Opportunity in India huge in terms of scale, Triumph will cater to a younger audience in the future: Nick Bloor, Triumph CEO

Nick Bloor, the global CEO of Triumph Motorcycles says in order to be a truly global two-wheeler company – one needs to have a significant presence in India.

Speaking at the press conference on the launch of the Bajaj Triumph Speed X 400, and the Scrambler 400, Nick Bloor, CEO, Triumph said that the Indian market was the biggest market in the world for mid-size motorcycles and the opportunity in India was huge in terms of scale, compared to what they are used to in the 600 cc category and above. 

While the Triumph brand has been well established, this partnership with Bajaj will help the company to take it to the next level. Bloor says the company will be able to take the brand to a whole different customer base in India, which had so far remained out of reach for many buyers.

“From a global point of view, the 400-500 cc category is growing in popularity and importance, depending on the markets. In some markets it is down to affordability, in some markets it is down to commuting, like in Europe and the US. The factors vary from market to market, but there is a lot of excitement around mid-capacity, bringing in more younger people into the riding population,” said Bloor.

Triumph launch comes close on the heels of the iconic US brand Harley Davidson's launch of the 440 cc bike. Both these companies look to challenge the dominance of the Royal Enfield- the mid-size motorcycle specialist. 

While the British motorcycle maker launched and unveiled two bikes, there are different models and form factors under work on the same platform, which may be introduced at a later date, Bloor informed declining to share further details.

“The volumes are important, look into the longer term, open the Triumph to new segments. We have been out of touch in terms of pricing, this will allow us,” Triumph CEO added.  

Launched at an aggressive price of Rs 2.23 lakh for the first 10,000 customers, the company had received over 2,500 bookings for the Speed 400x, within a couple of hours of the price announcement on Wednesday. 

The new mid-size bikes will be sold through dedicated Triumph dealerships across the country. By the end of this month, the model will be available for sale across 30 locations, which the company wants to ramp up to 80 cities and 120 showrooms by the end of March 2024.

While the Speed 400 has been launched, Triumph also showcased the Scrambler 400 which will be launched in October this year. 

For the first time perhaps, the Indian consumer will have a choice of two big brands, mainly Harley and Triumph, which are really best placed to compete in that mind space, Rajiv Bajaj, MD of Bajaj Auto said.

He added that while the overlap between Triumph and KTM might be 10-20%, but the overlap between Harley or Enfield would be 100%, so the company will try to grab a pie of that growing segment.

Also read: Triumph Motorcycles could potentially sell half a million to a million units in the years to come - says Rajiv Bajaj, MD of Bajaj Auto

Also read: Bajaj-Triumph eyes volumes of 40,000 to 50,000 units of mid-size bike sales globally in FY24