As Hero Splendor stalls, rivals rev up for commuter bike race

It is the face of the executive commuter bike segment and the envy of rivals for many years now.

Is the Splendor’s good run now coming to an end? Has the top-seller motorcycle finally lost steam? Its manufacturer Hero MotoCorp will doubtless disagree with this assessment but if the projected numbers for September are any indication, there could be some cause for concern.

Quarterly sales

For the first quarter of this fiscal, the Splendor (and its sibling Super Splendor) notched up sales of nearly 2.5 lakh units each month. This dropped to an average of 1.8 lakh units for July and August while it is lower still at 1.20 lakh units in September.

Hero MotoCorp has already gone on record to say that overall bike sales have been falling due to the slowdown. Stocks have also been piling up at dealerships over the last few months. This explains why September production numbers have been slashed, the company said. .

Within industry circles, however, the falling numbers of the Splendor clearly indicate that the commuter bike segment is now open to new model choices. Hero MotoCorp’s former ally, Honda, says its 110cc Dream Yuga is already on track to achieving its targeted sales of 70,000 bikes in its first three months of launch. Bajaj Auto, likewise, is upbeat on the Discover, whose projected numbers of 1.23 lakh units in September put it ahead of the Splendor.

Commuter segment

The company believes that its recently launched Discover ST will make a big difference in the commuter segment. Both HMSI (Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India) and Bajaj Auto are clearly keen on getting a larger share of the top-selling executive commuter segment pie.

Of course, it is a bit too early to relegate the Splendor to the archives. It averaged monthly sales of 2.3 lakh units through 2011-12 and has maintained the tempo for the first quarter of this fiscal. “Once Hero gets a fix on its stocks, it can plan production numbers better. This is a correction exercise,” a top ancillary supplier said.

If this is the case, it is the best thing to happen for the two-wheeler industry, whose slowdown woes are being compounded by piling up of stocks at dealerships.

Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor, however, have been carefully monitoring their inventory levels for some time now. “Things can get completely out of control otherwise,” a top official said.

Meanwhile, competitors are keeping an eye on the Splendor, sensing that this could be the best opportunity for them to make a stronger headway in the commuter segment.

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