Vespiario kicks premium sales into gear
Vespiario Thailand, t he authorised importer and distributor of Italian scooters and big bikes for Piaggio Group, is confident of achieving its sales target of 14,000 motorcycles this year, thanks to a strong local demand.
Managing director Pornada Tejapaibul said Vespiario fared quite well in the first four months of this year, outstripping the performance of the overall motorcycle market, for which sales rose by 4.5% to 584,904 units over the first four months.
The company reported that its sales rose by 13.3% to 4,673 motorcycles from January to April.
She forecasts the company’s sales will grow 15.6% this year to 14,000 motorcycles, with the overall market projected to grow slightly by 0.68% to 1.75 million units.
Mrs Pornada said the premium segment with price tags above 50,000 baht a unit is expected to grow at a higher pace than the mass segment because middle to high-end buyers can still afford luxury motorcycles.
“This premium segment in which Vespiario’s motorcycles are included is projected to rise by 9% to 734,000 motorcycles,” said Mrs Pornada. “Premium motorcycle sales have grown every single year from only 6% of the total market in 2009 to 38.9% in 2016. I predict the segment will account for 41% of the overall market this year.”
Established in 2010, Vespiario began selling Italian Vespa scooters, for which it had accumulated sales of 50,483 units as of last month.
Earlier this year, the company announced it would sell three more Italian brands locally under the Pisa-based group — Piaggio, Aprilia and Moto Guzzi.
Mrs Pornada said Vespa and Piaggio are in the scooter segment while another two brands — Aprilia and Moto Guzzi — are positioned at the big bike level, although they are all in the premium segment.
But she said major sales would still come from the Vespa brand because it is well-known among Thai motorists, while the other three brands remain relatively expensive compared with other players in the local market.
Most premium motorcycles have been assembled locally, but Vespiario has to import its products from Italy. Only Vespa scooters are made in Piaggio’s plant in Vietnam and is duty free under the Asean Free Trade Area.
“Vespiario has to create more brand awareness from Piaggio, Aprilia and Moto Guzzi over the next three years, with about 200 units forecast to be sold in 2017,” said Mrs Pornada.
She said the company aims to open 10 new Motorplex centres selling all four brands this year.
At present, Vespiario has 80 outlets selling Vespa scooters in 55 provinces.
Last year, Vespiario sold 12,110 Vespas, representing a sharp growth of 30.7%.