Homegrown niche bike maker Royal Enfield on Wednesday (24 February) launched retail operations in Thailand with the opening of its first store in the country.
The company will sell its complete range of motorcycles, apparel and accessories in its first exclusive store in Thonglor, Bangkok, Royal Enfield said in a statement.
Besides the opening of the showroom, the company also announced prices of its models to be sold in Thailand, ranging from THB 1,79,800 for the Bullet 500 to THB 2,19,800 for the Royal Enfield Continental GT 535cc cafe racer.
Royal Enfield’s first retail store in Thailand has been set up by General Auto Supply Co. Ltd.
“Royal Enfield is today one of the most profitable automotive brands in the world and we believe that our future growth will come from our international markets such as Thailand where motorcycles are a popular medium of commuting. Our phenomenal success in India gives us the confidence to thrive in similar markets like Thailand and Indonesia, which will play an instrumental role in fuelling our growth in Asia,” said Arun Gopal, International Business Head, Royal Enfield.
“We see a huge potential for our evocative, all purpose, and middle-weight (250-750cc) motorcycles that will allow customers an optimum choice for upgrade,” he added.
Of late, Royal Enfield, part of the Eicher group has overtaken the iconic brand Harley-Davidson of USA in terms of market cap. Royal Enfield had earlier exceeded the sales volumes of Harley-Davidson, last year.
With a view to become the leader in global mid-sized motorcycle segment, Royal Enfield has been expanding its global retail footprint across UK, Europe, Latin America, Middle-East and now in South East Asia, with its most recent launch in Indonesia. Royal Enfield announced its entry into Thailand, the fifth largest two wheeler market in the world in Dec 2015, at the Thailand International Motor Expo.
“As part of our international strategy, we are focused on building the brand and creating demand in nodal cities across the world such as London, Bogota, Medellin, Dubai, Madrid, Paris, Jakarta and now Bangkok. We believe that once we are successful in Bangkok, our brand and products will resonate very well in other key Thailand cities as well,” Gopal added.
Royal Enfield has been expanding its global retail footprint across the UK, Europe, Latin America, the Middle- East and now in South East Asia as part of its strategy to become a leader in global mid-sized motorcycle segment. It had recently launched in Indonesia.
In 2015, the company sold over 450,000 motorcycles across the globe to support its global growth strategy and also announced its plan to produce upto 900,000 motorcycles by end of 2018, from two of its existing manufacturing facilities and a third upcoming facility, in Tamil Nadu, India.
BW Reporters
The author is Senior Correspondent with BW Businessworld
