3 Ways Polestar is Paving the Way As a Digital-First, Electric Vehicle Company
Polestar is a Swedish electric vehicle company known for their progressive (and beautiful) premium cars. Founded in 2017 and valued at roughly $20B, they have been rapidly growing across North America.
In an episode of the Y in the Valley podcast, Head of Polestar USA Gregor Hembrough offers a look underneath the hood at the three strategic elements that help Polestar remain innovative and able to adapt at speed and scale.
- An Industry-Breaking Business Model
Polestar is more than just an electric car manufacturer — Gregor describes the company as a design-focused electric car performance brand instead. They have made waves in the automotive industry by being a design-first company that is transparent and innovative in every aspect of their technology and product. From the beginning, their founding principles centered around three goals: to reduce their carbon footprint, maintain ethics in supply chain management and put traceability in every component within the car.
“We thought, how can we challenge the automotive norms and create a product that’s a messenger for the future?”
While many electric car companies are new to the game, Gregor sees Polestar as having the advantage of being a “94-year-old start-up” (they are 50% owned by Volvo). This gives them a level of quality, fit and finish to their cars that’s unheard of for a company just starting out. This business and engineering acumen on their side paired with access to Volvo’s manufacturing and distribution system means they can achieve the product quality and refinement they intended to be known for at a much faster pace.
2. A Redefined Customer Journey
Polestar didn’t just create a new brand of cars — they created an entirely new buying process and customer journey. Their digital-first strategy shatters the mold of the traditional automotive environment and path to purchase. Customers can learn everything about the car, purchase it and have it directly delivered all without ever stepping foot into a dealership.
“We have moved from a PowerPoint-type business model into more of an Excel environment — everything is much more operational.”
Their robust, immersive website shows the impressive features of the car and puts people in the driver’s seat to configure it exactly how they want. The emphasis on convenience for the customer carries over into their post-purchase services, too. Everything is brought to them — no trip to the dealership needed. By meeting the expectations of a consumer in a predominantly digital, instant gratification world, Polestar effectively markets to and educates their audience in an entirely new way.
3. A Flexible, Educated Path to Market
One of the ways Polestar stays at the forefront of innovation and trends in the electric vehicle space is by listening to their customers and constantly adapting. Because the average lifecycle of a vehicle is seven years, the planning and eventual launch of a new product start at least three to four years prior. To successfully stay nimble under timelines like this requires a deep understanding of the competitive landscape and what customers expect.
By consistently refining and optimizing for the consumer’s expectations, they are able to quickly adapt and innovate as needed. Polestar is always listening and learning to stay one step ahead. As Gregor says, “it’s all about listening often and adapting early.” The customer experience is everything — the more you learn from what customers are experiencing the more successful your product can be.
With a unique business model, customer journey and learned adaptability, Polestar has positioned themselves at the forefront of innovation for electric vehicles. While every car company is expected to have an electric vehicle offering within the next two years, Gregor and the Polestar team aren’t concerned. At the end of the day, more electric vehicles will drive the adaptation, awareness and eventual conversion to electric driving — which will bring society one step closer to Polestar’s ultimate mission of a carbon-neutral world by 2040.
To learn more about how Polestar continues to champion sustainability and cutting-edge technology, listen to the Y in the Valley episode, hosted by YML founder and CEO Ashish Toshniwal.
