Volkswagen taps rising premium car demand from smaller cities
German carmaker Volkswagen is seeking to cash in on the increasing demand for its premium performance-oriented offerings in metro and tier-II and -III cities as it looks to grow sales by 15% in India this year, according to a senior company official.
Volkswagen Passenger Cars India, which sold around 44,000 units in 2023, sells premium performance-oriented variants of its models SUV Taigun and sedan Virtus with a 1.5-litre petrol engine under the ‘GT’ trim. It has now brought a 1-litre petrol engine in the GT lineup to increase affordability.
“Earlier, there was no subsegment of a performance SUV or a performance sedan...So, when we introduced the GT on the Taigun and Virtus that basically created that space, which now everybody’s coming into,”
Volkswagen Passenger Cars India Brand Director Ashish Gupta told PTI.
Bullish on the growth of the sub-segment, he said it has been fuelled by how the customer preferences are evolvingover timewiththetop-ofthe-line features, safety and performance topping their demand list and are willing to pay for it.
“They’re not willing to compromise. So, definitely, this is a space which will continue to grow,” Gupta asserted.
Earlier, the GT was available only in a 1.5-litre petrol engine option, and around 35–40 %^ of sales were from the GT on both Taigun and Virtus, he added.
The growth of GT sales is not limited only in the metros and cities, he said, adding that “if I look at the GTs even in the tier-II and tier-III towns, almost 20 to 25% of my sales are the GTs”.
“The GT has become iconic as a brand for us, and we want to get the maximum leverage out of the GT badge,” Gupta said. While the company has moved towards more premium offerings in the market with the “GT Edge”, he said there has also been feedback from customers who wanted the GT badge at a more affordable price, and hence, the company has also brought the GT Line with a 1-litre petrol engine to address them.
On the sales outlook, Gupta said Volkswagen India has set a target of 15% growth this year, with the company focussing on expanding its presence in new tier-II and -III cities.