This poster from CAR (China Auto Rental Inc.), China’s largest car rental service provider, is great! The picture of the poster was taken in an elevator in a residential compound in Shanghai.
At a glance the poster is quite amusing, and the message, even if you ignore what’s written, is very explicit.
When looking closer at the poster, it gets even better:
- Why is the man on the left wearing what seems to be a pink Chanel dress with a side zip?
- Why is the man on the right wearing either a luchador mask, or a nylon swimming mask made famous by old ladies keen on avoiding the sun whilst swimming at a beach in Qingdao?
No matter the answer, this ad is fun. The Chinese headline copy can be roughly translated to: “Die of the smell in a crowded bus, or die of comfort in a rental car”.
China Auto Rental Inc. (CAR) has had explosive growth since being established in 2007 with the company now present in 69 major Chinese cities and a leader in terms of fleet size, network coverage, brand awareness etc. The company also forged a partnership with global leading car rental brand, Hertz early last year.
They seem keen to further strengthen their market leader position and as of last year entered into a multi-year partnership with David Beckham who will “support their future business initiatives”. The partnership will undoubtedly be expensive, however with the car rental market set to boom in size to 50 billion RMB by the end of 2018, it can be seen as a justified investment in the future.
