The deep thump may be missing in the sound of the RoyalEnfield but the juice is presently flowing quite smoothly for the organization.For what is possibly the most iconic motorcycle on the roads of India it hasbeen quite a turnaround for brand that was loved but was experiencing a significantdrop in sales.
The Royal Enfield Mania that hit the state earlier last weekwas an example of a brand that has turned its fortunes around with a assiduousmix of retaining what is good in an earlier avatar and bringing in new elementsthat enhance the popularity of the brand.
Dr. Venki Padmanabhan, CEO said “The Rider Mania has beenconducted for ten years now and for the last four it has been held in Goa. Thebody may live in Chennai but the soul certainly lives in Goa. There a lot ofdrivers who have come in from Madurai, Chennai, Bengaluru and other places.Last year we had around 800 riders this year has witnessed an increase with thenumber going up to 1400 odd. This is a celebration of leisure motorcycling”.
For a company that abandoned the distinctive “thump” thatmarked its product it has been a bit of a rocky ride. The turnaround has beenfuelled by the launch of the Thunderbird 500 targeted at the highway cruisingbuffs which was launched in October 2012. The company aims to sell one lakhbikes a year across the various models this year. With the new factory inChennai expected to go operational next year the production is expected toincrease to 1.5 lakhs a year.
The company is expected to introduce the Café Racer another500 cc bike sometime in the future and there are no plans to launch bikes witha higher cc. This decision to stay in the 350 and 500 cc category wasbuttressed by the argument of the CEO who said that there was a huge targetaudience numbering anywhere between 10-12 million which associated the brandwith certain qualities and it would be foolhardy to try and move into anotherspace and compete with bikes in a higher cc category.
All this is a far cry from the day’s when the promoters ofthe company the Lal’s in 2000 contemplated their future in this business.Siddharth lal the then 26 year old son of the Delhi based Lal family asked fortwo years to turn around the company.
Today the company is selling 10,000 bikes a month anincrease of approximately 50 %. In Goa the waiting period is anywhere between4-6 months. The two dealers in the state sell 100 bikes a month. The entry ofother brands in the category does not worry the CEO who claimed the companywould play to its strengths and focus on increasing its sales in the country.
The tone may have changed but the spirit it seems may bestill alive and kicking in the Enfield.
