Informist, Monday, May 16, 2022
By Satyanarayan Iyer
PUNE - Entry into new segments, product refreshes, and strong exports helped TVS Motor Co Ltd race ahead of the top three two-wheeler players in terms of sales and production in 2021-22 (Apr-Mar). This, in a market marred by falling rural consumer demand and severe supply chain issues.
Production of the Tamil Nadu-based TVS Motor rose 6.6% to over 3.1 mln units in 2021-22, the highest among the major two-wheeler makers, according to data compiled by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.
In comparison, production of market leader Hero MotoCorp Ltd fell 17% to 4.8 mln units in 2021-22. Production of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt Ltd, which is second in terms of sales, fell 3.4% to 3.8 mln units.
Bajaj Auto Ltd was the only other major player whose production increased in 2021-22. The company's total output rose 4.4% to 3.8 mln units.
In terms of sales, all the four players saw a decline in the domestic market. But the fall was the least for TVS Motor by around 117,000 units and for Bajaj Auto by 168,000 units. Sales of Honda Motorcycle fell 400,000 units and that of Hero MotoCorp by 1 mln units.
Because of this, both TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto saw market share gains in the domestic market at the expense of Hero MotoCorp and Honda Motorcycle.
The four players make up about 85% of the total two-wheeler market in the country.
One of the key reasons for TVS Motor's march ahead of its rivals was the strong brand pull for its motorcycle Apache and scooter Jupiter, according to an analyst who tracks the company.
Jupiter is the most successful scooter offering of TVS Motor and Apache is its only motorcycle offering in the 150-200cc segment, where it competes with Honda's Unicorn and Hornet, Bajaj Auto's Pulsar, Hero MotoCorp's Xtreme and Xpulse.
TVS Motor saw growth in the 150-200cc segment in 2021-22, when all the other comparable brands saw a contraction.
The other factors behind the company's success were new launches and product push in markets outside India, the analyst added.
In September 2021, it launched 125cc motorcycle Raider. TVS Motor also tapped new geographies like Nepal, Central America and Bangladesh in 2021-22.
As a result, TVS Motor's exports grew 43% to over a million units in 2021-22 and its output in the 110-125cc segment almost doubled to 521,587 units.
However, product launches did not have an equitable impact on all two-wheeler makers.
In October 2021, Bajaj Auto launched the new Pulsar series in the 250cc segment. Pulsar is its most successful two-wheeler to date. However, proprietary technology and supply chain issues meant that the vehicle could not make any meaningful headway. As a result, the company production in the 200-250cc segment fell about 4% to 123,609 units in 2021-22.
In a post-earnings call recently, Bajaj Auto's Executive Director Rakesh Sharma said that for certain proprietary technologies the company had to depend on a specific set of vendors, but it is trying to diversify its supply base. Because of this, Sharma expects some "temporary loss" in market share in Apr-Jun period.
In 2022-23, TVS Motor Chief Executive Officer K.N. Radhakrishnan is banking on a series of new launches in different segments and electric vehicles to sustain its market share gain.
He said a normal monsoon forecast, government's emphasis on road infrastructure would further drive demand for mobility. End
Edited by Ashish Shirke
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