How were the numbers for Yamaha Motor India at the time you took over? Were they encouraging?
When I joined, I learned that the two-wheeler market had been under pressure for the last two to three years due to the pandemic and rise in raw material costs after the BS6, ABS/CBS regulations and mandatory insurance. There was also some delay in market recovery because of the outbreak of the third wave and shortage of semiconductors and we had been taking countermeasures and purchasing semiconductors even at higher prices to support our dealers. Nevertheless, Yamaha has been sailing through these challenges with good profit projections. This is because before 2017, Yamaha Motor India was struggling as it was chasing volumes. Since 2018, though, under “The Call of the Blue” brand direction our operating profit percentage has been increasing. The reason being Yamaha’s shift towards the premium segment. As a result, Yamaha Motor India had a remarkable turnover in 2021, especially with the launch of five major products. This also enabled us to command a strong 15 per cent market share in the premium motorcycle segment in 2021, which in the calendar year 2020 stood at 9.7 per cent. Of the 5.22 lakh units sold in 2021, 60 per cent comprised only motorcycles.
Which area do you see as a priority to bring about the biggest change?
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Denne historien er fra December 2022-utgaven av Bike India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Bagnaia Wins the Battle; Martin Wins the War
Despite Bagnaia's best efforts, Martin hung on to third place on Sunday to seal the deal and take home the champion's trophy at the conclusion of a long 2024 season
Navaneeth and Yogesh Crowned Champions
Dynamic weather around Coimbatore was the perfect backdrop to end the 2024 JK Tyre Royal Enfield Continental GT Cup season in fine style.
DRIFTASTIC
TVS have modified a bunch of Ronin motorcycles for flat-track racing. They invited us over to spend an afternoon learning how to turn right to go left
Quarter Mile of Thrills
The Valley Run 2024 Winter Edition was a weekend of high-octane speeds, a celebration of bike culture as well as an event that witnessed records being shattered by an unlikely competitor
Pure Community
Motoverse is the easiest way of understanding Royal Enfield's diversity
Revolt Against City Traffic
As a commuter motorcycle, the Revolt RV1+ brings a lot in its package at a competitive price. We hopped on this electric motorcycle to check its practicality around the city
Vibe Check
With the launch of the Goan Classic 350, Royal Enfield have wrapped up the year of the Classic well
Tiny Yet Mighty
Enter the BMW CE 02, a 15-hp e-scooter that looks more like a design project dreamt up by a skateboarding intern than a production two-wheeler, but in terms of youth appeal and, yes, that X-factor, it is taking no prisoners
Ducati Revamp Powerful Multistrada 14 S
At face value, it appears Ducati have only mildly tweaked the Multistrada V4 S for 2025, which is why we arrived in Perugia, Italy, a few hours north of Rome, expecting a couple of easy days on the classy adventure-tourer. However, it quickly became apparent that despite only mildly updating the Multi's familiar looks, beneath the bodywork lies a vast number of updates that Ducati hope will make the bestselling Multi (and best-selling Ducati globally) even more versatile than before
This Bear is Royal and Friendly
The first ride of the Royal Enfield Bear 650, spanning eight hours, was held in California. Here is our first impression
