)
Yamaha Motors India aims to strengthen its foothold over the scooters segment in Gujarat with the launch of its new model Fascino.
The company launched its new 113 cc scooter model Fascino as well as the 125 cc motorcycle Saluto here in Ahmedabad today. Speaking on the occasion, Navneeth Menon, zonal sales head, west, Yamaha Motor India said that the west zone has one of the highest demands for scooters in the country. "Of the overall two-wheeler sales, scooters account for 40 per cent of the sales here in West zone. The only other region in the country that sees huge traction for scooters is the south zone, with 50 per cent of two wheeler sales coming from scooters," he said.
India has one of the largest two-wheeler markets in the world with a total annual demand of approximately 16 million units (2014). Out of the total demand, the scooter segment constitutes 27 per cent of the market, and is growing further year by year. A company statement here claimed that since 2012, Yamaha Motor has been introducing a range of scooters – including RAY, RAY Z and Alpha. The new Fascino is targeted especially at the youth.
"With the new model, we plan to establish ourselves as a key scooter player in this market. For starters, we are aiming to sell around 5,000 units per month in Gujarat and Maharashtra, which should go up by at least 30-40 per cent during the festive season in October," Menon said. The company currently enjoys a 2-2.5 per cent market share in the scooters segment in the West, while its overall market share in the two wheeler space is around 3.5 to 4 per cent in the west zone.
As for the 125 cc bike Saluto, the model has been developed as a family-use motorcycle. The motorcycle market constitutes about 68 per cent of the total two wheeler market at 11 million units. Out of this, the 100-125cc motorcycle class is the largest category at 9 million units, comprising almost 83 per cent of the market, claimed a Yamaha release.
During FY15, Yamaha India posted a strong 22.59 per cent growth in scooter volumes selling 216,960 units. Yamaha India currently sells about 20,000 units of scooters per month.
