Summary
Avy Punwasee, Managing Partner at Revenue Management Labs, was featured in Fast Company breaking down why Ferrari’s new electric model, the Luce, has struggled with the brand’s existing customer base despite being priced consistent with the flagship tier. Avy argues the story is about pricing power, not EV adoption.
Avy Punwasee, Managing Partner at Revenue Management Labs, was recently featured in Fast Company with his take on Ferrari’s launch of the Luce, its first fully electric model. In the article, Avy explains why the market’s reaction to the Luce has little to do with electric vehicles and everything to do with pricing power. You can read the full feature on Fast Company here.
This feature highlights a lesson every premium brand eventually has to face: the price tag is never the whole story. Here is what it means for businesses managing their own pricing power.
Why This Wasn’t an EV Story
Since the Luce launched, most of the coverage has focused on EV skepticism among Ferrari’s customer base. Avy’s view is that this framing misses the real issue. Ferrari’s loyal customers rejected the Luce because of its design, not its powertrain. The car has four doors, five seats, and smooth surfaces where customers expected sharp lines and an unmistakably fast silhouette. When a brand’s most loyal buyers no longer see themselves in a new product, no price point can close that gap on its own.
Pricing Power Is Earned, Not Assigned
Ferrari priced the Luce at roughly 550,000 euros, in line with where a flagship model should sit. The number itself was not the problem. Pricing power depends on whether customers believe that number is earned, and that belief is built through consistent signals over time about who a brand serves and what it stands for. The moment those signals shift, the price can stay exactly the same while the power behind it starts to erode.
The Discipline Behind the Brand
Ferrari has since scaled back its EV ambitions, cutting its target from 40% of the lineup to 20%, while holding firm on price across its combustion and hybrid models without resorting to discounts or volume chasing. That discipline, more than any single launch, is what protects a premium brand’s margins over the long run.
Leverage Our Expertise to Protect Your Pricing Power
As highlighted in the Fast Company article, pricing power is not a fixed asset. It is maintained through every product decision and every signal a brand sends about who it is building for. Revenue Management Labs helps companies protect and grow that pricing power through structured, evidence based pricing strategy.
