The ideal customer profile of the company is aspirational as well as practical and functional. He is aspirational because he clearly wants to associate with the thrill and adventure associated with fast racing cars and sports cars. Not only does the ideal customer want to associate with such ‘toys’ for his personal gratification, but also because they make him feel wealthy and important. However, he is also a practical and functional person since he does not wish to buy such a car with his own money. Someone who is fond of flaunting his wealth and belongings as a marker of social status will seek to buy and fully own such a race car. Enrolling in a club that offers such services are not seen as the same status marker as conventional gentlemen’s country clubs denote .
Another of the profiles of an ideal customer is one who has the capital outlay to buy his own luxury sports car, but cannot decide which model or brand to buy. This customer is an ideal fit for the company because by being able to use Fast Toys’ membership, he will have access to a wide pool of cars at a relatively lesser cost. It will enable him to get a hands-on experience driving a variety of luxury sports cars for almost a year and thus enable the customer to make an informed purchase.
The final category of ‘ideal’ customers for Fast Toys is the aficionados and those who ‘collect’ a large variety of luxury sports and racing cars, just for the experience. Although they have the time, inclination and money to become a collector, they do not have enough space in a garage or home. This compels them to seek out a third-best option that is, enrolling in such a membership deal that will allow them to have access to a wide variety of cars. This sort of customer is probably the least common, yet sets apart the profile and character of the company .
Highest potential business offerings for Fast Toys, and comparisons to competitors –
Exotic Car Collection, a major player in the Los Angeles market, generally targets the super-rich, customers are putting forth expanding quantities of available luxury autos inside $100,000. Aston-Martin this year revealed its V-8 Vantage GT Coupe, characterized as an available luxury race auto by experts. The weakness for this club is that it has a smaller customer base that can shrink at any time if some of the customers or members lose interest in the club. Thus, the club has to invest a lot to keep the members engaged.
Beverly Hills Rent Cars targets a very high-income customer profile as well. This club counts some minor celebrities and people working in Hollywood as part of their club, and this adds value to their company. It is evident that Fast Toys would not be able to attract the same category if customers because it is a relatively new player. The core strength of Beverly Hills Rent Cars lies in its old brand image. This also enables them to keep initial membership costs relatively low, at around $66,000 a year, which makes them more competitive. For Gotham Dream Cars, the idea is much more modest and functional. It follows a lower cost strategy and targets less rich people and more the newly rich and aspiring upper-middle class young professionals. Its idea is to influence those customers who are not likely to buy a high-value car, and do not see themselves as owners of a luxury car. The weakness for this club is that is would always have a lower return-on-0investment ratio because it targets relatively lower value customers monetarily. Fast Toys would to an extent suffer from the same problem .
Black & White Car Rental targets more of a middle aged demographic of customers. Its main target customers are upper-middle income business executives and managers. It differs from the others in that it presents more of a professional, executive image of luxury than a profligate, celebrity lifestyle. Its core strengths are its loyal customer base and strong brand image in the market. It also offers the Cayenne SUV, which weakens the estimation of the brand in general, has so far strengthened it. The Cayenne was going to wreck Porsche as an executive-oriented brand that attracts more middle-aged customers; all things considered it has made Black & White Car Rental super-productive. The weakness of this club is that it has to invest a lot in maintenance and insurance for the obviously very high-value cars. Not only is this a significant investment, but it also poses a long-term risk which has to be mitigated. The risk mitigation on security for these cars, in the form of insurance, adds to the cost of doing business, although it is ultimately passed on to the customer .
Centurion Lifestyle is a super-premium brand that is quite successful in having the highest revenues and profits, and targets the high-value customers. To some extent it offer more autos and to a limited extent to acquaint mid-range with top of the line auto purchasers to super-top of the line autos, Exotic Car Collection, as well, might be ready to deliver a SUV estimated respectably — at any rate, contrasted with different Lamborghinis. The weakness of this model and strategy is that it needs a lot of working capital and a large portion f it goes towards servicing the debt. This is not a healthy long-term strategy for a club.
How Fast Toys can increase their business in the Los Angeles market –
Being rich is not as a matter of course the principle with regards to needing to apparatus around in an intriguing vehicle for a few days. Yes, rich customers who own costly game autos need to drive a comparable sort of vehicle when voyaging. Be that as it may, the lion's share of clients who rent forte autos are the individuals who can't stand to purchase one.
In spite of the fact that Gotham Dream Cars obliges a scope of customers, Lehmann-Haupt says numerous are wives and lady friends who need to get their spouses and beaus an interesting birthday or commemoration present. Another normal customer is the 30-something, male little entrepreneur who doesn't have enough discretionary cashflow to buy a fascinating auto, he says.
There are some major proprietary renting car companies that have a big market share in the Los Angeles area. The main customers for these companies are usually tourists and visitors to the city who stay for a short amount of time. At San Diego's Rent-A-Vette, neighborhood customers lease the autos generally for weekend getaways. The Gotham armada incorporates a Lamborghini Gallardo some other Italian top-notch brands, a BMW M5 and a Corvette C6. Lehmann-Haupt just bought a Lamborghini Murcielago.
Outlandish auto rental administrators must go well beyond the standard protections to guarantee they're leasing to trustworthy customers. Gotham Dream Cars does a criminal personal investigation, a driving record check and a credit check. The organization likewise takes a $10,000 security store on top. Claim to fame Rental Cars does not do a criminal record verification. The organization ensures the real charge card is swiped, and takes a store of $1,500 to $5,000.
In terms of security, one of the most common techniques are taking a thumbprint and a a confirmed photocopy of drivers’ licenses. The security deposit is equivalent to a day's rental. The managers of the company need to have many GPS systems installed in the offices to track the vehicles. The managers need also to check with the criminal antecedents of the drivers as well as whether they have a history of fatal accidents before. In general, people who are judged to be unreliable drivers and/or have felonies are not allowed to rent the vehicles.
Administrators say protection contemplations are the one of the greatest deterrents to entering the outlandish auto rental business. Numerous fascinating auto rental administrators back their autos, requiring an outsider protection arrangement, instead of self-guaranteeing. Moreover, there is also the factor of third-party harm, which includes not only accidents but unintentional harm by parking lot attendants and other dangerous drivers. Thus, need for third-party insurance is very essential in order to secure the property and assets. The Police of a particular precinct may also be notified of the presence of company cars, so that they do not react adversely to an expensive car parked in an ordinary area, and conduct stop-and-search or other criminal procedures. Thus, the ownership documents of the vehicle need to be transferred and signed by the customer so as to avoid police attention .
How can Fast Toys increase customer exposure to ancillary activities such as rentals, driving tours and track days?
In some of the more exclusive companies and clubs, the offerings are not only varied, but more exotic because they have more foreign-built cars. The variety includes Italian and English cars, because these two countries have an exotic image in the US about expertise in luxury car production. In Los Angeles, the market is dominated by offers to clients four for more adventures product ranges and choices: colorful games autos, fun convertibles as well as large off-road vehicles, pickup trucks and SUVs.
Thus, offering easily recognizable and flashy brands seem to be a common way to increase the market size and popularity of such clubs and companies. The key is to find out what the customers are in the location for, and offer the club membership as a subsidiary. Thus, for tourists, the club can package its membership along with tour guides, travel brochures, partner with expensive hotels, and popular tourist attractions. Fast Toys can also offer customers the opportunity for chauffeured long drives in their cars from their point of origin to the club premises. This can be packaged as a pre-sales pitch and will help the company to gain a lot of goodwill from prospective customers and from the market in general. Location and setting can also play a big role in this, usually in the suburbs, customers prefer larger, more fuel-demanding off-road vehicles and SUVs, while in the city center, smaller and more compact but well-designed cars are more popular .
Evaluation of the Los Angeles Location
Los Angeles has a wide and varied class and income structure, but a large high-income group is always present in some of the more exclusive suburbs. However, a company such as Fast Toys will target not only the highest income brackets but also aspirational young adults and upper0middle income groups, who live more in the northern suburbs of Los Angeles. Santa Monica can obviously be a good location for the club, however the location of Los Angeles itself may not be able to provide an aggregate market size of more than 300,000 people. That may be enough for initial requirements of the company, but future growth will be a bit difficult .
Other key markets for Fast Toys:
A branch in the Bay Area in San Francisco will add to the reach of the company as well as ensure a more diverse customer profile, since San Francisco has a larger number of young adult professionals who work in the high-technology and financial industries. This can provide an interesting avenue of expansion of Fast Toys’ customer base and target market. Eventually, the company can shift to Las Vegas to target more of the tourist and pleasure crowd, but California is likely to offer long-term returns for the future. The focus of expanding and newer markets remains on upper-middle income young professionals. If expansion to other parts of California is a success, the option of expanding to similarly profiled markets in Seattle can be explored .
Is franchising a viable option?
Franchising may not be viable for Fast Toys until further high-intensity growth and expansion is established. At the present moment, franchising will only lead to dilution of the brand image and customer experience, and associated problems of control over franchises and managerial disruptions. Considering the core strengths of its competitors, especially older and established players such as Centurion Lifestyle and Black & White Car Rental, it should not attempt to challenge their existing market share. It should first attempt to secure its own small and loyal customer base and use that as a springboard to expand.
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