Used car platform Cars24 believes that its foray into the consumer lending vertical will be a key growth driver this festive season, with co-founder and chief marketing officer Gajendra Jangid noting that the slowdown in the brand new vehicle segment has left the used car business relatively unaffected.
“We are bullish about growth going forward and customers are flocking in to sell cars. We have seen a month-on-month growth of 10 per cent last month and the outlook for the year looks robust,” Jangid told this publication. While the firm is planning to invest a “substantial” amount in its media marketing campaigns, to give it a fillip in the run-up to and during the festive season. In fact, the Gurugram-based firm has already roped in Indian cricket star Mahendra Singh Dhoni as its brand ambassador and equity investor through a deal signed in August 2019.
However, among the major factors expected to give the firm a leg-up this festive season is its foray into the consumer lending business. “This is expected to be a key growth driver for us, because we will be able to provide financing options to our customers. We are running pilots in a few centres now,” Jangid said.
The firm had secured an NBFC license from the Reserve Bank of India in July this year, and Cars24 had announced then that it would first begin services in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore and scale up to other cities gradually. “We will make an announcement on this vertical soon,” he said.
Cars24 will provide both vehicle loans to customers while helping finance channel partners expand business through the new vertical, for which the firm has incorporated a new entity Cars24 Financial Services Pvt.
It is also in talks with major broadcast networks like Star and Sony to explore possibilities in sponsoring a flagship sporting event, he said, declining to share details. “With the festive season coming up, we are shaping up to put in place the right communications and right media buying strategy,” Jangid said. The slowdown in demand for new cars may not have spread to the used car space, but it has resulted in upgradation drop.