Felipe Fera, an automotive influencer from Brazil, is keen to promote Chinese electric cars by producing content to introduce their good features and help potential buyers make choice.
Fera said he loves cars since he was a kid. So as an adult, he worked in various automobile-related jobs, including being a car salesman and a car promoter.
As the 16th BRICS Summit just concluded Thursday in Kazan, Russia, Fera believes that BRICS will bring consumption, investment and a development vision suiting Brazilian culture in the future.
"My expectations are very big. BRICS promotes industrial development. This is one of the roles of BRICS for serving developing nations like Brazil. Brazil is the biggest country in Latin America today, in terms of population and trade. So I believe BRICS will bring consumption, investment and a structural vision for this economic block that really favors our culture," said Fera.
As members of the BRICS, China and Brazil are increasingly exchanging views on the automotive industry. In Fera's work, he found that environmentally friendly and durable Chinese electric vehicles have opened up the market in Brazil, becoming the vehicle of choice for many Brazilians.
"I always like cars. And I also like the machine as a part of the car. And when I saw that it was possible to manufacture all this in a more responsible way, that really excited me. So I was invited by a car assembly plant to test an electric car. And I looked at it and thought, 'Wow!'" he said.
Brazilians have a characteristic that's very different to others, Fera said. They view a car as property, and so they always have more maintenance to do for upkeep, he said, noting that vehicles are constantly depreciating in quality and durability.
"Chinese electric cars on the other hand have been developed for durability. So these quality cars have arrived in Brazil. My weapons, if I can call it that, are the social networks. Brazil has a large number of social media users. It's something Brazilians like. So the idea is to produce content that makes them more comfortable in buying Chinese electric cars," said Fera.
At present, with more Chinese automobile companies choosing to build factories in Brazil, Brazil has advanced as a manufacturing and developing center for Chinese cars.
"Right now we have a factory that is being built by BYD in Bahia. We have a factory being built in Sao Paulo by GWM. They are already involved in research and development. So you already have a very advanced center of Chinese vehicles in Brazil," said Fera.
Fera said that many people now will talk to him and he is very well received in the streets. They say, "Look, I bought an electric car because of you," which makes him even determined to back China's EV project in Brazil.