Seven for the road

Hyundai India is reaching for the stars with a spate of new launches. Can its new brands deliver?

For Korean auto major Hyundai, 2014 was one of its best years in India. Its share of the market touched an all-time high of 21.8 per cent in the passenger cars category and; it became the first company after Maruti to sell more than 4,00,000 cars in India in a single year. And in the first few months of 2015, despite the rural market driving auto companies into the slow lane, it has managed to hold steady with a nominal 3.4 per cent increase in car sales for May.

Hyundai Motors India Ltd (HMIL) has invested around $ 2 billion in the Indian market from 1999 till date and in less than 18 months has launched seven brands. Its sales rose to 4,20,688 vehicles in 2014-15 as compared to 3,80,252, a year ago, and the target for 2015 is 5,00,000 units. Hyundai has launched seven new products (see box) and has announced that it will launch its new SUV 'Creta'. Bharat Gianani of Angel Broking said that Hyundai is one company that is giving tough competition to Maruti. Its strategy will not only help keep the high market shares it has procured thus far but also raise it further, he said.

The company says that new models like Elite, i20 Active, Xcent and Verna have tapped into the Indian consumer's need for speed and value for money. A slew of strong marketing initiatives for the rural markets and bring in repeat buyers has also helped.

Creating a strong distibutor network has improved penetration of the rural market. And many of the new launches have premiered globally at the same time and done well in Indian and global markets. Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice-president for sales and marketing HMIL says that on the strength of a strong and young product portfolio led by Elite i20 and i20 Active, the company could perform in the challenging market conditions especially in the rural market.

What drives the Hyundai India story? Value for money, innovation and speed says the company. Its journey in India started with the Santro in the year 1998. It was discontinued last year when the company decided to rationalise its line of products, but until then (16 years) the Santro had sold over 1.36 million units in India and over 5,36,000 units overseas. The car was a runaway success for the Korean major and while Maruti's 800 and Zen revolutionised the segment, Santro found the right balance with its contemporary look and affordable price. HMIL discontinued Santro as it was a depreciated brand and it needed capacity for its new brands: Elite i20 and Eon which are assembled on the same line.

Hyundai India, known for its small cars is also keen to don the mantle of a premium car maker in India. It plans to launch several new generation premium brands in coming years. To assist them in this transition,

will be the new Hyundai GDSI - Global Dealership Space Identity, which was announced last year. Under this new campaign, all Hyundai dealers across the world will get a unified look and the company says that its India dealerships will be GDSI ready by 2018.

In the rural market HMIL's share has been rising consistently. Rural India contributed to 12 per cent of HMIL's total sales in 2010-11, but five years later, in 2014-15, the share has increased to 20.7 per cent. Maruti is still the leader in the rural market with its share in 2014-15 being 34.5 per cent (it has come down from 32 per cent in 2013-14). Brands such as Eon, i10, Grand, Xcent and i20 have sold well here, perhaps, because they offer low cost of acquisition and ownership with higher resale values. For future growth, Hyundai intends to increase the number of Rural Sales Outlets (RSO).

HMIL is in the process of evaluating new segments. A new SUV will hit the road by end 2015. As lifecycles shrink in the passenger car segment and the Indian buyer looks for greater sophistication, technology and style in the cars she buys, HMIL hopes its brands make the list.

TOP GEAR

SANTA FE, Rs 26,89,039
Sales: 2443 units since February 2014
Key competitors: None

4S FLUIDIC VERNA, Rs 7,75,471
Sales: 8,698 units in February and March 2015
Key competitors: Ciaz, Honda City, Rapid, Vento

ACTIVE i20, Rs 6,38,844
Sales: 4,929 units since its launch in March 2015
Key competitors: Polo Cross

ELITEi20, Rs 5,30, 476
Sales: Over 85,000 units since August 2014
Key competitors: None

XCENT, Rs 5,01,489
Sales: 68,900 units since its launch in March 2014
Key competitors: Amaze, Swift Dzire, Zest

GRANDi10 Rs 4,66,104
Sales: Over 1,80,000 cars since September 2013
Key competitors: Swift, Liva, Pulse, Micra

EON, less than Rs 4 lakh
Sales: 3,17,355 units since October 2011
Key competitors: Datsun, Renault's Kwid, Alto, Nissan Micra

All prices are ex-Delhi showroom