Yamaha to focus on rural markets

Having achieved a strong presence in urban markets, Japanese two-wheeler major Yamaha now plans to tap rural markets in the country by launching more models at affordable prices, a top company official has said.

"We have so far seen good sales in urban areas, mainly in the big cities, due to our image as a premium bike-maker. Now to further accelerate growth, we will strengthen our presence in rural markets," India Yamaha Motor National Business Head Roy Kurian told PTI.

The Japanese two-wheeler giant sold 3.8 lakh units in 2010 and plans to sell 5.2 lakh units this year.

"Currently, about 40 per cent of our sales come from rural areas and we want to increase this further in the coming days," Kurian said, adding that the company will launch more models with an affordable price tag.

In this regard, the company also plans to strengthen its sales network in Tier-III towns. "Currently, we have around 400 dealers and plan to increase this in the coming days," he said.

The firm claims its low-end model, the Crux, already enjoys good demand in the rural market. "Our main product, the Yamaha Crux, is well accepted in rural markets and the YBR 110 also contributes significantly to our sales," he said.

The company is also looking to increase its market share in the deluxe segment to 20 per cent from the present 15 per cent by March. In the premium segment, it is eyeing a 15 per cent market share, up from 10 per cent at present.

"We expect to sell 25,000 units in the deluxe segment and 35,000 units in the premium segment by March," Kurian said.

Yamaha has an installed annual capacity of 6 lakh units at its two manufacturing units located at Surajpur, in Uttar Pradesh, and Faridabad, in Haryana, and plans to further strengthen production to 1 million units by 2013.