BMW 2014 Annual Report Download - page 43

43 COMBINED MANAGEMENT REPORT
DriveNow, the car-sharing service offered by BMW i,
MINI and Sixt, enables users to rent BMW and MINI
vehicles according to their needs. Via an app, the web-
site or directly on the road, it is a simple matter for users
to find, book and park the cars again in another part
of the city. The DriveNow service is currently available
in Munich, Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Cologne, San
Francisco, Vienna and, since December 2014, in London,
too. The fleet currently consists of about 2,800 cars. At
the end of 2014, over 390,000 customers had benefited
from the premium car-sharing service. Under the brand
name AlphaCity, we also offer a car-sharing scheme
for
businesses. Up to November 2014, 10,000 registered
employees had used the AlphaCity service.
ParkNow is an app- and Web-based service, which helps
resolve parking problems for users. On the one hand,
parking spaces are available to customers in partner car
parks which can be booked online. On the other hand,
the service makes it easier to find roadside parking spots.
ChargeNow is the BMW i mobility service that sim-
plifies
finding and using public charging stations run by
various suppliers belonging to an international net-
work. In 2014, a large proportion of BMW i customers
opted for this service. ChargeNow currently has over
24,000 charging points at its disposal in 19 markets.
BMW i Ventures was founded back in 2011 to ensure
optimum conditions for the use and promotion of
inno-
vative mobility services. Based in New York, BMW i
Ventures facilitates access to new technologies and opens
up new customer groups, thereby reinforcing the strate-
gic approach adopted by BMW i. Life360, MyCityWay,
JustPark, ChargePoint and ChargeMaster are examples
of some of BMW i Ventures’ strategic investments.
Customer services remain on track in 2014
In 2014, sales of BMW and MINI spare parts, accessories
and services were well up on the previous year’s level,
with the major markets in the USA, Germany and China
making a decisive contribution to this performance.
Growth was also registered in many other markets, such
as Russia, Korea and South Africa. The dynamic growth
in business goes hand in hand with investments in the
future logistics network and with many other measures
aimed at boosting customer satisfaction.
New premium experience in showrooms
By 2017, the Future Retail programme will be
imple-
mented worldwide with a view to enhancing the pre-
mium
experience of our brands and products.
Future Retail comprises:
– new and additional opportunities to make contact
with our brands (for example, the BMW and MINI
Driving Center in South Korea and BMW Brandstore
Brussels),
– comprehensively improved dealerships, which offer
a premium experience, and
– targeted support for dealerships, enabling customer
needs to be met even more effectively.
The use of some 1,900 Product Geniuses
worldwide in
more than 1,000 dealerships has proved to be
particu-
larly successful.