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Mercedes-Benz India and Zoho have partnered to launch a decentralised dealer management system to enhance customer experience and digitise the luxury automobile brand's nationwide dealership network. The Dealer Management System (DMS) -- SKYLine', will digitise the complete service lifecycle -- from booking and digital check-in to skill-based technician assignment and final delivery -- through real-time data integration, streamlined workflows, and unified backend operations. Each Mercedes-Benz dealership in India will now function through its own dedicated Zoho CRM setup, allowing independent operations while maintaining adherence to centrally defined standards, according to a joint statement. "SKYLine combines dealer-level autonomy with centrally governed processes, delivering a fully digitised and integrated platform across Mercedes-Benz India's nationwide dealership network, elevating customer ownership experience significantly, the statement said, adding that the rollout was ...
The recent GST rate cut is likely to make the upcoming festive season the 'best-ever' for the luxury carmaker, but there is a need to cap road taxes levied by states on car purchases for long-term growth of the industry, Mercedes-Benz India MD and CEO Santosh Iyer said. In an interaction with PTI here, Iyer noted that to help cost reduction measures trickle down to the end customer, some uniformity is required in road taxes levied by states across the country. While welcoming the GST rate rationalisation, he pointed out that the automotive sector remains one of the highest taxed, with state levies ranging from 15 to 22 per cent across the country. "The reduction in GST, which has a clear impact on price by 6- 8 per cent, would definitely have an impact on demand in the short run, for sure, because there has been a postponement of purchases in August that should get materialised," Iyer said. The GST rate cut brings a lot of positive sentiment and momentum to the market, he added. "
Mercedes Benz India plans to hike prices by 1-1.5 per cent from September to mitigate the impact of a weak rupee against the euro, according to its MD and CEO Santosh Iyer. The luxury car market leader has already hiked vehicle prices twice this year, first in January and then in July. "There is another price hike coming up in September, because of the euro. If you see, the last one month has remained at the 100 mark (INR), and that has not changed. Therefore, we will have to undertake an increase as well in September," Iyer told PTI in an interaction. The price hike is expected to be in the range of 1-1.5 per cent, he added. When asked if the increase in prices could impact sales, Iyer stated that the reduction in interest rates is somehow balancing the monthly outgo for buyers in equated monthly instalments (EMIs). Around 80 per cent of the company's new car sales are financed, he noted. "So, when you look at the EMIs, we have tried to keep the same, though the price of the car
India could be a beneficiary in the long-term from the ongoing tariff war that could lead to better trade and lowering of barriers, even though there can be short-term shocks, according to Mercedes-Benz India Managing Director and CEO Santosh Iyer. While the Indian automotive segment is not directly impacted by US President Donald Trump's tariff war, Iyer told PTI that consumer sentiment in the luxury segment is still positive despite a highly volatile scenario globally due to the current geopolitical situation, currency fluctuations and supply chain concerns. "For the first time, we are discussing about opening up of our borders and also opening for two-way trade. Generally, we have always advocated for more open and fair trade policies that help foster global economic growth and drive innovation as well," he said when asked about the overall impact of the ongoing tariff war. The free trade, based on low tariffs and reduced trade barriers, has significantly increased international
Mercedes-Benz India may increase prices of its model range in April, if the rupee continues to weaken against the euro, Managing Director & CEO Santosh Iyer said on Tuesday. The company, which took a price hike in January this year, also expects the luxury car sales to remain under stress for at least two quarters with muted demand. "When we look at the exchange rate, it has really been a bit concerning in the last 20 days because the euro has already reached 95 levels, and we have priced the cars at 90 (rupee level). So there's a significant increase in this, and that may lead to price increase if this continues from April," Iyer told reporters here. Euro's exchange rate in terms of Indian rupee has been witnessing a continuous fall this year. From the level of 89.96 on February 12, the exchange rate hit the record low of 95.13 against a euro on March 12, according to RBI data. A euro was valued at Rs 94.55 as on Tuesday. The company needs to react to any averse fluctuations in .