NEW DELHI: After a not-so-phenomenal start to the festive season, the country’s largest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp on Monday said that demand has picked up in the last few days. “In the first seven days, sales were weak due to various ongoing turbulences, but after that, we have started seeing some momentum. We hope it will continue to grow well,” said Sanjay Bhan, Head of Sales, Customer Care and Parts Business, Hero MotoCorp.
A weak sentiment caused by rising fuel prices, bearish stock market and price hike by automakers has dimmed this year’s festival season for manufacturers. Hero, which recently delivered a strong quarterly (Q2) result, is hopeful of maintaining its sales momentum and market share.
“Demand for motorcycles has gone up in recent quarters and we are the most well-placed player there. Besides that, we are working to strengthen our position in the scooter market. All these factors will help us maintain strong sales momentum and market share,” Bhan said.In Q2, Hero MotoCorp witnessed 5.4 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase in two-wheeler sales to 2,134,051 units, while in last one year, it has improved its market share by over 1 per cent in the overall two-wheeler market.
To improve its share in the scooter market, currently, at 11 per cent, Hero on Monday forayed into the fast growing 125-cc scooter segment with the launch of an all new product - Destini 125 (priced between Rs 54,650 and Rs 57,500).“The scooter market is witnessing a shift towards products with higher engine capacity. The 125-cc segment in particular has been expanding at a rapid pace, witnessing a growth of over 75 per cent year-to-date this fiscal,” Malo Le Masson, Hero MotoCorp’s head of Global Product Planning, said.
Hero will start retailing Destini from Delhi-NCR from Tuesday, while sales in other parts of the country would begin in the next three to four weeks. When asked if the company has plans to increase the prices of their offerings, Bhan said they surely are facing the impact of rising input costs and will take a call whenever it is appropriate.