The impact of service and government-policy attributes on consumer preferences for electric vehicles in China

This research focuses on the effects of different types of service attributes and context-based government policies, along with product attributes, on Chinese consumers’ adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). Based on a stated choice experiment involving over 1,000 respondents in different cities of China, a mixed logit (MXL) model shows that typical product attributes are consistently important for potential car buyers, but that charging service has a mixed effect, depending on the level of service provision and speed. Specifically, the availability of a home charging facility has the strongest influence on consumers’ choice to purchase EVs, and the service speed of public fast service stations is also significant. In relation to government policies, this study finds that in addition to government subsidy, free licensing policy for EVs is very attractive for consumers, compared to the lottery-based licensing for conventional petrol vehicles (PVs). We find that Chinese consumers have the highest willingness to pay for obtaining a free vehicle license for EVs (106,144 RMB on average) and being permitted to install a home charging post (91,039 RMB on average). Our findings imply the importance of considering consumers’ perceived inconvenience associated with using EVs compared to buying and using conventional PVs. Furthermore, policy makers should consider the heterogeneous preference towards EVs when designing intervention policies in the Chinese market

Affordable luxuries: Comparing American and Chinese millennial consumers

Global brands are benefiting from the rapidly growing demand for luxury products in China. While research interest in the luxury sector in China is developing, there has not been any research on the affordable luxury sector in that market. This manuscript addresses this gap and is the first cross-cultural study that compares Chinese and American millennial consumers’ perceptions and expectations of affordable luxuries in these two markets. Our analysis reveals the differences and similarities in American and Chinese millennial consumers’ perceptions of affordable luxuries in comparison to both luxuries and necessities. The implications of this research for retailers of affordable luxury products are highlighted with respect to the decision of whether to adapt their global positioning strategies

On the heterogeneity in consumer preferences for electric vehicles across generations and cities in China

China is currently the world's biggest electric vehicle (EV) market, in which mostly mature consumers in first-tier cities are buying EVs. However, the changing market and policy environment are challenging the sustainability of this trend. This study conducts a nationwide stated preference (SP) experiment in China to examine preference heterogeneity towards EVs across (1) different generations and (2) different tiers of cities. Discrete choice analysis reveals that the tier of cities has a significant effect on adoption preferences for EVs. Surprisingly, consumers in smaller cities exhibit stronger preference for EVs, while an insignificant difference in preference is found between consumers of different generations. The interaction effect between the tier of cities and the generations further demonstrates that younger consumers in small cities most prefer EVs. This can be explained by their evaluations of the psychosocial advantages of EVs and their aspiration for a future of EV-based mobility. This research contributes to the broad literature of technology adoption, but more specifically, the research offers new insights on consumers’ EV preference heterogeneity with respect to geographic and demographic dimensions. The study has important business and policy implications relating to the EV transition in China in consideration of the two tested dimensions

Cutting-edge technologies for small business and innovation in the era of COVID-19 global health pandemic

The adoption of cutting-edge technologies to steer business activities during community lockdown to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, even if involuntarily, provides evidence that technologies not only offer competitive advantages but also provides a means for survival, by improvising existing business models. In June 2019, we issued a call for papers to address the awareness, adoption, and implementation challenges of technologies that can drive businesses of all sizes in the fourth industrial revolution. We intended to identify as critical elements the “must-have” and a “nice to have” technologies for small businesses and innovation. Then the ongoing COVID-19 global health pandemic struck in December 2019, forcing the need for digitization of business activities and remote operations, which was considered a “nice to have” to immediately become a “critical to have” to survive in the ever increasingly uncertain business environment. This paper identifies the technologies, evaluates disruptive software platforms, and strategies needed for creating and managing small business innovation and highlighting the complexity of that process and the context within which this process takes place. We integrate this discussion alongside a summary of the articles included in the Special Issue. The current realities show that technologies that enable social business creation, customer relationship management systems, new communications channels, virtual reality technologies for remote operations, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are crucial to lowering the costs of doing business. Big data and predictive and visual analytics are critical enablers to aiding complex business decisions in the current challenging business climate