On a lighter side it is said that only two companies in India are not affected by recession. One belongs to the accessories segment while the other belongs to automotive. These two companies don’t need any introduction to the common man; they are called Titan Industries and Hero MotoCorp. The motorcycles of Hero MotoCorp are considered as the integral part of the sub-continent. There are a few bikes in the market that gulp a major share in their segment; frankly speaking those bikes have changed the orientation of the automotive industry. Any enthusiast would undoubtedly consider this bike as ‘The National Bike’. It’s none other than the Hero Splendor.
Almost a couple of decades ago a sub 100cc motorcycle was launched in the Indian market aiming to capture the souls of this country and the charts suggests that it eventually did. The company then called Hero Honda launched this vehicle as a successor to the CD100. Since then the bike has been on a roll and has become the most successful motorcycle in terms of sales. Hero MotoCorp sold a record six million units last financial year setting up an all time record in the automotive industry. This year the company is looking for a bigger challenge as it aims to sell 2 million units of the Splendor.
The company sold around 9,00,000 units of the Splendor in the first half of this sluggish financial year. The sales though dropped by 16% in the first half is said to have recovered, thanks to the festive season. The company has been doing well since the third quarter and is expecting to gain some momentum towards the end of the fiscal year. The expected price hike in January has created a panic and is leading to sales of larger volume in the ultimate month which is opposite to the trend.
Hero has incorporated high end technology of “start stop” and will boost up the fuel economy with the Splendor iSmart. The engine will stop when the vehicle is idling and would jump back to life when the clutch is released. This version of Splendor is expected to hit the showrooms early next year. With almost 100 days left in the financial year, the Splendor is sailing smoothly towards the gigantic figure of two million units.
