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xBhp has a chat with Vimal Sumbly, Managing Director of Triumph Motorcycles India, where he tells us about his love for motorcycles and how he got into the business. He also speaks about the success of Triumph in India:
xBhp: Which was your first motorcycle?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: RX 100 was your first motorcycle and after that you jumped to a 675. Nothing in between?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: Coming to the business of motorcycling. Earlier you were with Bajaj and now with Triumph. Was it a conscious decision to join the motorcycling field or it just happened?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: You mentioned that you were born in Srinagar. Have you been to Ladakh on a motorcycle before you came into the motorcycle business?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: It has been quite some time since Triumph Motorcycles entered India. Have you noticed any change in the Indian motorcycling market like change in terms of how people buy their motorcycles and what affects their motorcycle buying decision in India?
Vimal Sumbly: Triumph is going to complete 3 years only in January 2017. I would say we have just arrived in India. But thanks to our customers and dealers we are well established. When we entered India, market was concentrated on one segment of motorcycles. What Triumph bought are 5 broad segments of motorcycles in India. We have classics, roadsters, supersports, adventure and cruiser; so what we brought to the market are different motorcycles for all consumers. And under these five categories we have 10 different bikes. So we brought that change. Second change we brought is that we focus more on the product in terms of getting technology to the customer. If you look at today all our bikes have ABS; there is no other competing brands who can claim this. We also brought ride-by- wire and traction control.
xBhp: How many bikes are currently CKD?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly: There is a very big myth in Indian mindset that the customer in India looks for cost. There are various products in India, which are very costly yet they get sold. I think India needs a value for money product. Our country is a value for money country. India is ready to pay for quality. Unfortunately over a period of time, India has always neglected the top end of the society - people who have worked hard to achieve something in life. There are few people who have been passing money from generation to generation. Now we have new set of entrepreneurs, start-up CEOs, etc. They are bringing more and more business in India and they are earning well. Now they want to indulge in luxury, they want to indulge in premium. What is wrong in that? We would like to work on the top end of the industry. I think it is the ignored segment in India. We have a brilliant company Bajaj in India. They are catering to that segment very well. They are bringing latest technology in that segment of up to 250cc. We would like to cater the segment which is 500 cc and above. Look at ride by wire, different modes, and traction control; all these features are something which you could previously find only in a luxury car or in an SUV. Now all these features are built in in our motorcycles, so I think we are setting a benchmark for all the motorcycle companies in India.
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly: If you see the industry today, we are the market leader in classics, we are the market leader in adventure, and we are very competitive in roadster and in the segment of supersports we are almost there. But 40% to 45% of our portfolio comes from classics, and other segments are equally divided. So second largest segment after classics is our adventure, followed by roadsters and supersports and cruisers. You have to give credit to Triumph Motorcycles to bring adventure motorcycle culture to India. Tiger was the first adventure bike in India and we are close to 500+ customers on it in just two and a half years of operations in India. We brought a new culture of riding with our adventure bikes and we dominate this segment.
xBhp: The new Bonneville series was launched at the Auto Expo this year. How has been the response so far?
Vimal Sumbly: Amazing response! The series has just crossed 200 unit sales, and we have bookings for another 200 motorcycles.
xBhp: So is it (the new Bonneville sales) as per the target that you set for that particular motorcycle or has it exceeded your expectations?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: You talked about the Tiger Training Academy. This segment is still evolving and still taking shape. Do you have more plans in the pipeline for organizing these sorts of events?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: Which was your first motorcycle?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: RX 100 was your first motorcycle and after that you jumped to a 675. Nothing in between?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: Coming to the business of motorcycling. Earlier you were with Bajaj and now with Triumph. Was it a conscious decision to join the motorcycling field or it just happened?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: You mentioned that you were born in Srinagar. Have you been to Ladakh on a motorcycle before you came into the motorcycle business?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: It has been quite some time since Triumph Motorcycles entered India. Have you noticed any change in the Indian motorcycling market like change in terms of how people buy their motorcycles and what affects their motorcycle buying decision in India?
Vimal Sumbly: Triumph is going to complete 3 years only in January 2017. I would say we have just arrived in India. But thanks to our customers and dealers we are well established. When we entered India, market was concentrated on one segment of motorcycles. What Triumph bought are 5 broad segments of motorcycles in India. We have classics, roadsters, supersports, adventure and cruiser; so what we brought to the market are different motorcycles for all consumers. And under these five categories we have 10 different bikes. So we brought that change. Second change we brought is that we focus more on the product in terms of getting technology to the customer. If you look at today all our bikes have ABS; there is no other competing brands who can claim this. We also brought ride-by- wire and traction control.
xBhp: How many bikes are currently CKD?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly: There is a very big myth in Indian mindset that the customer in India looks for cost. There are various products in India, which are very costly yet they get sold. I think India needs a value for money product. Our country is a value for money country. India is ready to pay for quality. Unfortunately over a period of time, India has always neglected the top end of the society - people who have worked hard to achieve something in life. There are few people who have been passing money from generation to generation. Now we have new set of entrepreneurs, start-up CEOs, etc. They are bringing more and more business in India and they are earning well. Now they want to indulge in luxury, they want to indulge in premium. What is wrong in that? We would like to work on the top end of the industry. I think it is the ignored segment in India. We have a brilliant company Bajaj in India. They are catering to that segment very well. They are bringing latest technology in that segment of up to 250cc. We would like to cater the segment which is 500 cc and above. Look at ride by wire, different modes, and traction control; all these features are something which you could previously find only in a luxury car or in an SUV. Now all these features are built in in our motorcycles, so I think we are setting a benchmark for all the motorcycle companies in India.
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly: If you see the industry today, we are the market leader in classics, we are the market leader in adventure, and we are very competitive in roadster and in the segment of supersports we are almost there. But 40% to 45% of our portfolio comes from classics, and other segments are equally divided. So second largest segment after classics is our adventure, followed by roadsters and supersports and cruisers. You have to give credit to Triumph Motorcycles to bring adventure motorcycle culture to India. Tiger was the first adventure bike in India and we are close to 500+ customers on it in just two and a half years of operations in India. We brought a new culture of riding with our adventure bikes and we dominate this segment.
xBhp: The new Bonneville series was launched at the Auto Expo this year. How has been the response so far?
Vimal Sumbly: Amazing response! The series has just crossed 200 unit sales, and we have bookings for another 200 motorcycles.
xBhp: So is it (the new Bonneville sales) as per the target that you set for that particular motorcycle or has it exceeded your expectations?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp: You talked about the Tiger Training Academy. This segment is still evolving and still taking shape. Do you have more plans in the pipeline for organizing these sorts of events?
Vimal Sumbly:
xBhp:Vimal Sumbly:
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