Kinetic Engineering is eyeing the rural markets for growth in the motorcycle segment. The company has begun laying the groundwork for the launch of Boss, a 100 cc bike targetted chiefly at the rural sector.
It is also planning to expand its dealer and service network in small towns and rural areas through sub-dealers.
"We expect motorcycles sales to continue growing in rural areas, where bad roads, high mileage requirement, and predominantly male usage make them the ideal vehicles. Hence, we are working on expanding our dealer and service centre network in small towns and rural areas by appointing sub-dealers," Sulajja Firodia Motwani, joint managing director of Kinetic Engineering, said.
Kinetic's present range -- Challenger, a 100 cc 4-stroke bike in the entry segment, and the GF 125 in the performance segment -- primarily cater to the urban and semi-urban markets.
The Boss is a cheaper variant of the Challenger minus a few cosmetic features like the digital side-stand and gear indicators. However, its engine and performance are at par with those of the Challenger.
Slated for an April launch, it will take on Bajaj Auto's Boxer, which met huge success in the rural markets with sales of around 40,000-50,000 units per month.
Kinetic is also planning to launch a powerful 150 cc variant of the GF 125 in the near future, Motwani revealed.
The GF 150 will come with an 15 bhp engine and will take on Bajaj Auto's Pulsar 180. However, industry sources expect Kinetic to wait for sales of the GF 125 to pick up before launching the GF 150.
In the other categories, Kinetic is planning to launch Zing, a 65 cc product, to take on the TVS Scooty.
The company is also hoping to complete the national launch of its 4-stroke scooter Nova, which will compete against Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India's Activa.
