BuildinganddevelopingbrandsintheautomotiveaftermarketByHannsGüntherBollig©WiththefalloftheBlockExemption,anewworldofopportunitiesopensuptoOEsuppliers.Theywillnowhavetherighttomarketandselltheirownpartsundertheirownnameasoriginalsparesintheautomotiveaftermarket.Thisenablesthemtoenteranewhighlyprofitablebusinessarea,whichhassofarbeenlimitedandregulatedbythenear-monopolyoftheOEMs.However,utilizingthisopportunitytothefullextentmayrequirenewthinkingandnewattitudes.Whilstthemanufacturersofcompetitivepartshavealreadydevelopedtheirownbrandmanymanufacturersofcaptivepartsmayhavetostartbrandbuildingfromnearzero.Someofthelargerquotedcompaniesofthelattersuppliergrouphavealreadystartedcreatingawarenessamongstthepublic;however,muchofthateffortwasrathertargetedatgettingmorepeoplebuyingtheirsharesthanbuyingtheirproducts.Thismaynowchange.Buildingabrandthatiswidelyrecognizedbytheprivatecustomeriscomplex,expensiveandtakestime.Itincludesissueslike:•Matchingbrandimagewithconsumerexpectations•Developingafuture“brandoriented”productstrategy•Developing“Piggybag”-productswhichcancreaterevenue,buildingontheimageofthecoreproductrange•Selectingandmanagingtherightdistributionchannels•Selectingmarketingmediaandadvertising•Continuously“understandingthecustomer”andmanagingfeedbackAsupplieralsoneedstounderstandthefactorsthatinfluencehiscustomer’schoiceofproduct.Ishe(thesupplier)….•OperatinginanOEMinfluencedmarket(thecustomerprefersanoriginalpartoftheoriginalsupplierofthevehiclemanufacturer)•Operatinginadealer-influencedmarket(thecustomer’schoiceisinfluencedbydealerrecommendations;pricemayplayamajorrole)•Operatinginaprimebrandmarket(customerchoosesawellknownbrandbasedonadvertisedorexperiencedqualitiesoftheproduct;strongend-customerpullforcesdealerstostockandsellthebrandindependentofhisownpreferences)Asideeffectofthefalloftheblockexemptionwillbeanincreaseinacquisitionactivitiesamongcompanies,whicharealreadypresentintheaftermarketwiththeirowndistinctivebrands.Whilstsomenewcomerstotheaftermarketwillbefacedwiththeissueofbuildingtheirownbrand,someofthemoreestablishedplayersmayhavetoswitchfromasinglebrandtoamultibrandstrategy.Benchmarkingsuccessfulbrandmanagement:Itisalwayshelpfultolookoutforlessonsthatcanbelearntfromotherbrandsinsideandoutsideoftheautomotiveindustry.Suchbenchmarks,however,shouldbewellselectedandmeaningful.Benchmarkedcompaniescouldhave….•Implementedasuccessfulstrategyfortheirbrand•Implementedasuccessfulinternalresourcesharingormodularisationprogrammebetweenmultiplebrands.•Successfullyrunmultiplebrandsinthesamemarket•FailedinbuildingsuccessfulmultibrandstrategiesafteranacquisitionTypicalbenchmarkingcandidatesforbrandedproductscanbe:Thevehiclemanufacturers:Volkswagen,Ford,GM,DaimlerChrysler,Fiat,PSAandBMWaregroupsthathavedevelopedmultibrandmarketingstrategiesinordertoservedifferentcustomersindifferentmarkets.Allofthemarenowworkingonnewdistributionchannelstrategiesaspartoftheirmarketdifferentiationafterthefalloftheblockexemption.TheDIYtoolmanufacturers:Bosch,Black&Decker,DeWaltandMetaboproducetoolswithclearlydefinedbrandstrategies.Customergroup,functionality,pricingstructure,distributionchannels,regionsandproductimagedifferentiatetheirbrands.Thereisastrongcombinationofmarketpullthroughadvertisementandgoodchannelmanagementasdealerrecommendationshaveastronginfluenceonthepur...
