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After losing market share to motorcycles earlier, scooters are back with a bang, accounting for about a fourth of the two-wheeler market in the North-eastern states, as well as 11 other states. Four years ago, scooters enjoyed such a share in only three states.
In at least seven states and the North-east, scooters account for at least a third of the market, while in Kerala, these dominate the market, with a 62 per cent share. The growth is primarily being seen in states in the South, West and North, which have better road infrastructure and are seeing rapid urbanisation.
Yadvinder Singh Guleria, senior vice-president and operating head (sales and marketing), Honda Motorcyle and Scooter India (HMSI), says growth in the scooter segment is being seen across the world, especially in countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations grouping, such as Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. “This trend has long legs in India”.
Guleria said the primary reason behind this growth was improved mileage. “Scooters such as Honda Activa now give mileage of 60 km a litre, comparable to a 100cc motorcycle (65 km/litre). The narrowing gap has helped growth.” Factors such as growth in the population of working women, unisex appeal, light weight and automatic transmission have also contributed to the growth.
Consider the case of Delhi: The share of scooters in the two-wheeler market grew from 18 per cent in FY11 to 35 per cent in FY14 and 41 per cent in FY15. The improving share in the national capital can be directly linked to the improvement in mileage, as commuters here typically travel long distances. Among southern states, Kerala leads the pack, with the share of the scooter segment rising from 30 per cent in FY11 to 52 per cent in FY14 and 62 per cent in FY15.
In at least seven states and the North-east, scooters account for at least a third of the market, while in Kerala, these dominate the market, with a 62 per cent share. The growth is primarily being seen in states in the South, West and North, which have better road infrastructure and are seeing rapid urbanisation.
Yadvinder Singh Guleria, senior vice-president and operating head (sales and marketing), Honda Motorcyle and Scooter India (HMSI), says growth in the scooter segment is being seen across the world, especially in countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations grouping, such as Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. “This trend has long legs in India”.
Guleria said the primary reason behind this growth was improved mileage. “Scooters such as Honda Activa now give mileage of 60 km a litre, comparable to a 100cc motorcycle (65 km/litre). The narrowing gap has helped growth.” Factors such as growth in the population of working women, unisex appeal, light weight and automatic transmission have also contributed to the growth.
Consider the case of Delhi: The share of scooters in the two-wheeler market grew from 18 per cent in FY11 to 35 per cent in FY14 and 41 per cent in FY15. The improving share in the national capital can be directly linked to the improvement in mileage, as commuters here typically travel long distances. Among southern states, Kerala leads the pack, with the share of the scooter segment rising from 30 per cent in FY11 to 52 per cent in FY14 and 62 per cent in FY15.
In states with a large rural base, such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha, the share of scooters remains below 25 per cent. Guleria, however, is hopeful that with an improvement in rural infrastructure, the acceptability of this segment will increase. “Currently, there are limitations in interiors, owing to smaller tyre size and ground clearance. If roads improve, the number of scooters could multiply in rural India,” he says. HMSI claims to have a 56 per cent share in the scooter segment. Its volumes grew 32 per cent last year, it adds.
The second-largest player in the segment, Hero MotoCorp, saw scooter sales grow 10 per cent in FY15. “We will be coming out with two new scooter platforms in the next two quarters. Our current scooter capacity is a million units and with the new launches, we look to gain market share,” said a company spokesperson. Companies such as Honda and Hero also export scooters, with such shipments rising to 196,000 units last year. Other key players in the domestic scooter sector are TVS Motor, India Yamaha Motor and Suzuki Motorcycle India.
Overall, scooters now account for 28 per cent of the two-wheeler market, against 17 per cent in FY11. In FY15, this segment increased its share to 28.15 per cent from 24.33 per cent a year ago, while the share of motorcycles declined from 71 per cent to 67 per cent.
In fact, there have been months when the largest selling two-wheeler model was a scooter, the Honda Activa.
While a slowdown in rural areas has hit demand for motorcycles, scooter sales continue to grow because of an urban/semi-urban focus. Motorcycle sales grew an unimpressive 2.5 per cent in FY15, while scooter sales increased 25 per cent.
