Paytm automobile vertical shifts into top gear

Says aim is to become all-in-one vehicle booking platform in 6 months

With its new automobile vertical reaping massive returns, the online marketplace arm of mobile wallet giant Paytm is getting into a series of tie-ups with manufacturers in the segment, beside planning a major expansion in this space.

The company is already selling vehicles from three automobile companies and is in talks with niche scooter maker Vespa and Mahindra & Mahindra.

If began taking bookings four days earlier of Renault’s small car, the Kwid, on its platform and says they've already sold 100 units. The auto vertical is seeing a 45 per cent growth, month on month.

“The response has been highly encouraging. We will close this month with Rs 12-15 crore in sales,” said Renu Satti, the company’s vice-president.

Paytm has been directly working with Suzuki, Yamaha and Hero Electric, too, with at least 1,000 dealers fulfilling orders for the category.

The company says it is in talks with all the remaining two-wheeler and four-wheeler manufacturers and a few brands will go live in two weeks.

“We plan to have at least 3,000 dealers across all OEMs (original equipment makers) on our platform within six months. We will work with every OEM in the country. Paytm is the perfect platform for them to run local promotions on a segmented base and reach effectively to customers in a particular city or state,” Satti added.

The company says customers can book a vehicle of their choice on the Paytm portal; it is running offers for those who do.

In most cases, this is funded by dealers or the OEM, as a part of their sales promotion.  

“Our value proposition is to provide a one-stop solution to customers by combining an exhaustive catalog, booking convenience and attractive financing schemes from partners. Besides, there would be seasonal or festival schemes or offers run by OEMs or dealers, which would be regional and local in flavor,” Satti said.

Apart from the convenience of booking vehicles online, the company is also in the process of facilitating consumer financing options.

Talks are in advanced stage with half a dozen entities and the company would be starting this early next month.

On future plans, it says it would install the Paytm wallet as a payment solution across all dealer partners.

“Customers can use Paytm to pay at dealerships for booking or at service stations. We would work with OEMs, dealers, financing partners, insurance players and accessories sellers. We are aiming at becoming the best vehicle booking platform in the next six months,” added Satti.