Recently, the business and trade news was about auto stocks such as Bajaj, TVS, Mahindra and Hero being under pressure. The Equity Shares of automobile companies, primarily, Bajaj Auto, Mahindra & Mahindra, TVS Motor Company, and Hero MotoCorp traded lower on Monday 23-June-2025. This decline followed a proposal from Ministry of Road Transport and Highways’ to make Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) mandatory for all new two-wheelers sold in India.

Maybe, starting January 1, 2026, the government will enforce ABS installation across all scooters and motorcycles, irrespective of engine capacity.

Whether this actually affects safety of riders is questionable.

So as to not worry about politics, infrastructure and law–for which we don’t offer “business” (?) consulting as yet—let us take a case-study on sales figures of a motorcycle company instead.

Sales figures of “premium” models of Hero MotoCorp.

Well,

1. They are not exactly premium when others are selling 500cc or bigger engine for their respective premium or middle-weight segment
2. The immediate competitors for Hero’s premium models–in perceived eyes of buyer—those buyers of 100cc to 250cc (or even 350cc) models are not into pan-India touring or adventure sports, etc. They want a pretty bike to commute with modern features and conveniences.
3. The X category vehicles of Hero, namely Karizma XMR, XPulse 210, Xtreme 250 and Mavrick 440 are not what the walk-in customer or even the dedicatedly loyal Hero customer comes into the Showroom to purchase.
   • a. the perception is not easy to castaway that Hero is meant for fuel efficiency, for commoners, for commute, for those who need it rather than those who use a two-wheeler mainly for “lifestyle activity” purposes.
   • b. One major reason to carve out Premia out of the wide and abundant Authorised Dealer network and Authorised Service Centre network was to separate the buyer experience and maybe not let the customers be distracted in their journey to owning a Hero.
   • c. A confused commuter may leave without the planned purchase of a Splendor or such after spotting the eye-candy of X category models–postponing his/her purchase till he/she can afford to buy
     • a “good motorcycle”
     • or till the time the prices fall on a X category model
     • or if he/she can get hold of a used one.
4. Sales volumes are a reality for Hero–and sales staff have a tough time selling and also enabling financing and legal identification / verification of customer’s KYC data — so if they had to sell the completely different types of two-wheelers in the same showroom, they would need to be one exceptionally talented, experienced salesman to achieve their monthly / weekly targets.
5. The “bigger” motorcycles of Hero may face more curiosity but also problems for genuine buyer and for showroom if everyone wants a free test drive even though they only intend to buy a 100cc to 150 cc motorcycle or if they cannot afford to buy the X category model which is their first choice.
   • EXAMPLE — This is a problem even at Hero Premia Dealerships. I had happily gone to Mumbai city Hero Premia dealership—which is meant to exclusively sell the X category models—first thing on a Monday for a test-ride–because i was told by my man there–“Sir Sunday there is too much rush, too much waiting and crowded…”
     Then after a sweaty commute there on Monday, I was told–
     “sir we have only one Xtreme 250 for test-drive and one customer dropped the bike on Sunday. He dropped it not once but twice within the 100 meters of road where test drive is allowed. Sir, the gear is bent, the handle is bent, among other things, so the bike can’t be given for any test drive today.”

There are various other reasons for sales volumes dipping (and also rising) of course–but you understand the key factors are — image of the brand and the expectation from its vast number of customers to get all the goodies for the best price at the best quality possible—
—–“miracle of mass production”— but even Hero is unable to deliver “everything” despite being, on record, one of the top three manufacturers globally (ranking shifts but they are consistent up there).

Honda has also separated its premium motorcycle models inside BigWing Honda Dealerships to keep the “traffic” of commuter motorcycles contained and satisfied inside the many Honda dealerships across the nation.

On topic of customer expectations and perceptions, Harley-Davidson X440 (made in collaboration with Hero MotoCorp) for example, is a “royal” bargain — but the customers will complain about it as if they should have got what the 1200 cc H-D rider is getting. Itne paise mein itna zyaada mila, phir bhi…( इतने पैसे में इतना ज़्यादा मिला , फिर भी….)

Comparing odd features and specs between X440 and Xtreme 250 and XPulse 210 is another childishness I see common here in customers…..
—- why no TFT here, put all three ABS modes in all bikes, why off-road motorcycle not having tubeless tyres and alloy wheels (LMAO), keep stock of jacket-boot-tee-shirt-keychain because Enfield waale ke paas kitna saara hai, ( एनफील्ड वाले के पास कितना सारा है ).
They are all motorocycles meant for specific activities—-and for a style of riding, beyond commuting…

The vast, huge number of Hero customers don’t actually want the Enfield breed of carrots. They want something in-between, an all-rounder who can go do the job at any road, used for any purpose, at lowest price, at best quality—with 5 year warranty and really affordable parts & servicing. Reminds me of my past corporate boss — wanting an employee, a do-it-all Man-Friday who works at home on Sunday and signs a 5-year bond, LOLz).

Dude, it is like people want a custom-made motorcycle but it should be mass-produced !

LOLz !

—Ujjwal Dey
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