Beyaz Wins Consumer Preference Ranking for the Ninth Consecutive Time

Axalta has released its 67th Annual Global Automotive Color Popularity Report. According to the report, automotive colors were dominated by white at 38%, black at 19% and grey at 13% in the top three positions. White has thus maintained its global leadership position among automotive colors since 2011. Silver, however, is not among the top three this year. With a 10% drop in popularity, silver has fallen to its lowest level in the past decade. In contrast to this decline in silver, grey is showing increased popularity worldwide. The four leading colors—white, black, grey and silver—hold an 80% share of the global market. These colors dominate the automotive sector. Nancy Lockhart, Global Color Product Manager at Axalta, expressed satisfaction with the release of the 2019 Global Automotive Color Popularity Report, noting that after more than 65 years of work on customer preferences in automotive colors, the company is a leading firm in identifying trends. Looking at automotive color preferences regionally from the report, white declined by 1% in Europe and grey rose by 2%, moving to the top position in Europe. Elke Dirks, EMEA Region Color Designer at Axalta, stated: "In Europe, following increased demand for grey color in the SUV segment last year, we saw 5% growth in the compact/sport segment this year. For the first time in Europe, the natural variety of refined and sophisticated grey surpassed white, the long-standing favorite color. By choosing grey, Europeans demonstrated their desire to reduce emotional noise in their lives and feel more comfortable." In Asia, white maintained its leadership with a 1% increase in popularity and the highest popularity rate at 49%. Annie You, Axalta's China Color Designer, expressed: "Chinese consumer preferences clearly show white in the lead, reflecting preference for a modern, sophisticated and clean appearance."

White maintains leadership in North and South America; grey on the rise

Nancy Lockhart noted that the four neutral colors—white, black, grey and silver—continue to lead globally, and highlighted that other colors have been rising on the popularity scale in recent years. Lockhart stated: "One thing is certain: consumers are beginning to bring different perspectives to vehicle colors, and Axalta is well-positioned to collaborate with our automotive sector customers to meet these needs." Lockhart concluded: "Blue, red and brown/beige color tones are rapidly becoming noticed on today's roads. Blue at 10% is the most popular color in North America and Europe, so finding the right shade of blue to match your taste is no problem at all." Highlights from the 2019 report by region:

• Africa – Light colors such as silver and white continue to lead with a combined 58% share.
• Asia – Pearl white colors hold the leading popular color position in this region and this rate is increasing.
• Europe – Grey has surpassed white, the long-standing favorite color, to become the most popular color.
• North America – Blue increased by 2%, accounting for 10% of total vehicles.
• Russia – Warm tones such as beige/brown were preferred far more than in other regions at 12%.
• South America – Silver was the only region showing growth, with a 1% change.