Bajaj Auto eyes big jump in sales with new & refurbished models

Bajaj Auto, which had overlooked its line-up in the executive segment of motorcycles (or bikes between the price range of Rs 50,000-60,000), on Wednesday re-launched Discover 110cc and a refurbished Discover 125cc. The company claimed while it now sells about 8,000 units in the executive segment per month, the aim is to ramp this up 10-fold to 70,000 units within a year. Eric Vas, president (motorcycles), Bajaj Auto, said, “In a year’s time, we want to sell around 70,000 units in the executive segment every month. We need to get to at least 15% market share in the executive segment, to touch around 23% market share in the entire motorcycle space in India in a year’s time.”

Bajaj Auto now has a 16% share in motorcycle sales. The company said the new Discover 110cc will be priced at `50,496 (ex-showroom Maharashtra). While Bajaj Auto is eyeing a 10-fold increase in its volumes in the executive segment, analysts say that such a phenomenal growth in this segment is difficult. According to one analyst, the executive segment is an extremely competitive one where entry of new players – or even existing ones like Bajaj, whose share is negligible – is tough.

Bajaj also launched refreshes of its other models – Dominar and Avenger – on Wednesday. According to the company, volumes of the Avenger 220cc, whose sales have slipped by about 42% to 32,000 units in the April-November period, may see a sharp jump after the launch of the refurbished model. Sumeet Narang, vice president – marketing, Bajaj Auto, said, “We have put in a lot of investment into the Avenger brand, for the 220cc version, we expect the sales to jump two to three times.”

Bajaj Auto Limited