In the Thai EV market, siblings assist China's BYD in taking an early lead

A little over a year ago, Pratarnwong and Pratarnporn Phornprapha, siblings, launched BYD in Thailand as the exclusive national distributor for the Chinese electric vehicle maker. Sales skyrocketed, forcing them to regularly tear up business plans.

Pratarnwong and his sister Pratarnporn described how, in just 15 months, Rever assisted BYD in turning Thailand into its largest overseas market.

Rever assisted BYD in surpassing EV rivals such as Tesla and Great Wall Motor and breaking the long-standing hold of Japanese auto giants Toyota and Honda on the second-largest auto market in Southeast Asia by vigorously cultivating a dealer network, implementing standard pricing, and utilizing traditional yet successful marketing techniques.

The world's best-selling electric vehicle manufacturer, BYD, is stepping up its search for growth outside of its core but slowing China market, and Rever's quick success provides a window into its strategy.

As per research firm Counterpoint, the Chinese automaker presently holds the third-largest share in the country's passenger car market, accounting for over 9%, and leads the EV market in Thailand with over 46% share.

The Federation of Thai Industries estimates that sales of passenger cars within Thailand's domestic market reached about 407,000 units in 2023.

According to Counterpoint, Thailand, a regional center for auto manufacturing where BYD is constructing a $490 million facility to produce 150,000 EVs annually, accounted for 5% of the automaker's global sales in the third quarter of last year.

Scale was a key component of Rever's strategy; according to Pratarnwong, the company only hired dealers who could guarantee a minimum of five outlets. This allowed the distribution network to grow quickly when demand for BYD EVs surged.