NEW DELHI, Nov 12: Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd (SMIPL), the two-wheeler arm of Suzuki Motor Corp, is riding piggyback on group firm Maruti as it chases sales of one million units by 2020, says a top company official.
The company expects India to account for 50 per cent of Suzuki Motor Corporation’s (SMC) global sales by then, up from the current 30 per cent.
“In the automobile (space), we are already a big player. So, my dream is that even in motorcycles, we should also be a big player,” Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd (SMIPL) Managing Director Satoshi Uchida said.
He further said, “By 2020, when we are targeting selling one million units, India will account for around 50 per cent of SMC’s total two-wheeler sales, like what Maruti Suzuki does in four-wheelers.”
Elaborating on SMIPL’s strategy to leverage on synergies with Maruti Suzuki, he said SMIPL has been tapping network partners of the carmaker in expanding presence.
“Our advantage is Maruti Suzuki. We are trying to work with them. For example, more than 10 Maruti dealers are our motorcycle dealers and there is a very big contribution from them to our total sales,” Uchida said.
He further said, “There are many suppliers to Maruti. So, we can also sell to the employees of Maruti suppliers. There are so many synergies.”
According to SMIPL Executive Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Sajeev Rajasekharan, at present, SMIPL has 11 dealers and 19 other service partners of Maruti Suzuki.
“Together about 30 of their (Maruti’s) channel partners, sales and service, contribute to close to about 10 per cent of our sales,” he said, adding that it was around 6 per cent last year.
Asked how much the contribution will be when the company achieves sales target of one million by 2020, Rajasekharan said it should go up to around 15 per cent.
SMIPL has a total of 470 showrooms across India and is looking to end the ongoing fiscal with 500.
Uchida said that during SMIPL’s channel expansion, the company gives priority to an existing Maruti dealer.
Reiterating that India is a very important market for the company, Uchida said the country accounts for about 30 per cent of Suzuki’s global two-wheeler sales, making it its single-largest global market.
He added that the key to become a successful big player in the two-wheeler segment in India will be to emphasise on quality and premiumness, besides customising products to suit Indian taste.
“We are closely working together with our engineering team in Japan and make suitable models for India,” Uchida said. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel