Since 2019, the report on the development of China’s pickup automobile industry, prepared and published by the Editorial Committee of China pickup Blue Book organized by the independent automobile network, has attracted extensive attention from the industry, and analyzes and prospects the domestic pickup industry and market every year. In November 2021, China pickup Blue Book (2020-2021) will be published. Before that, let’s take a look at the development of China’s pickup industry in 2019.

Portrait of pickup truck users, male to female ratio 9:1

Pickup trucks were first put into the market as tool vehicles. The truck classification and various policy restrictions of pickup trucks make the use scene of pickup trucks in China still dominated by goods, and the commercial attribute is relatively stable. Therefore, the usage scenario of goods and the large size of pickup decide that most pickup users are male, the male to female ratio of pickup users is 9:1, and female car owners are scarce. Among them, due to the fact that women buy or settle down on behalf of others, the ratio of men to women is 7:3, accounting for 5.88%. If considering the real use of pickup trucks, the ratio of men to women is still 9:1.

In terms of education level, because pickup trucks are still mainly freight, and most of the car owners are self-employed, the nature of the industry and use scenarios determine the education level of pickup truck owners. According to the survey, the educational background of pickup truck owners is mostly junior high school, high school and technical school, and very few bachelor degree or above.

In terms of age structure, the customer group of commercial vehicles is older, while the age structure of pickup truck users is relatively younger. According to the survey, the main age range of pickup truck owners is 31-40 years old, accounting for about 60%, while the proportion of pickup truck owners aged 26-30 and 41-50 is close, both accounting for 20% – 30%, that is, the proportion of pickup truck owners aged 26-40 is as high as 80%, and the main consumption of pickup truck is young and middle-aged people.

Pickup truck users of different ages have different acceptance of pickup truck prices. Generally speaking, the older the users are, the stronger their economic strength is, and the more inclined they are to buy pickups with higher prices. According to the survey, most people aged 26-30 are in the entrepreneurial stage and prefer about 90000 pickup trucks; People aged 31-40 are in a period of career improvement, such as contracting construction sites, and are more willing to choose about 120000 pickup trucks, while car owners aged 41-50 have stronger economic strength and choose more high-end pickup trucks of more than 130000.

From the perspective of industry structure, the industry structure of pickup truck consumers mainly includes three categories: private consumption, private owners and enterprises and institutions. According to the survey, private owners are the most important consumer group, accounting for 70% – 80%, mainly including:

1) The owner who contracts a project or starts a factory purchases pickup trucks for business operation for the use of workers;

2) Self employed or wholesale households with high-frequency transportation demand have personal transportation demand into the city or within the city;

3) Freelancers in suburban areas have the need to travel in suburban areas. In general, the proportion of private owners is on the rise. Especially since the lifting of the ban on pickup trucks, some single row (container goods), light truck and light passenger car owners choose to buy pickup trucks to meet their transportation needs in the city.

Enterprises and institutions are the second pick-up consumer group, accounting for about 20%. Generally speaking, they have strong demand for medium and short-distance transportation and carrying goods and people in the process of daily operation, and have high requirements for flexibility, mainly including engineering repair, municipal management, commercial transportation, etc.

Private consumption is a pickup group rising in recent years. Most of them are high-income groups who love refitting and off-road culture. The original intention of buying pickup is to experience the pleasure of off-road driving. At present, private consumption accounts for less than 5%.

(data source: Research)
Industry structure of pickup truck users in China

In terms of subdivided industries, among the main user groups of pickup trucks in China, engineering construction is the highest, accounting for 42%, wholesale and retail is the second, accounting for 18%, followed by agriculture, sideline and aquatic products, accounting for 14%, and the proportion of production and manufacturing, decoration, vehicle maintenance, transportation, mining, forest farm agriculture, accommodation and catering is almost the same, all below 10%.