Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) is aligning with top-class sporting events that emphasise endurance, reliability and strategy. Other than cricket, it is football, basketball, motorcycle racing and even rowing that have got M&M’s motor sports division, Mahindra Racing, charting out a new course.

With M&M unveiling its electric sports car Halo at the Auto Expo this year, Mahindra Racing is stepping on the gas to ensure that the benefits of the Group’s association with sporting encounters accrue to the Mahindra brand.

“At Mahindra, we look at each sport and sporting event on individual merit, and look for an alignment with our business objectives,” said SP Shukla, Chairman, Mahindra Racing. “Different sports and sporting formats have varying reach and penetration across our target segments. Hence, a match of product and brand objectives with the sport and sporting format is the way we approach our association with sport,” he told Business Line .

Outlining the different sports that the Mahindra Group has been associated with, Shukla said: “In 2012, Mahindra sponsored the Sri Lankan Premier League. The objective was to make Mahindra a household name in Sri Lanka across product categories — SUVs (sport utility vehicles), tractors, commercial vehicles, two-wheelers, resorts and IT,” he said.

1.5 billion fans Sri Lanka turned out to be a strategic market for the Mahindra Group, with cricket turning out to be the best way for the company to connect and engage with audiences, given the fan base of approximately 1.5 billion across India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The company was also associated with the FIFA World Cup in 2010. “We had another connect with FIFA World Cup, as Tech Mahindra, which was Mahindra Satyam at that time, was involved in providing IT support to critical activities of the event,” added Shukla.

The Chairman elaborated that the company had sponsored a Youth Football Challenge to nurture young talent and give them an opportunity of playing at the senior level. “We sponsored a talent hunt, with the selected members undergoing training at the Celtic Football Club in Scotland.”

The company has also sponsored National Basketball Association events, a pre-eminent men’s professional basketball league in North America.

Shukla continued, “We sponsor the All India Regatta Rowing event in Kolkata. It demonstrates the continued commitment of the Group to promote and nurture a sporting culture in India and other key markets where we operate.”

The company is also deeply involved in motor sport, in both the two-wheeler and electric cars categories.

Brand value How does the association with sport add brand value to the company’s offerings? The Chairman is clear: “If you look at our association with motor sports, there is a direct product-brand association with the two-wheeler category.”

Speaking about motorcycle racing, he added: “We surprised the motorcycle racing world by winning the Italian Championship, and finishing third in the World Championship. This was achieved within a year of entering a sport in which other global brands have been present for decades. Naturally, this has had a wonderful brand association with potential buyers of motorcycles and scooters in India.”

Noting that there were technical rub-offs too, Shukla said the two-wheeler business benefited from the company’s efforts in racing, especially at the Moto3, the Grand Prix motorcycle racing.

“The exciting sport of Moto3 operates at the cutting edge of two-wheeler technology, after all. Racing provides a youthful, exciting, vibrant and tech-savvy image to the Mahindra brand, which is used across several group businesses and sectors,” he added.

Formula-E racing The company has also announced its entry into Formula-E racing for electric cars. “Electric cars are green and do not pollute. While customers agree with that, they continue to prefer conventional, fossil-fuelled cars as they feel an electric car may not have the same power or speed. It is a misconception that needs to be addressed,” he said

Stating that Formula-E racing in 10 iconic cities in the world would help change the perception, especially “when people see electric cars zooming at speeds of more than 200 km an hour.”

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