Maruti focus on hatchbacks

Maruti Suzuki is mulling strategies to maintain its market share in the hatchback segment in the face of stiff competition.

“We have retained our dominant market share of nearly 50 per cent in this segment for over a decade. We will continue to do so in the future. But it is getting tougher as competition increases,” said Shashank Srivastava, chief general manager, Maruti Suzuki India, who was in the city for a preview of the new Swift that the company will launch on August 17. 

The country’s largest car maker is planning to launch models in the hatchback segment, expand its network and increase investment.

“We are increasing our investment and expanding our portfolio. All this will hit our profitability but we are very seriously looking at strengthening our leadership position,”Maruti will start production in its second Manesar plant by October, which will have a capacity of 2.5 lakh.

The company now faces competition from a slew of hatchbacks in the market, including the Ford Figo, Spark and Beat from Chevrolet, the Santro, i10 and i20 from Hyundai and the Tata Indica. “Most of our competitors are looking at the hatchback and the premium hatchback segments to increase their market share,

The company’s Alto is the market leader in the A2 category, selling 3.47 lakh units of the total 1 million units sold in the segment in 2010. It enjoys a 35 per cent market share. However, with the impending launch of Hyundai’s small car, the company is trying to shore up its market through a number of initiatives, particularly in the rural sector.

“We have special schemes for orange growers in Nagpur, fishermen in Kerala and mango traders in Bengal,” said Srivastava. “We are also looking at increasing our conversion factor through increased promotions, exchange loyalties. Our True Value outlets stand at 320 now. We are continuously augmenting the
The A2 plus segment, or the premium hatch category, has seen a growth of 62.8 per cent compared with the A2 segment’s growth of 18 per cent last year. In terms of market share, the A2 segment has 41 per cent, while the A2+ segment has only 18 per cent. It is in this segment that the company is planning to offer products to compete with the likes of Volkswagen’s Polo, Hyundai’s i20, the Skoda Fabia, the Honda Jazz and other forthcoming launches, including the Honda Brio