 "TVS Jupiter")
A consistent product launch programme has pushed TVS Motors (TVS) ahead of the two-wheeler market leader Hero MotoCorp (Hero) in the domestic scooter segment. The Chennai-based manufacturer now occupies the second spot.
TVS’ scooters clocked more sales in each month of the previous quarter than the Delhi-based Hero, which has struggled with production constraints for its scooters for quite a few months.
TVS, the makers of the Scooty brand of gearless scooters ended the second quarter with 189,875 units, ahead of Hero that ended the same quarter at 166,552 units, according to data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. Honda remains the largest producer and seller of scooters, clocking average monthly volumes of 200,000 units.
Much of TVS’ growth can be attributed to new launches such as Jupiter and Scooty Zest. Jupiter has been a runaway success, accounting for 50 per cent of the company’s total domestic scooter sales. A gradual ramp-up in its production has made sales increase 23 times in the April-September period, compared to last year.
Promoted as a unisex two-wheeler for families, the Jupiter is directly pitted against India’s top-selling scooter, the Honda Activa. Hero sells the Maestro in this category (of 110-cc scooters), but targets it at the male buyer with actor Ranbir Kapoor as the brand ambassador. All three are powered by engines of nearly the same size. Jupiter saw sales of 170,687 units in April-September.
While the going is good, TVS has extended its popular brand, Scooty to an all-new version, christened Zest. Powered by the same engine in the Jupiter, the Scooty Zest, however, targets young female riders.
Actor Anushka Sharma, who was picked to be the face of Scooty, doubles as Zest’s ambassador too.
Launched in August, the Zest will sell alongside its smaller siblings, the Pep+ and Streak. Launched 15 years ago, brand Scooty became synonymous with gearless scooters and even became a generic term for automatic scooters.
The launch of Jupiter, however, has taken a toll on Wego, TVS’ former best-selling scooter. Sales of the stylish family scooter dipped 21 per cent in April-September to 68,700 units, as against nearly 87,000 units sold last year. The Jupiter, Wego and Zest are built using the same platform.
Increased demand has led to changes in market share as well. TVS reported a share of 15.6 per cent in the first six months of the year, it was 12.5 per cent last year.
Hero, meanwhile, posted a sharp dip in to 16 per cent this year as against 20 per cent last year. At the launch of the Zest, TVS’ chairman and MD Venu Srinivasan said that TVS’ market share in the scooter segment is expected to increase to 18 per cent.
Aniruddha Haldar, head, marketing - scooters, says, “Recently, there has been a paradigm shift in the two-wheeler industry, with more men looking to buy a scooter rather than a motorcycle, given its convenience of use, comfort and fuel efficiency. There is plenty of headroom for growth with the projection for scooter growth at around 30 per cent and with a range of relevant scooter offerings, we expect to grow much better than the industry.”
The country’s second-largest two-wheeler maker, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (Honda), meanwhile, moved up the value chain with the introduction of the Activa 125 (125-cc engine). Most of the scooters today are strapped with a 100 or 110-cc engine. Honda has moved from 100-cc to 110-cc to 125-cc, with the Activa eyeing a larger swathe of audience. According to dealers, the Activa125 has a waiting period of several weeks. The company is racing to increase production to meet demand. Sources say the 125-cc engine could be extended to other Honda scooters.
“The Jupiter is singularly responsible for TVS’ sales reaching new highs. It has worked on its marketing and sales channel to make it a success. The Zest which is aimed at women is a new product and should bring in good incremental volumes”, says a Mumbai-based analyst.
To tackle the production-related issues, Hero on its part, is increasing its scooter capacity to 100,000 units by January and 150,000 units by mid-2015 from 80,000 units a month. A part of the new capacity will come from the under-construction Gujarat plant. Further, the Munjal-family promoted company, has promised to launch at least two new scooters in the next one year. This could include the 110-cc Dash and 125-cc Dare.
“We have been constrained by our scooter capacity, which is why we have not been able to meet the ever-increasing demand for our scooters. Like the previous year, we are confident of clocking good double-digit growth in scooters this year. We have also lined up two new scooter models for launch over the next few months, which will further give our customers more options to choose from”, a statement from Hero MotoCorp says.
So, keeping its lead will really be about TVS keeping its momentum of launches going then.
