New Business Models Europe 2025

As part of a global strategic initiative, the European strategy division of a Japanese automotive OEM was tasked with designing new, scalable business models focused on future mobility. Concepts were developed in cross-functional teams, aligned with the global HQ in Japan, and prioritized strategically. The goal: to identify commercially viable concepts across the mobility value chain and address structural revenue gaps in Europe.

Challenges

Initial situation, pain points, and setup:

• Lack of a structured evaluation framework to prioritize strategic initiatives

• Overlapping efforts across disconnected workstreams with no central governance

• Innovation topics introduced too late into strategic decision-making

• Varying maturity levels and market dynamics across European countries

• Culturally sensitive expectations from HQ regarding framing, reasoning, and posture

Objectives

• Identify new value creation opportunities along the future mobility chain

• Design commercially viable business models with clear execution logic

• Provide a board-ready prioritization and decision-making framework

• Prepare implementation plans with defined KPIs, milestones, and resource needs

• Embed selected models into corporate strategic planning

Approach

• Five themed workshop series with cross-functional European teams

• Development of business models across the following areas:

  • Car sharing

  • Predictive Maintenance

  • E-mobility & charging infrastructure

  • Hydrogen technologies

  • Recycling & circular economy

  • Automotive banking & financing

• For each model: Business logic, Business Model Canvas, financial case, KPIs, and roadmap

• Continuous alignment with european leadership and HQ in Japan

• Additional growth opportunities identified and prepared for staged follow-up initiatives

Obstacles

• Misalignment on strategic intent and role of individual initiatives

• Low internal visibility for non-core topics

• High effort required for consolidation under tight resource constraints

• Differing evaluation logic and expectations between Japan and Europe

• Unresolved governance for scaling mid-priority models

Critical success factors

• Consistent evaluation logic to ensure comparability across models

• Clear financial rationale and concise executive communication

• Early prioritization and alignment across steering levels

• Transparent team accountability and structured reporting

• Culturally sensitive stakeholder management across continents

Key results

• Eight fully developed business models with strategic evaluation

• Three models approved by HQ for global rollout

• Clearly defined value lever identified – impact in the upper hundreds of millions (EUR)

• Implementation framework in place, incl. timeline, resources, and governance

• Integration into the group's strategic roadmap

• Remaining models documented for future activation