand has a pivotal position.
As an American luxury brand born in 1917, Lincoln has a distinctive product label, such as elegant appearance, strong and abundant power, and always exudes dazzling light under the precipitation of the years. But everyone knows that there will always be a day when the "old book" will be finished, and how to maintain a leading position in the industry at all times has become the key to evaluating whether the luxury brand has vitality.
As far as the domestic market is concerned, with the opening of the "first year of domestic production" in 2020, Lincoln's development in China has embarked on a fast track. Among them, the Lincoln Adventurer has attracted a lot of attention since its launch, in addition to the performance of selling thousands of units per month, it has consolidated the luxury proposition of "Lincoln Way"; With the successive listings of Aviator, Navigator and Lincoln Z, the Lincoln brand has formed a complete joint venture product matrix, which was once regarded as a more low-key and tasteful choice in addition to BBA.
So, how is the Lincoln brand selling in China today? The data is undoubtedly the most convincing. In 2023, Lincoln's retail sales in China will be 71,589 units, which is only half of Volvo's annual sales of 147174 units. Compared with Cadillac, which sells 183577 cars a year, it is not as good as a "fraction". At the same time, from 2020 to the present, Lincoln's sales in China have shown a downward "parabola", after the annual sales exceeded 90,000 units in 2021, it has been declining month-on-month for two consecutive years.
It is undeniable that a large part of the reason for Lincoln's cold sales in China last year is due to the market environment. In fact, although it is also a luxury brand, Lincoln's intended users often do not directly overlap with BBA consumer groups, but are used as a user option for "joint venture brand consumption upgrade". In the case of limited budget, the demand for similar consumption upgrades will decrease, and Lincoln, as a second-tier luxury brand, will naturally be affected to a certain extent at the sales level.
But why can't Lincoln sell Cadillac and Volvo? Aside from the dealer system, user reputation and market favorability accumulated by taking the lead in domestic production, at the level of scale effect, Cadillac and Volvo can better control costs, provide concessions, and make consumers feel greater "benefits". Although from the perspective of configuration, Lincoln's strength is indeed strong enough, in the minds of consumers, Cadillac and Volvo are still relatively more cost-effective options.
On the other hand, because of the late entry of domestic products into China, it is difficult for the Lincoln brand to form a differentiated advantage. Similarly, Cadillac and Volvo are examples, the performance of the former and the safety of the latter have now brought a steady stream of natural traffic to the two; To put it more simply, driving home for the New Year is enough to help the owner save "face". The "luxury way" of the Lincoln brand is invisible and intangible, driving home for the New Year, the owner has to talk to the car in front of relatives.
It can be seen that Lincoln's localization development path itself is not wrong, but in terms of the time of entering China and brand positioning, Lincoln has not accurately grasped the pulse of the times. As luxury brands including BBA, Cadillac, and Volvo have deployed in the new energy market, Lincoln's development pace in China will further lag behind, and it will undoubtedly be more difficult to catch up in the future.