Your customer’s shortlist may not match your competitor list.
Years ago, we surprised Mercedes-Benz with a finding: its biggest online cross-shopping competitor in the UK was Kia. The Sportage was prompting buyers to look beyond conventional brand categories.
A similar pattern is emerging around Jaecoo. Our eDataXchange data shows interest from people also researching Audi and Tesla. The Jaecoo 7’s UK sales momentum—topping March’s chart and reaching the top ten in April—provided context for that attention.
What shoppers compare matters
More than one in ten Jaecoo customers in the online comparison were also considering Volkswagen. This describes digital cross-shopping, not confirmed purchases or ownership.
For established brands, the important question is whether internal competitor lists still reflect the alternatives customers actually consider.
Value and reputation both count
Brand positioning is becoming more fluid as buyers weigh product quality and price. That does not make brand investment irrelevant. It makes reputation something to sustain, rather than assume.
The lesson from Kia then and Jaecoo now is simple: listen to the customer’s shortlist, not just your own market segmentation.
Adapted from Sophus3’s LinkedIn post dated 2026-05-19. Figures and market observations relate to that original update.