S-Cross has started strong with over 6,000 bookings and 30,000 inquiries. Maruti aims to sell 1-2 lakh premium compacts in the coming 2-3 years and aims a 10 percent growth this year.
Amongst a sought of surprises, the newly launched Maruti Suzuki S-Cross has got off to a strong start with 6000 bookings already via its 35 NEXA outlets. It has also got around 30,000 inquiries at Maruti showrooms across India. The S-Cross is Maruti’s first attempt at a premium compact crossover and will be only sold through NEXA outlets. Going by the above numbers, Maruti is expecting a growth of 10 percent in the second half of this year. It is aiming to touch 150 NEXA outlets by the end of this year and is expecting to sell 1-2 lakh units from NEXA in the next 2-3 years. Their mid-term target is to achieve 2 million annual sales by 2020 comprising of both NEXA and Maruti Suzuki showrooms.
Maruti is focussing on retail sales and not wholesale and they are controlling the supply to their dealers accordingly. The company feels the market is not so good right now but fortunately people are coping well and results have been good. Maruti’s prime focus will be on developing NEXA outlets across the country and they expect around 300 dealerships joining in the near future. Maruti Suzuki has many new models lined up in the premium segment and their goal is to step up into new areas, open up new opportunities and offer new, different and better products to customers.
Speaking of which Maruti is currently prepping for the launch of the Ciaz Hybrid, which is rumoured to launch this month. This will be a first in its segment but not the first Indian manufacturer to take the green route (Mahindra has had Micro Hybrid since a few years now). Maruti will be also soon revealing the YRA-hatchback (christened as the Baleno) at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Both these products will be sold via the premium NEXA outlets only, in the coming future. While the Ciaz gets a new mild hybrid, the YRA hatchback will debut with an all new ‘BoosterJet’ turbocharged petrol engine (initially only for exports) and will take on the likes of the Hyundai Elite i20, Honda Jazz and Volkswagen Polo.
