Italian superbike maker Benelli will start its sales operations in India from 19th March 2015. It will start accepting bookings from 10th March.
DSK Motowheels entered into an agreement with Italian superbike brand Benelli in the month of October 2014 for selling and servicing its bikes in India. After delaying the launch a few times in order to prepare better for it, Benelli will start selling its motorcycles in India from 19th March. Those who would like to lay their hands on the first lot of bikes can book their favourite machine at one of the eight exclusive Benelli stores in the country from 10th March. The bikes will be priced between Rs. 3.5 lakhs to Rs. 14 lakhs (ex-showroom).
In the beginning, five superbikes from Benelli’s stable will be available here. At the IBW 2015 which DSK-Benelli is a co-sponsor of, the company has showcased three new bikes which will be available before the end of next financial year. The three bikes are – Benelli Blackster 250 which will be positioned as an affordable cruiser, Benelli TNT 25 which is a naked street bike that will be the company’s most affordable offering in India and the Benelli TreK Amazonas which is an adventure tourer set to compete with the likes of the Triumph Tiger and Suzuki Bandit. These three bikes would help Benelli achieve higher sales in the future.
All the bikes being launched by Benelli will face tough competition from bikes coming from the stables of established brands. The superbike maker plans to undercut its competitors in terms of pricing so as to have an edge over them. For this purpose, all their middle-weight and below bikes will be brought down via the CKD route from China and Italy and will be assembled at DSK’s facility in Wai, Maharashtra. This would help them save on import duties and enable them to price their offerings competitively. Having tested most bikes from their stable, we would say Benelli has a very good chance of tasting success in the Indian market because their products are well engineered. If Benelli ramps up the sales and service network, big brands like Kawasaki and Triumph will have a reason to worry.
