Hero MotoCorp to launch 10 new products every year, crosses 10 crore production milestone

After crossing the 10 cr production milestone, Hero MotoCorp aims to cross the next 10 cr landmark in the next 10 years, with its new product strategy.

Hero MotoCorp, the largest two-wheeler manufacturer in the world for the last 20 years, on Thursday has announced the feat of surpassing the 10 crores cumulative production milestone. With this, the homegrown two-wheeler major becomes the only Indian automotive manufacturer to achieve the 10 million production landmark, as the company has claimed.

Hero MotoCorp started its journey back in 1985 and reached the first million mark in 1994. To reach 10 million marks, it took another 10 years till 2004. According to statistics, a Hero MotoCorp two-wheeler is produced every 11.3 seconds in India. This includes the whole process of production and rolling off the production line.

To mark the achievement, Pawan Munjal, Chairman, and CEO, Hero MotoCorp has unveiled six special celebration edition motorcycles and scooters at the company’s manufacturing facility at Gurugram. The six celebration edition models include Splendor+, Xtreme 160R, Passion Pro, Glamour, Destini 125, Maestro Edge 110. All of these special edition motorcycles and scooters will go on sale from February 2021, informed the company.

The 100 millionth bike produced by Hero MotoCorp was an Xtreme 160R, rolled-out from the OEM’s manufacturing facility in Haridwar, in the northern Indian hill state of Uttarakhand. The company also claims that it has achieved the landmark as one of the fastest OEMs in the world, with the last 50 million units coming in just the last 7 years.

Road to 10 crores

Now, the company aims to reach the next 10 crore unit production milestone in the next 10 years. Besides the conventional fuel-powered products, EVs will play a key role in this growth strategy. Talking about the strategy, Pawan Munjal said, “I say this often that we should never waste a good crisis.”

At the celebration event, Pawan Munjal has also outlined the plans and vision for the next five years addressing the various stakeholders of the company, including customers, dealers, distributors, investors, suppliers, and employees.

He reiterated the OEM’s focus on building the new mobility solutions under the ‘Be the Future of Mobility’ project. Under this strategy, the company not only aims to build new mobility solutions but also focuses on global expansion with entry into new markets. It has already finalized entry into the Mexico market while expanding its dealership network in Nicaragua and Honduras as well.

Under new product strategy, Hero MotoCorp will launch over 10 new products every year, with two-thirds attributed to scooters and premium models.

Under this new product strategy, Hero MotoCorp plans to launch more than 10 two-wheelers every year, including variants, refreshes, and upgrades. Two-thirds of these products will be scooters and premium products, said Munjal. Interestingly, in the last quarter of CY2020, Hero MotoCorp has partnered with Harley Davidson, under which, the two-wheeler major is expected to spawn out new premium higher capacity motorcycles.

This comes in the line with the company’s strategy to focus on a range of premium motorcycles, for the next five years, as the two-wheeler major has already revealed.

Munjal also said that during this timeframe, Hero MotoCorp will aim to further consolidate its leadership position, expand its global footprint, launch new products and also work on new innovative product concepts. For its global expansion, the company’s slogan is R4 – Revitalize, Recalibrate, Revive and Revolutionize.

Hero MotoCorp announced a Rs 10,000 crore investment plan in February 2020, for the next 5-7 years.

According to the 5-year plan, the company has taken a steep growth target for its overseas markets. Besides expanding in the existing markets, the company plans to penetrate into new key markets across the world. It has hinted about focusing on new greener powertrain solutions and fuel-efficient products in a bid to reduce carbon footprint.

The company has also indicated increased focus and investment towards R&D. As Hero MotoCorp announced its plans of investment in February 2020, it will pour in Rs 10,000 crore over the next 5-7 years.

As Pawan Munjal has said, “We are going to continue to ride our growth journey. In keeping with our Vision to ‘Be the Future of Mobility’, we will be launching a host of new motorcycles & scooters over the next five years, in addition to expanding our global footprint. We will also continue to invest in R&D and focus on new mobility solutions.”

Last month, in December 2020, Hero MotoCorp dispatched 4,25,033 units of two-wheelers in the domestic market, recording 3.2% YoY growth than 4,12,009 units dispatched in the same month of 2019. Last month, the company recorded a 37.68% market share in the Indian two-wheeler market, down 1.55% from 39.24% registered in December 2019.

Hero Splendor and HF Deluxe were the two top-selling two-wheelers in the top 10 selling two-wheelers of the country in December 2020. The Splendor series that has been keeping the crown position for a long time sold 1,94,930 units in December 2020, while the HF Deluxe recorded 1,41,168 units.

Also Read: Top upcoming premium bikes in India in 2021