Yamaha betting big on scooters in 2014-15

Yamaha launched its first scooter, the Yamaha Ray just two years ago but Ray and the Ray Z together with new scooter launches in the coming year are poised to match the company’s motorcycle sales. Regarding Yamaha’s plans for the near future, Yamaha Motor India’s VP – Sales and Marketing, Roy Kurian said, “You can expect our growth and our focus more in scooters because it is going to drive volumes.” Yamaha expects sales of close to 8.5 million units this year and cross the 1 million mark in 2015. 

At a media event, Kurian also informed us that the new manufacturing plant in Chennai will begin production in mid 2015. This facility was initially slated for a first batch of rollouts by the beginning of 2014 but is now scheduled for mid next year. Initially, it will produce scooters only, as Yamaha is seeing excellent growth in the scooter segment. This plant will have a capacity of 600,000 units in a single shift to begin with. At optimal capacity, Yamaha will be able to take the total production capacity to 1.8 million units and including its Greater Noida plant, Yamaha’s future production capacity stands at 2.8 million units. 

Yamaha launched a new range of helmets for children priced at Rs 1350 at the event. These are part of a new initiative by the two-wheeler manufacturer called Yamaha Children Safety Program (YCSP).

As part of the program, the company unveiled a mascot to build a brand connect with kids. Yamaha expects this connect with children will help accelerate the company’s growth further.

Yamaha has built a team of trainers for this safety program who have been specially trained at Yamaha Motor Company in Japan. These trainers will impart training to children across the country at various locations.