Looking to the future of automotive retail

By Christophe de Valroger, VP of Bridgestone EMIA Retail

There is no question that mobility is undergoing rapid and fundamental change, driven not just by technology and innovation but by evolving consumer behaviour and demand.

Consequently, automotive retail also needs to adapt and evolve in line with key trends such as electrification and to support new mobility offerings, players and solutions.

Customer-centricity and getting ahead of the curve

In the new mobility world, companies need to be more customer-centric than ever, in both strategy and mindset.

For Bridgestone, our retail network is the point where we are face-to-face with end users and the rubber, quite literally, hits the road. 

Building and maintaining relationships with everyday drivers – both consumer and commercial – also brings insight and understanding to allow us to get ahead of the curve when it comes to trends:

• Driving to an electric future – the primary trend in the world of mobility, we are pioneering the infrastructure needed to support the shift to electrification. To this end, we have partnered with leading EV charging provider EVBox to install 3,500 new charging points across our European sites and to give our customers access to a public network of over 130,000 charging ports
• Seamless omnichannel experience – as with other retail sectors such as fashion or electronics, the future for the automotive aftermarket lies in building a strong omnichannel network where customer relationships can develop both on and offline, depending on preference. We’re investing heavily in digitisation with things like mobile and valet services and to deliver a totally zero-contact concierge experience – all to complement our industry-leading physical network, comprising 17 brands and 6,000 stores across EMIA
• Adding value with a one-stop-shop – evolving to meet customer demand for enhanced value and convenience also involves transforming to become a ‘one-stop-shop’. We provide a comprehensive suite of autocare services; going beyond tyres to include maintenance and repair, EV support and charging, mobility solutions and telematics

Driving sustainability through partnership

We are a long-standing and trusted partner in the fleet sector – leasing companies, direct and commercial fleets – and provide a sustainable profile for every service we deliver through our large network presence in every major city and country in Europe.

Our integrated approach, encompassing tyres as well as vehicle maintenance and state-of-the-art fleet management technology, is also allowing many new emerging mobility players to come to market by using our retail network for sales and after-sales needs.

 For mobility pioneers such as Scoobic Urban Mobility, the 100% electric last-mile and urban delivery fleet vehicles provider, and Fisker, the EV innovator, partnership with Bridgestone helps them operate in smarter and more profitable ways. And we are jointly enabling more sustainable purpose-driven and usage-based mobility overall.

 Contributing to a future of sustainable mobility

As we support our customers to be more sustainable, we’re ramping up our own sustainability efforts too. We have a robust action plan to reduce emissions and are working towards carbon neutrality by 2050. We’re committed to eco-friendly material use in our stores by 2030 and we’re switching all energy contracts to renewable green energy during 2022.

As we chalk up these milestones on our sustainability journey, partnerships like the one with EVBox and with many newly emerging mobility players are a key focus for us – working together to help shape a sustainable future of mobility for all.