Volvo to launch new models to increase market share

Swedish luxury car maker Volvo Corporation is hoping to garner a 10 percent market share by 2020 by launching new models, expanding distribution network and focusing on brand-building, said a top official of Volvo Auto India.

"In the next few years, we will be launching 3-5 new models as well as variants to our existing models. We will be having a model in the entire price range of luxury cars," Tom von Bonsdorff, managing director, told reporters here on Friday.

He was here to launch Volvo's new offering, the S60 T6 petrol car priced at around Rs.42 lakh, ex-showroom Delhi.

According to Bonsdorff, the company sold around 1,200 units in the last calendar year and this year the growth is expected to be more than that.

He said the bulk of the sales for the company happen in the Rs.30-40 lakh price point.

"Last year, we had a market share of 3.5 percent in the segment we were present in. Our target is to have 10 percent market share by 2020," Bonsdorff said while declining to comment on the number of units that would account for that target percentage.

Volvo has been launching new models in India in recent times like the XC90, V40 Cross Country Petrol, V40 and, now, S60 T6 petrol.

He said the company is competing with German car makers like Daimler, BMW and Audi in the domestic market and the main task is to build the Volvo brand.

All car makers are aggressive in their marketing strategies and Volvo is also doing well, according to him.

He said Volvo cars possess a two litre engine to get more power as well as mileage.

Bonsdorff said Volvo will increase its dealer network by five more to 20 this year.

Volvo has no plans to set up a production or assembly unit in India in the near future, Bonsdorff said.