What’s Next for Firefly? We Asked William Li After the Launch
- Maya
- 2 days ago
- 9 min read
The day after the Firefly launch event, NIO held an event at the NIO House in Shanghai Center. William Li, NIO's founder and CEO, and Daniel, NIO's vice president and head of its third brand, Firefly, answered questions from the public about the new brand's first model.
The core content is as follows:
1. Although specific sales order data will not be disclosed, the current order situation is in line with expectations. The first batch of vehicles prepared in advance has been almost entirely allocated to customers who placed orders.
2. Although Firefly was first launched in China, the overseas market is its key development direction in the future. During the Shanghai Auto Show, firefly will announce detailed plans for overseas development and sign cooperation agreements with nine partners.
3. Firefly has always regarded Mini as its main competitor, and this target will not change.
4. Questions concerning whether the vehicle is equipped with a heat pump, when the battery-as-a-service (BaaS) will be launched, and why Firefly chose to connect to NIO's fifth-generation swap station were also answered.
Here are the details:
I. Always Benchmarking MINI
Firefly's announced starting price is 119,800 yuan, which is much lower than what people speculated before the launch. William Li joked that people who guessed the price earlier “fell into a trap.”
From the market reaction, this price has a significant impact on other similar models from different brands.
One hour after the launch event ended, there were many discussions under the reports, involving models such as GEOME, BYD Dolphin, XPeng Mona M03, Volkswagen ID.3, Mini, Smart, Geely Galaxy L6, Binguo EV, and Dongfeng Nanmi 01.
Although when the Firefly brand was launched, William Li said that Firefly's positioning is “more Mini than Smart, and smarter than Mini.”
However, this time the starting price of 119,800 yuan is clearly aimed at achieving higher sales volume. Who is Firefly targeting with this price?
Let's compare the prices: A few days ago, BMW Mini launched its JCW model with a starting price of 224,800 yuan; The current starting price of the electric Smart #3 is around 160,000 yuan.
At present, the price closest to Firefly's is that of the Volkswagen ID.3, with an actual on-road price ranging from 119,900 to 136,900 yuan, the official starting price ranges from 129,800 yuan to 150,000 yuan.
In terms of vehicle size, Firefly's dimensions are 4,003 mm in length, 1,781 mm in width, 1,557 mm in height, with an axle distance of 2,615 mm and a turning radius of only 4.7 meters. Many people who first see Firefly would think it looks more like the BYD Dolphin or Volkswagen ID.3. But Daniel emphasized that Firefly's competitor has always been Mini, and this will not change.
When answering questions about Firefly's positioning and value in the NIO ecosystem, William Li cited MINI again, saying that Mini accounts for about 10% of BMW's overall brand sales. NIO hopes that Firefly, as a high-end small car, will also achieve such a proportion in the future, although it will take some time to realize this goal.
II. Why the Price Is Set at 119,800 Yuan?
The starting price of 119,800 yuan is another focus of attention. Why was the pre-sale price set at 148,800 yuan during the NIO DAY in Guangzhou, but was directly set to 119,800 yuan at the official launch?
Daniel explained that the pre-sale price of 148,800 yuan set before December 21 last year was because Mini's price dropped to 138,000 yuan at that time. As a high-end, intelligent small car, Firefly needed a pricing reference standard.
At that time, the pricing of 148,800 yuan was to establish a psychological value anchor, that is, “the value of this car is definitely worth the number 148,800 yuan.”
However, in the past six months, the Chinese automotive market has experienced several major price adjustments, and consumers' expectations for electric vehicle prices have also changed.
Daniel explained that such reshaping or adjustment has occurred twice in the past six months, which also changed with the launch of products from other brands.
“Our newly launched price of 119,800 yuan actually takes into account both profitability and market sentiment. It is a comprehensive decision made considering consumer emotions and the actual market competition environment, and it also successfully retained the title of ‘Brother Bin.’”
William Li also said that this price can still ensure a certain profit.
With the price reduction, the sales expectation will definitely increase. So, what is the current order situation?
Daniel said that this price can make Firefly more attractive among cars in the same price range.
William Li added that he hopes this price can break through the original price range restrictions, so that consumers who originally planned to buy a small car for 80,000 - 90,000 yuan can strive to afford it, and at the same time, it can also attract users who buy high-end large cars like NIO ET9 to consider purchasing a small car as a supplement.
III. First Batch of Vehicles Almost Allocated
Daniel said that the current order situation is in line with expectations, and many stores have people lining up to see the car. Because Firefly has five exterior colors, two interior styles, and each interior style has four colors, there are a total of 80 combination choices. Many consumers want to see the actual car in the store before deciding whether to place an order.
In the subsequent interview, more details about the orders were revealed by William Li and Daniel.
For example, 50% of the first batch of small orders, including those converted to large orders, came from within the NIO system; the other 50% showed some expansion effect. “There are also some users from the high-end large car product lines of other respectable brands.”
Another example is that Firefly prepared a batch of vehicles in advance, and order matching began early in the morning. Currently, the first batch of vehicles has been almost entirely allocated. William Li said they would not prepare too much inventory because keeping vehicles in stock costs money.
Also, from the first batch of large orders, the Free Version accounts for about 20 - 25%, while the luminous version accounts for 70 - 75%. In terms of color selection, the most popular are Inspiration Purple and gray, which together account for less than 30%, and other colors are relatively evenly chosen. Daniel said, “This also confirms our judgment that consumers are willing to pay for emotional value.”
Currently, Firefly's orders mainly come from two types of users: one is those who already have a large car and want to buy a small car as a supplement; the other is first-time small car buyers.
IV. Overseas Market Plan
Daniel said that firefly has been planned for the global market from the beginning, and the internal vision or slogan is “to make the best small car for global users.”
Moreover, globally, except for China and the United States, where large cars dominate the market, small cars are the mainstream in other places.
In the niche market where Firefly is positioned, the global sales volume last year was 15.1 million units, accounting for about 20% of the entire automotive market, of which the European market had the largest sales volume, close to 5 million units.
Although Firefly was first launched in China, it is still a global product. Daniel said, “From the perspective of product strength, this car is also extremely suitable for the European market. Compared with the Chinese market, its adaptability and competitiveness in the European market may be stronger.”
Firefly's plan to enter Europe and other overseas markets has not changed, and it will announce specific expansion plans, entry times, and target markets during the Shanghai Auto Show.
So, what changes will this car have in the overseas market, in terms of product characteristics, pricing, or market rhythm?
Daniel revealed that there will be differences between the European version and the Chinese version of Firefly. For example, in terms of handling, Europe needs a sharper and more agile feel, so Firefly has made two sets of calibrations.
The calibration of the European version, whether it is the steering feel, the softness and hardness of the suspension, or the choice of tires, etc., is different from the Chinese version.
“We are also discussing whether to introduce the European version's steering and calibration into the Chinese market at an appropriate time.”
Regarding the pricing and sales strategy in the overseas market, Daniel said that the pricing has not yet been announced. The European market may adopt different prices and sales models according to different countries.
He explained that the business model or sales model of Firefly in the overseas market will not be a single type. For example, in relatively mature markets where NIO has been operating for several years, Firefly can be sold directly in NIO Houses, just like in China. For example, in Norway, the entire market is not very large, and 1 - 2 NIO Houses or NIO Spaces can display Firefly, and the situation in the Netherlands may be similar.
In other countries, more flexible sales models such as general agency may be adopted. Under different sales models, the profit NIO obtains is different. For example, the profit from direct sales may be higher, while the profit from the general agency model may be lower.
In addition, generally speaking, the competition in the Chinese market is undoubtedly the most intense in the global market, so the profit margin in the Chinese market will be lower than that in the overseas market.
As for other overseas markets, such as Japan, it is still in the investigation period.
And as far as we know, during the Shanghai Auto Show, Firefly will sign cooperation agreements with nine partners regarding the overseas market.
V. Key Details
Finally, let's talk about some details related to consumer relations.
1. Why doesn't Firefly have a heat pump?
This is a question that European users are particularly concerned about.
Daniel explained that when Firefly was initiated, the main market for the 5 million small cars in Europe was in Central Europe, Southern Europe, and Western Europe, where the climate is relatively mild.
Taking into account these factors, Firefly did not choose a heat pump. Moreover, the PTC heating device equipped in Firefly can quickly warm up the car in winter, and the actual use effect is good. They have also conducted many tests in the Heihe test site.
In addition, although a heat pump can reduce energy consumption, Firefly has optimized its energy consumption through other technologies to a very low level of 10.9kwh/100km.
“This was achieved without a heat pump. So we believe that this choice still fits the product's current market definition.”
2. Why is the battery-as-a-service (BaaS) not launched until August?
Daniel said that there are three main reasons for launching the BaaS plan on August 1st:
Firstly, the starting price of 119,800 yuan is already very attractive;
Secondly, as a small car, the price difference between using BaaS and not using it is smaller than that of a large car, and the impact on consumers is not that significant;
Lastly, from now on, May, June, and July will see the first wave of user peaks.
“We believe that starting from August, when we introduce the BaaS plan, there will be a second small peak. It's not a good strategy to play all our cards at once.”
3. Why not build an independent swap network?
Another question that many people are very concerned about is why Firefly eventually chose to connect to NIO's fifth-generation swap station system?
William Li explained that initially, Firefly was mainly aimed at the European market, so an independent swap station in the form of a container was designed. This way, the cost of transporting it to Europe is low, the speed of building stations is fast, and the cost is also low.
However, later, due to changes in the international situation, such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict leading to increased tariffs on China by Europe, many plans were disrupted, and there was no time to build the fourth-generation swap station, so they had to choose to connect to NIO's fifth-generation swap station.
Daniel added that relying on just one model of Firefly, it is difficult to build a new independent swap network in China. The fifth-generation swap station will start construction as soon as possible next year and will be compatible with the batteries of NIO, Leto, and Firefly. This will be the time when Firefly will focus on swap station development next year. In addition, Firefly also provides a 3,000-yuan charging subsidy, which is almost equivalent to two years of free charging according to Firefly's energy consumption.
4. Will there be a convertible version?
William Li said that currently, Firefly is like Mini in its early days, with only one model under its brand.
Daniel also said that making a convertible car is costly, and currently, only a few tourist cities have more convertibles, most of which are for short-term rent.
“Mini also only had one model in its early days, so we believe that the foundation is the most important. Once the foundation is stable, we can consider derivatives. As long as there is demand, there will be supply.”
William Li also said that Mini has a global sales volume of more than 200,000 units, which allows it to launch some derivative models, but Firefly now needs to focus on refining the basic model and providing more choices in terms of model configuration, modification, and accessories.
(End)
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