Since the Tokyo Motor Show is currently going on in Japan, many car makers are expected to make some big announcements. Talking about the developments from the French car maker, Renault, the company officials told that it is planning to expand its roots in the Multi Utility Vehicle (MUV) segment of the Indian auto market. Emphasising on the growth prospects of the respective segment, the officials of Renault said that it is vital for the company to mark its presence in almost each and every segment. The Indian wing of Renault presently has a product line-up of 5 models out of which its Duster has been doing considerably a good business. It must be noted that the car maker is eyeing 90 per cent growth in 2013 owing to the success of its compact SUV, Duster.
Further hinting at the entrance of Renault in the MUV segment, Gilles Normand, the Chairman of Asia Pacific Region for Renault said “The objective now is to make sure that in the next introduction of cars, we want to enter the significant segments or growing segments where we are not present today. If I give you some concrete example, one of the segments which is growing in India is MUV segment, which is fast growing. So it is one of the possibilities."
Apart from introducing a new MUV, he also hinted that the company might be soon entering in the fold of sub-Rs. 4 lakh category as this segment accounts for almost 40 per cent market share in the country. Normand further added, "These two segments are quite important for us. We are definitely working on the next wave of products, out of which one will be connected to a fast growing segment in India and the other one will be from the global line up for India market."
As told by Renault officials, the company sold 35000 units last year while the sales estimates for this year is around 65000 to 66000 units. Although Indian car market is sluggish at this moment, the company is optimistic about future plans as it sees the Indian auto industry having great untapped growth potential. However, Normand also stressed on the fact that the growth of Indian auto sector would be inconsistent in the coming years. He said “We know very well that in a country like India, you have some pauses in growth. It doesn't change our long term perspective about India at all."
Affirming with the view that sales of Renault Duster have been going down slowly, Normand told that in India, a new product creates a lot of enthusiasm among Indian buyers and same was the case when Duster made its entry in the country. At the initial stages, the demand for Duster was high but now it is slowly stabilising. However, being optimistic of overcoming the drop in sales of Duster, he commented “We are going to manage the life-cycle of this product, you can expect that in the coming months, there will be variations of the Duster." Presently, Renault India is trying to focus on expanding its footprint by scaling the dealership network across the country.
