Managing Director Pankaj Dubey of Polaris India
An Indian vehicle website recently posted an interview with Mr. Pankaj Dubey, Managing Director of Polaris India Pvt. Ltd. in which they discussed Polaris’s activities in the Indian market. Polaris entered the market in 2011 and have undertaken a number of efforts to grow the business. Here is a summary of the interview highlights and key marketing initiatives.
- Participating in off-road racing events
- Partnering with entrepreneurs to set up 16 Polaris Experience Zones in Indian cities to expose more people to off-roading
- Their top five markets are Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad
- Efforts to market to police, parks departments, fire departments, etc are progressing
- The product offerings in India include ATVs, UTVs, snowmobiles, and the Indian and Victory Motorcycles are likely to be added but not for at least a year
- There are currently 14 Polaris dealerships with plans to reach 50 by year end 2016
- The company is lobbying government agencies to allow more road access for ATVs and UTVs
Comment: Increasing international sales has been a key strategic initiative for Polaris so it is not surprising that they are looking to expand aggressively in the next few years in India. In general foreign companies are eyeing the country’s growing middle class to power spending on goods and services. While some estimates put the middle class at about 300 million people, the upper range of this segment is where most of the spending is likely to come and that translates into about 50 million consumers. The middle class is expected to grow strongly in the coming decades. Learn more: NYTimes.com