Featuring Tony Jiang, President of Sunsea Parking (China), Anthony Eskinazi, CEO of JustPark (UK), and Stuart Norman, CEO of Parking Australia. Hosted by Wen Sang, CEO of Smarking (U.S.).
Timestamps
0:50 - COVID's impact on the US parking industry and recovery trends
9:36 - Insight from Anthony Eskinazi, CEO of JustPark, on the impact of COVID
17:01 - The current state of transportation and mobility in the UK and 2021 outlook
27:52 - Insight from Tony Jiang, President of SunSea Parking (largest operator in China) regarding the impact of COVID to China's parking market
48:49 - The current state of transportation and mobility Australia
1:01:35 - Outlook on 2021, insight from Stuart Norman
COVID's Impact on the US Parking Industry & Outlook on Recovery
Before COVID: revenue was up +20% YoY for off-street parking
At the start of COVID: -47% down in March and -94% in April YoY revenue change
Parking activity is recovering slowly but surely week-over-week
As of September, parking revenue is down -57% down YoY
Recovery trends differ per region, visit our Market Watch for more granular data
Recovery is happening much faster with online sales channels
Get free access to this data, meet with our team to learn more
COVID's Impact on Transportation in the UK with Anthony Eskinazi
At the start of COVID, the UK government enacted a congestion charge, charging commuters 15 GBP ($19 USD) to drive into the city
At the height of the pandemic: -90% of parking volume YoY
There are behavioral differences per region: Canary Wharf is pretty much a 'ghost town', parking revenue is down 65-75% YoY. Whereas the West End is only down 10-20% as more people have returned to the office
Current state: Overall, parking volume is 20-30% lower YoY
As of August, JustPark started to see YoY growth. Since there has been a significant transition from public transportation to private vehicles, more commuters are leveraging online sales channels to guarantee their parking
2021 Trends & Looking Ahead:
On-street real estate is being repurposed, curbside usage is changing faster than any other parking segment
Micro-mobility models such as electric scooters and bikes will continue to grow
Use of electric cars is growing, increasing need for charging stations
Workers are embracing a work-from-home and in-office hybrid, therefore monthly parking programs need to be more flexible to accommodate new schedules
The pandemic has accelerated the digitization of the parking industry and adoption of online channels, especially as it has helped recover parking demand and drive new customers to open garages
Recommendations to Peers:
"I've noticed organizations are now more open to collaboration within a sector, they're moving away from the mentality that they have to do everything themselves in order to stay competitive. In the parking sector, there's the accelerated digitization of parking through online sales channels, micro-mobility models, or charging stations - opportunities for partnership where it's a win for everyone" - Anthony Eskinazi
The Impact of COVID in China & Outlook on Recovery with Tony Jiang
China's parking market: the largest parking market worldwide, with about 100 million parking bays
In February, traffic and revenue in China was down to 11% at the height of the pandemic
However, volume quickly recovered week-over-week, back to YoY volume by August 2020
Overall, China is completely back to normal, airports are getting busy now too
Large increase in monthly parking volume, as commuters opt out of public transportation
Online retails sales haven't impacted shopping malls too much since, malls are more for the social experience and food
There has been a large increase in new car sales as commuters move away from public transportation
Expectations for Q4 2020 & Looking Ahead to 2021
There are still worries that another wave of COVID will hit, especially as international travel increases, 'it just takes one person for all of this to start again"
There has been a psychological change within people, after the long shutdown, people are happy to spend their money again and luxury items are selling out fast. Retail consumption is up 6.5% YoY, consumer confidence has improved
Recommendation to Peers:
Accept and adopt digital technology. In China, over 90% of parking transactions are done through online payment
Invest in online platforms to automate data needs
"We don't have control over the pandemic or the policies. But we CAN control costs, cut costs to make sure you stay afloat. Communicate with your investors and executives, reassure them with data." - Tony Jiang, President of SunSea Parking
COVID's Impact on Transportation & Mobility in Australia with Stuart Norman
The Australian parking market consists 19.8 million registered vehicles, with a population of 25 million (compared to 273.6 million vehicles in the US with a population of 328 million), a total of a $4.5 billion dollar industry
The impact of COVID has varied greatly across the country, Melbourne is very different than Perth right now
The city of Melbourne is under the world's longest lockdown (because of a large second wave): Over 100 days and they're only allowed to go out for 1-2 hours per day. Currently, there are 10-15 new cases per day
Whereas, Perth, has been completely back to normal and COVID-free since about August
Since flights out of Australia are prohibited, the airline industry is pretty much gone
Consumer behavior and trust has changed, even in Perth where things are relatively back to normal, people don't trust public transportation and are driving into work
Workforce and office buildings recovered quickly
Lockdowns and local policy have been the biggest contributors to the unique recovery rate per state
Expectations for Q4 2020 & Looking Ahead to 2021
"When we were ending the near of the first wave, we all thought it would be smooth from there. But the second wave really dampened the market." -Stuart N.
For the end of the year, besides airport and events, we expect to see an uplift in every market, nearing last years' activity
We expect recovery for airports and events to start in the middle of 2021
"Parking habits have changed, routines have changed, and lives changed. People don't do the same thing all five days of the working week. Sometimes they drive, sometimes they take transit. You can't bank on a monthly parker being in that spot everyday. We call them hybrid parkers, and that segment is growing rapidly. You have to adjust your monthly programs to accommodate." - Stuart Norman, CEO of Parking Australia
Recommendations to Peers:
Pay attention to the digital transformation, local governments will continue to adopt tap-and-go payment systems in response to COVID, and policies may change to enforce its use
Corporations may adopt their own parking management platform through a white label solution
Look at solutions for alternative uses to car parks
"We know that car parks are not full 100% of the time at all hours and days of weeks. Look at alternative use of car parks, there are so many opportunities! For example, there's an events company hosting 'Spookatopia' for Halloween this year, and they're renting out car parks for a ride-through experience.
We can only be limited by our imagination. We didn't think of these things before because we didn't HAVE to." - Stuart Norman, CEO of Parking Australia
Schedule a free consultation with Smarking to learn more about 2021 market trends and recovery strategies.
Smarking supports leading asset owners, municipalities, and operators such as LaSalle Investment Management, Macerich, City of Santa Monica, VPNE, One Parking, and many more to curb expenses, uncover revenue opportunities ,and accelerate recovery.
Coming Up
2021 Municipal Parking Strategies: Key Learnings from Smart Cities
Join us as we share strategies that have proved to be successful during COVID-19. Including pricing strategies that Smart Cities have implemented to manage the fiscal impact and policies that can support economic recovery.
Meet the Panel
Tony Jiang Wen Sang Anthony Eskinazi Stuart Norman