Royal Enfield's fan clubs fortify brand in battle against Harley, Triumph

In August 2018, torrential rains besieged Kerala, resulting in 483 deaths and losses worth Rs 40,000 crore to the state economy. Thirty-five dams were opened, flooding the picturesque terrain.

Amid the crisis emerged faceless heroes on two wheels, such as the Bullet Users’ Club, a collective of 1,500 Royal Enfield motorcycle enthusiasts from the state’s Kollam district. They swiftly engaged themselves in the rescue operations and, after the waters receded, travelled across the state helping people repair and restart their submerged bikes, irrespective of the brand. In 2020, as the pandemic sent the country into a lockdown, the same community rallied to provide food and water to the vulnerable.
 

Hundreds of similar fan clubs across India have transformed Royal Enfield into more than a motorcycle brand; it’s a cultural phenomenon. It is a cult that encompasses not only the biking enthusiasts, but also novices and mechanics. It is a cult where humans become legends and acquire names such as Sholay Baba and Bullet Mani. There is a Bullet Baba temple by the Jodhpur-Pali Expressway in Rajasthan, where a Royal Enfield Bullet 350 is venerated and believed to grant wishes.
 

It is a cult whose allegiance, apart from the other tenets of business, has earned Royal Enfield a 90 per cent market share of the 250-750cc segment. There is also the bit about it being the world’s oldest continuously produced motorcycle brand.
 

Triumph and Harley-Davidson are formidable global motorcycle brands and have forged partnerships with domestic stalwarts, Bajaj Auto for the former and Hero MotoCorp for the latter. And they are rolling out models with the lowest price tags in India.

However, as they mount their onslaughts on the high-end motorcycle segment, where the margins are healthier, they find themselves up against not only the Royal Enfield brand but also its cult.

Seventy-year-old Bullet Mani, who, for all non-motorcycling purposes is P Thankamani Mani, epitomises this allegiance. A seasoned mechanic and rider, he has worked on more than 250,000 Royal Enfield Bullets since 1965. The Kerala resident’s bond with the brand is evident as he prepares to attend the 13th edition of Rider Mania, an annual congregation of Royal Enfield aficionados in Goa, in November.

Bullet Mani is a member of Royal Enfield fan club

As in the past, this year’s Rider Mania, themed “Motoverse”, will offer a range of experiences, including dirt track races, music concerts, art exhibitions, and expert sessions. Hundreds of Enfield enthusiasts are expected to descend on Goa for it, with their bikes.

“People love the Enfield for varied, and personal, reasons,” says Rohit Malkar, moderator, Enfield Rider’s Community, Bengaluru. “Though Triumph and Harley offer superior performance and speed, what sets the Enfield apart for me is its comfortable weight and relaxed ride attitude.”
 

It is this passion of fans that fuels the confidence of Siddhartha Lal, managing director of Eicher Motors, the parent company of Royal Enfield.
 

“We are many steps ahead of our competitors,” Lal said at a press conference earlier this month. The man credited with turning the Royal Enfield story around said that even if the brand held 85 to 87 per cent of the market of 1.5 million to 2 million a year, he would be okay with it, indicating that the Chennai-headquartered company sees its market share coming down but not too much. The Enfield fan following, Lal believes, is not easy to replicate.
 

But Enfield is not the only motorcycle brand to have fans.
 

Harley-Davidson boasts a riding community, the Harley Owners Group (HOG), that has its roots in the United States and a regional branch in India.
 

“HOG is a company-sponsored club that you join when you own a Harley,” says Bikram Puri, former regional director, HOG India. The club organises an annual rally in Goa, besides rallies across the North, West, South and East zones. Bajaj Dominar and KTM have similar, albeit smaller, fan groups in India.
 

HOG India has more than 10,000 members, and Puri is of the view that this number will grow as competitively priced models come into the market. The Triumph Speed 400, the cheapest model, starts at Rs 233,000 in India, and the Harley-Davidson X440 at Rs 229,000. The starting price for an Enfield is Rs 150,000 for the Hunter 350.
 

Meanwhile, adding to the Enfield’s cult status are dedicated individuals and companies that craft customisations. An interconnected network of mechanics, who exclusively work on Enfields, thrives in places such as Delhi’s bustling Mayapuri market, where you can find specialists in Enfield tanks, handlebars, silencers, and exhausts.
 

“Its spare parts are easy to come by and you can find an Enfield mechanic even in Ladakh to fire it up if it stalls,” says Milan Khurana, founder of Faridabad-headquartered MK Designs, which deals in custom-made bike parts and accessories. 

Khurana says Harley-Davidson’s partnership with Hero and Triumph’s with Bajaj will hurt Enfield, given the wide network and capabilities of the Indian auto majors. The other reality is that not many people want to get their Triumphs and Harleys customised because of warranty and after-sales service issues, he says.
 

Khurana represents the new school.
 

Bobbee Singh, founder of Old Delhi Motorcycles, belongs to the old guard.

Bobbee Singh, founder of Old Delhi Motorcycles, is a die-hard Royal Enfield fan and has been customising the bike to such detail that no two look alike

The two worlds have briefly come together in Khurana’s workshop to create a retro-look Royal Enfield Interceptor 650. Singh is a die-hard Royal Enfield fan and has, for decades, been customising the bike to such detail that no two look alike.
 

“Given its classic shape, the Enfield presents an all-embracing canvas. You can customise it in practically any way,” says Singh, who rides a 1968 Enfield with a Sholay-style sidecar. Since installing it on his bike, he has had so many demands for it that he is now described as the “sidecar revival man”. In Goa, a hub for motorcycle enthusiasts where Singh spends half his time, the locals call him “Sholay Baba”.
 

The bond bikers have with Enfield is at an emotional and philosophical level, Singh says. “It’s an old sweetheart.” On a practical note, he adds that the price range for personalising the Enfield, too, is unmatched: Rs 25,000 to Rs 15 lakh.

He does feel, though, that the company behind the bike needs to celebrate it better to fully harness the power of the legend and work on improving the services it offers – more so now, with Harley-Davidson and Triumph revving up in India.

Akshai Varde, founder of Vardenchi Motorcycles, a Mumbai-headquartered bike customisation firm, describes Royal Enfield’s evolution in India as nothing short of remarkable. Varde, who has created structured Enfield accessory kits, rode an Enfield to his wedding to actor Sameera Reddy.
 

That said, Royal Enfield could be up against serious competition this time round. The challengers have been in top gear from the word go. Hero ceased accepting bookings for Harley-Davidson motorcycles after 25,500 orders. Triumph secured 10,000 bookings in the first 10 days.
 

Bullet Mani is unperturbed. “The resonating (dhug, dhug) sound of Royal Enfield harmonises with the heartbeat of its riders; that’s the magic. No global brand can replicate the Indian heartbeat,” he says.

Is he right? Bullet Baba alone knows.

 Triumph in search of wins 

Triumph's latest motorcycles, Speed 400 and Scrambler 400, registered more than 10,000 bookings within 10 days of the unveiling. Triumph has partnered with Bajaj Auto to expand its footprint in the Indian market. The two bikes are manufactured at Bajaj's Chakan plant.
 

The Speed 400 is priced at Rs 2.33 lakh, positioning it against Harley Davidson X440 and the more established offerings such 

the Bullet, Classic 350, and Meteor 350 from the market leader, Royal Enfield.
 

Looking at the high demand, Bajaj  Auto has said it would ramp up its production capacity.

A Harley not out of reach

 

Harley-Davidson has forged a partnership with Hero MotoCorp to launch its most affordable motorcycle — the X440 — in India. The 440cc motorcycle comes at a starting price of  Rs 2.29 lakh (ex-showroom).

Jochen Zeitz, president and chief executive officer, Harley-Davidson, said the brand had been “out of reach” for a lot of customers in India. But the firm for the first time launched a bike that was “achievable” for a broader market segment.