HYUNDAI SHIFTS INTO TOP GEAR FOR 2022
Aims to invest ~13,000 cr in India to develop and upgrade products
Korean auto major Hyundai, second-biggest in the domestic car market, aims to invest $2 billion (about ~13,000 crore) in the country over the next five years to
develop and upgrade products. It aims to expand its market share from the current 17 per cent and double domestic sales to a million vehicles annually. It has 11 products at present, which it says needs regular refreshing. “The product life cycle is shortening. Every four years, you need to upgrade the design and technology of a model, while refreshing it with minor changes every year,” said Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice-president (sales and marketing). AJAY MODI reports
Korean automobile major Hyundai, second biggest in the domestic car market, aims to invest $2 billion (about ~13,000 crore) in this country over the next five years to develop and upgrade products.
It aims to expand its market share from the current 17 per cent and double domestic sales to a million vehicles annually in the next five years.
It has 11 products at present, which it says needs regular refreshing. “The product life cycle is shortening. Every four years, you need to upgrade design and technology of a model, while refreshing it with minor changes every year. Every upgrade requires an investment of ~400-500 crore. So, every year, we need to invest ~1,500 crore in upgrading three products and implementing major and minor changes,” Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice-president (sales and marketing), told this newspaper.
Hyundai also aims to bring a new car model every year and this need an additional investment of ~1,000 crore annually. So, every year, up to ~2,500 crore will be invested, said Srivastava. He indicated that between 2018 and 2019, the company will be introducing two new mass volume products in the Indian market, aimed at millennials (the term for those born between the early 1980s and the early 2000s).
The company recently stopped production of its entry segment hatchback, the i10. Its entry segment now has two vehicles, the Eon and the Grandi10, a premium hatchback.
“We will definitely bring a new car in that segment (in place of the i10). Within the compact segment, volume lies at the bottom of the pyramid. But, we will bring a product just above this level. The model and its design have been frozen,” said Srivastava.
The next product will be a smaller sports utility vehicle, to be placed below the Creta in price. “The millennial population believes in lifestyle and is ready to spend. These next two mass volume products from Hyundai will be positioned to appeal to these millennials,” said Srivastava.
Hyundai currently has two factories close to Chennai, operating at nearly full capacity. So, additional capacity will also be needed in the next couple of years to be ready for producing over a million units in the next five years. Srivastava says the strategy will be to create adequate marketing facilities before going for higher production capacity.
EVERY UPGRADE REQUIRES AN INVESTMENT OF ~400-500 CR. SO, EVERY YEAR, WE NEED TO INVEST ~1,500 CR IN UPGRADING 3 PRODUCTS” RAKESH SRIVASTAVA Senior VP (sales and marketing), Hyundai Motor India