'Hero Cycles market share up despite economic slowdown'

The economic slowdown may have affected various sectors, especially the automobile sector, but Hero Cycles is gaining more market share even during the slump, Director of Firefox Cycles Limited and Hexi Aditya Munjal has said.

"We have seen growth across different segments. So we are seeing people taking on cycles across the different segments. We haven't felt the heat of the economy," he told PTI at the launch of the high-end Lectro E-Cycle here on Wednesday.

Admitting there were challenges due to the slump in the economy, Munjal said Hero Cycles has only grown in this difficult time.

"Yes, obviously, there are challenges. The overall market is growing at a very slow pace. It is just that Hero Cycles is taking more share of this market," he added.

"Hero Cycles has been the market leader across all segments as nearly 20 million bicycles are sold across the country every year," he said.

Now, the company aims to capture the e-cycle market as well, Munjal, director of Firefox Cycles (a division of Hero Cycles) added.

"Our ambition in the next five years is to translate 10 per cent of this market to e-cycles. We see a potential for two million e-cycles in the next five years. So, two to three million cycles in the next five years is what we aim for...," he explained.

He underlined that shift to electric was inevitable and the government and companies into mobility were moving ahead to achieve it.

Speaking about the Lectro E-Cycle, Munjal said the premium bike, which will be available at a cost of Rs 1.35 lakh, is an outcome of a three-way strategic partnership initiated last year between Hero Cycles Ltd, Yamaha Motor Co Ltd and Mitsui & Co Ltd.

The alliance, brought together by Mitsui is aimed at creating technologically superior high-performance products through collaboration between Hero Cycles and Yamaha Motor's electric drive units, with go-to-market sales, distribution and marketing support by Mitsui, he said.

"This is a brand builder," he signed off.