Learning from its mistakes, Bajaj Auto stated that it won’t be going aggressive in the commuter segments or the 100cc bike segment as it is losing sales in the mass volume category. The Pune based automaker most recently launched the new Discover 150 F/S and stated that the company will focus on creating new categories rather than focusing on launching products in existing ones. Bajaj has also discarded its plans of re-entering the scooter segment as well after failing to leave an impression with its products in the past.
Bajaj Auto’s boss Rajiv Bajaj stated that the 100cc commuter segments were started by other manufacturers, who currently rule the segment with their offerings. Bajaj’s decision to operate in the same segments in the past largely with the Discover brand backfired with the company witnessing limited sales compared to competitors. The automaker made it clear that it will not participate in someone else’s category as it is not a rewarding business. The manufacturer however, will continue to produce its existing set of 100cc bikes, but won’t launch anything cheaper in the category.
The scenario is the same with the scooter segment as well. Despite other bike makers including Yamaha, Suzuki and the likes having made their entry into the scooter segment, Bajaj has refrained from making a comeback. The company has an illustrious history with the Chetak scooter, however, its last product the Krystal automatic scooter failed to meet the automaker’s expectations. Bajaj instead will focus on launching new bikes in the Pulsar series, bigger Discovers and 3-wheelers domestically as well as for exports.
The new Discover 150 F/S models stand testimony to Bajaj’s new plans and the company is gunning to target the 125-150cc segment with an average sale of 20,000 units a month. The manufacturer is focusing on segments that provide high profitability and has also reduced a number of variants from the Discover lineup to provide better differentiation of products. The automaker has been losing its market share heavily in the mass volume segments, while the Pulsar series models were the only consistent performers during the last year.
Even though motorcycle sales grew by 4 percent in the last financial year, Bajaj volumes reduced by almost 15 percent, its market share came down from 24.4 percent to 20.03 percent during the same period. Following up the launches this year, the automaker plans to launch the Pulsar 200 SS FI in the country and also the one-of-its-kind RE60 quadricycle, a first in the newly formed segment. Even in export markets, Bajaj is doing well with its 3-wheelers, Boxer and Pulsar.
Source – DNA
