BMW launches first of its kind subscription service here
Singapore
IF there's one thing Singaporeans love, it's a buffet. But how will people here take to an all-you-can-eat approach to driving BMWs?
The answer might be revealed by Access by BMW, a subscription service that lets users swap in and out of different BMW cars at leisure.
The service is similar to luxury watch clubs that give subscribers unlimited access to a wide range of timepieces - rock a Rolex at one party, and have a Hublot on your wrist for the next do. Buying is so last millennium.
Similarly, Access by BMW puts people behind the wheel of a car without the need to buy or lease one. Subscriptions start at S$2,288 a month, which gets you the keys to a BMW 118i for three months, or S$2,488 if you only want it for the month. Want something fancier? A BMW X4 xDrive20i, a swoopy sport utility coupe, costs S$3,788 a month.
The fee includes insurance, roadside assistance, maintenance and road tax, and when you request a car online, the service delivers it to you within 48 hours. Don't like what you're driving? After the month is up, request another one and your next BMW is on the way.
Users can pause their subscriptions if they think they can do without a car for a stretch - which is the key difference between this and a leasing arrangement.
BMW chose Singapore, its the second country in the world to offer the service, after launching it in Nashville, Tennessee in March last year.
Sime Darby, which owns BMW dealer Performance Motors as well as Sime Darby Services, a car rental company, is operating the business. The service kicks off with a fleet of 40 to 50 cars, and can be scaled up if the demand is there.
Rival brands such as Audi, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche also offer car subscriptions in the US, but Access by BMW is the first such service here.
Nevertheless, Ritu Chandy, regional CEO, BMW Financial Services Asia Pacific, calls Singapore the "perfect market" for it.
"In Singapore, we're talking about a very dense urban population, a very tech-savvy, open-minded, early adopter population. We're talking about people who are travelling in and out - you're here for a month, you're off on assignment for a couple of months, you're back for a month," she said. "And we are talking about car ownership being very expensive."
Those factors throw up several prime candidates for car subscription. Tech-savvy millennials can drive BMWs without the commitment of a car loan or lease, for example. "Some of them think car ownership is more of a hassle than a privilege or entitlement. It's to address that group of people, as well, to allow them the hassle-free experience," Ms Chandy told The Business Times.
Regional executives are another target group, especially if they are constantly on the move, since they can pause their subscription if they spend more time on the hop than at home. That's one target group particularly familiar to Ms Chandy, who personally pushed for the business when she was posted here last July; she herself spent only one weekend in Singapore last month.
In that respect, Access by BMW fills a small niche in the market of people who nearly need to own a car, but could just as easily live without one.
But it could paradoxically tip people over into ownership, especially if they were already sitting on the fence about a new BMW. "Say you're thinking about an X3 but you're not sure if you really want this car," Ms Chandy said, referring to BMW's medium sport utility vehicle. "Let's drive it, let's get used to the technology, and see if this is what you want."
Ms Chandy said that in other markets, experiencing a given car after renting it often leads people to buy one from the same brand. When it comes to narrowing your choices and zooming in on what you like, there's nothing better than a nice buffet spread.
