Exclusive e-shopping steers car owner carts
Online malls operated by auto manufacturers burnish brands, win consumers
For Guo Shiqiang, 38, manager of a food processing company in Beijing's Tongzhou district, traditional e-commerce platforms like JD or Taobao are no longer the primary go-to destinations for online shopping.
Instead, he prefers Nio Life, the online shopping platform of Chinese electric vehicle startup Nio. Ever since he bought a Nio ES6 in 2021, Nio Life has become part of his life. He buys every conceivable product that a modern man needs: socks, jackets, wines, bags, what have you.
Last year, Guo spent nearly 3,000 yuan ($417) on such products on Nio Life. Some of the purchases were made via redemption of Nio Life's award points earned for posts, test drive recommendations and so on. Mugs, cups, biscuits, nuts, kitchen accessories, backpacks ... all were scooped up from Nio Life.
