Japanese tyre manufacturer Bridgestone has said that the current slowdown in the commercial vehicles segment in India has impacted the company’s OEM sales. However, the sales in the replacement tyre market had registered a growth, although bit slowly.
Tomio Fukuzumi, Managing Director, Bridgestone India Pvt Ltd, told Business Line that several factors like the political instability, the ensuing Parliament elections etc has led to the slowdown in sales. He declined to divulge any sales figures of the company during the slowdown period.
Fukuzumi was here to launch the company’s first super concept store New Bharat Tyres India Pvt Ltd on Wednesday.
He said that the concept store is a unique retail concept introduced as part of company’s expansion strategy. It aims to revolutionise the tyre buying experience with focus on safety, reliability and eco friendliness.
With the objective of introducing these concept stores across the country, he said the company has plans to increase the number of such stores to 48 from 40 nationally by the end of this year.
Besides having complete product range, the concept store will add a new dimension to the retailing of tyres in the region through the unique business model, he said.
To a question on rubber requirement for its two production facilities, he said the company is depending both import as well as domestic market for natural rubber to meet its production needs. The production capacity in the two plants at Indore and Pune together put at 30,000 units per day which consists of passenger cars, trucks and bus tyres.