Anand Mahindra is convinced that Jawa fits in perfectly with his company’s two-wheeler business.

The Chairman of the Mahindra group is all charged up at the launch of the iconic motorcycle brand, which was regularly seen on Indian roads many years ago.

The setting is appropriate in Mumbai’s Mehboob Studio which, like Jawa, is seeped in history.

“The brand values and attributes of Java fit with the DNA of the Mahindra brand in terms of building niche and differentiated products wherever we are,” explains Mahindra.

As he puts it, his company has never been about a mass market brand and has always looked for certain differentiation like ruggedness and adventure.

To that extent, the fact that Jawa is now part of the Mahindra ecosystem makes it a perfect alignment. Keeping him company in this journey are Anupam Thareja, Founder, Classic Legends, and Boman Irani, Chairman and Managing Director, Rustomjee Group.

The trio has come together to chart out the new journey for Jawa under the Classic Legends umbrella. The company was created to relaunch iconic motorcycle brands in the market and the journey has begun in right earnest. It was Irani’s father who had actually introduced Jawa to India many decades earlier. “It is a blessing for me because I was born into the Jawa family. I could almost ride before I could run,” he says.

The Rustomjee Group is a formidable name in the real estate space but Irani is clearly as passionate about Jawa. “It is a fantastic feeling. It is the rebirth of one of the most rugged, simple and beautiful brands,” he says.

Thareja and Mahindra have known each other for many years, going back to the time he was an investment banker. He played a key role in the revival story of Royal Enfield, which is today growing from strength to strength.

Thareja is quite confident that Jawa can rewrite a new chapter in today’s modern India and grow/expand the segment in which Royal Enfield is the clear leader.

Mahindra & Mahindra, of course, forayed into two-wheelers with the acquisition of Kinetic many years ago. Not much has been achieved and the company has pretty much remained a marginal player in an arena dominated by Hero, Honda, TVS, and Bajaj.

However, Jawa is a big step forward and production will happen at the Pithampur plant in Madhya Pradesh. Dealers are enthusiastic and the three partners of Classic Legends have reasons to be optimistic about the road ahead. While the Mahindra group owns 60 per cent, the other two account for 20 per cent each. As an asset-light brand lifestyle company, Classic Legends is going to pull on any Mahindra assets or resources that it needs.

Nostalgic value

Will the trio be able to pull it off with Jawa? What works in its favour is that it is a well-known brand that still evokes enormous nostalgia. However, it has been not been part of the landscape for decades now.

Will nostalgia still be a strong pull factor for this generation whose fathers rode Jawa?

“Differentiation is the key in something like a bike,” replies Mahindra, who believes that today’s youngsters would rather use mobility options like Uber and Ola for “fundamental services”.

“Getting a millennial to buy anything will be a problem in the future. They will look at a shared apartment or an Uber. They are not going to buy anything that does not stand out,” continues Mahindra.

Is it then all doom and gloom? Not quite, he says. What stands out, in his view, is something with a story like Jawa.

According to Mahindra, GenNext does not want to be put on something that is only history. What they want is a continuing story instead.

“That means you make it relevant and make a bike that works and is convenient. If you can do that, you have got a readymade story. If youngsters buy something in mobility, it better be something that looks different,” reiterates Mahindra.

Thareja completely agrees with this view and reiterates that the bike was not designed solely for the generation who were familiar with Jawa. Had this been the case, the journey would have been over even before it had begun.

“I am aware what they will be looking for and it is no big deal. The question is how do I get the rest of the young customers. The bike has to give everything, which they expect from a modern bike,” he continues.

Making retro contemporary

By the end of the day, Jawa is interned for the millennial who loves brands. The good thing is that they are aware of its history but would also like to have a bike that fits in with today’s needs and not the same machine of yesteryear.

“The guy whose father had a Jawa is already my customer and he will come for it eventually. We are an understated and cool brand. We are storytellers and emotional tools will drive this category,” says Thareja. For someone who was closely involved with the Royal Enfield comeback story, he has reasons to feel upbeat about Jawa.

Irani is equally confident that the brand will appeal to all age groups and not be confined to the oldies who rode the bike. “There are people ready with hard cheques to buy the bike today. All of them are under 40 and one is as young as 27,” he says.

Irani also believes there is a nostalgic feel, culture and a huge ride factor that goes with this brand. “There is an everyday ride possible on a Jawa while on a Sunday, you can keep riding on and on,” he says.

The building blocks are in place now with a well-known brand that really does not require too much advertising.

There is a plant that will roll out the bikes in the coming months with a retail network that is raring to go. On the face of it, everything is set and it is now up to the customer to embrace the all-new resurrected Jawa all over again.

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