Now there’s a headline we couldn’t resist. Yes, Polestar – those progressive Swedes who love to do things differently – are bringing together connoisseurs of cars and aficionados of art. Having seemingly only just arrived in the UK, the Gothenburg-based manufacturer has announced that the production of the low volume, hand-built Polestar 1 will end later this year. And this is how they’re promoting it – with this great marketing idea.
Basically, prospective buyers who also happen to be art collectors can now trade in their defunct De Koonings or their unloved Uhligs to pay for the £140,000 vehicle.
Thomas Ingenlath, CEO of Polestar, says: “I love the idea of letting artists and collectors buy a Polestar 1 with art – it is such a special car and we wanted to find a unique way of celebrating it before its production reaches an end. It is hand-made, precious and tangible, much like a piece of art.”
It’s a great marketing gimmick, you’ve got to admit that. And apparently it was part-inspired by those Kanye West shoes selling for a ton of cash at a recent auction. Just as there are new ways of designing cars, it seems there are now new ways of buying cars.
Of course, our Scandi friends must also have noticed that the global art market is going through something of a frenzied period, so whatever daubs they receive for their lovely cars they should be able to turna decent profit further down the line.
As we have always said, there’s an art to selling cars…