We invest in Tamil Nadu, nowhere else: Guillaume Sicard

Interview with President, Nissan India

Renault-Nissan has said negotiations are on with the Tamil Nadu government over Rs 2,900 crore in incentives due to the carmaker. Guillaume Sicard, president, Nissan India, tells TE Narasimhan in an interview he is optimistic the issue will be sorted out soon. Excerpts:

How optimistic you are of addressing the issue with the Tamil Nadu government?

We have a good relationship with the state government and they are supportive. We need to fine-tune a few things and a few conditions must be completed. It is just a matter of time. We will keep on investing in Tamil Nadu, but not anywhere else in India.

The proposed Rs 5,000 crore investment will be for manufacturing?

When a manufacturer decides to invest, it is not only for capacity. It can be for technology, products, engine, gear box, body type and others. The capacity will be small, the bigger share will be in product development.

How do you rate Nissan’s performance in India? Are exports helping?

We are going through ups and downs. But I don’t feel lonely. Other original equipment manufacturers are going through the same. Like others, Nissan’s strategy is to make sure its investment is safe and it remains profitable till the domestic market picks up. I want to see balanced numbers in domestic sales and exports in the next three years.

Will you be able to capture 5 per cent market share by 2020?

Yes. The company is working on creating more brand awareness. Our products don’t have any issue. We are not coming in the shopping list when the customer wants to buy a car. We need to work on creating brand awareness.

Is reach another challenge for Nissan?

We are not Maruti, in every city of the country. We need to crack the major cities first. Nissan has 196 dealers in the country and by 2016-17 the company plans to increase them to 300. The company is also working with existing dealers to establish smaller sales outlets and mobile services in a 100 km radius from the main outlet to cater smaller cities.

Indian customers are sensitive to tradition. New launches, even though attractive, take time to enter tradition. Creating brand awareness is a bigger challenge for me because I need to grow two brands, Nissan and Datsun. It takes time, money, effort and focus.