Polestar doubles down on EVs as younger buyers 'believe in science'
Unlike other brands, Polestar has reaffirmed its all-electric strategy, saying "the mobility of tomorrow needs to be with zero emissions"
Swedish EV brand Polesar has reaffirmed its commitment to only producing full-electric cars despite the slower-than-expected uptake of EV tech.
Speaking at an exclusive media event at the firm’s Gothenburg HQ last month, chief executive Michael Lohscheller told a small group including Auto Express that the brand’s younger customer base is more embracing of both the new technology and the environmental rationale behind it.
“Our customers, especially younger ones, believe in science – climate change is real,” said Lohscheller. “Which is why if we said we were doing an ICE vehicle, they would be like ‘what?’. For us it is a good opportunity because we are so focused; we will not do a hybrid.”
“The world needs to be simplified, the mobility of tomorrow needs to be with zero emissions and the best way of that is with electrification,” he added. “The transformation will happen; we are not in a declining market, BEV is growing and the opportunity for us is to increase coverage.”
New models on the way include the Polestar 5 grand tourer this summer, an estate version of the 4 coming late this year, the all-new 2 due in 2027 and a small SUV badged 7 a year behind that. The new models will take Polestar to 57 per cent coverage of the EV sector, and Loscheller said there’s no current ambition to add further models in new areas of the market. “We will leave the other 40 per cent alone,” he told us. “We don’t discuss too much if we would go below Polestar 7.”
According to the top man, Polestar’s average customer age of 45 is around a decade younger than the industry level, and these customers are drawn to the company’s focus on sustainability - one of its three core pillars alongside performance and design.
“The biggest differentiator I see actually is sustainability. Tell me a car company which publicly talks about sustainability these days? There are very few,” he declared, highlighting the brand’s 165-page sustainability report. “We talk about our CO2 emissions, we talk about gender pay, we talk about traceability of our materials; no other car company in the world is that open. And the young people say, don't stop it. And that's how I think we are differentiating.”
Get up to £3,500 off a new Polestar 2, 3 or 4 available from stock from Auto Express’s network of trusted dealers, though our Buy A Car service.
