Hero MotoCorp has reported a decline in sales during the month of June 2019. Sales fell 12.49 percent during the past month to 6,16,526 units as against 7,04,562 units sold in the same month last year.
This comes at a time when the industry finds itself in the clasp of low customer sentiment. This has resulted in deferred buying decisions. Despite this decrease in sales, the company has managed to post 6 lakh plus sales for a second consecutive month. This follows sales in May 2019 which stood at 652,028 units. As it stands, Q1 FY2019-20 finds Hero Motocorp in a predicament. The company has posted three consecutive months of sales decline.
April 2019 sales stand the lowest for the quarter just ended at 5,74366 units. Q1 FY2018-19 sales stood at 21,04,949 units. For Q1 FY2019-20 sales decline is reported at 12.42 percent at 18,43,418 units sold.
June 2019 also saw the company’s in-house R&D facilities become the first two wheeler maker in the country to receive BSVI certification. Hero Splendor iSmart was certified by International Centre for Automotive Technology. Last month, Hero MotoCorp also announced appointment of Yerry Mina, the Colombian professional footballer, as Brand Ambassador. Mina, 24, is a promising footballer who has achieved success for the Colombian National Football Team during FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 and his clubs.
Hero MotoCorp also introduced the XPulse 200, XPulse 200T and the Xtreme 200S along with two scooters Maestro Edge 125 and Pleasure+ 110 in May 2019. There was also the soft launch of the Hero Splendor 25 Years Special Edition.
In natural progression, Hero MotoCorp is expected to bring a product in the 300cc segment. To tap into this small yet fast growing segment, Hero Motocorp had plans to open dedicated premium dealerships to cater to the segment.
As the country mandates safer and cleaner vehicles, there’s also the expectation of electric two-wheelers leading the way. With BSVI being mandated from April 1, 2020, it’s left to be seen whether major two-wheeler players will shift to electric soon enough. Keeping in mind the need to invest in R&D, and sufficient testing the process could take years even with work undergoing currently. This puts major players like Hero MotoCorp in unfamiliar territory as a range of tech players are now entering the Indian two-wheeler space with electric bikes, borrowed almost in entirety from China.
