Hero Splendor Vs Bajaj Discover: Splendor Regains No.1 Position

Last month, we reported that the Bajaj Discover has become the largest selling bike of the world by defeating Hero Splendor in September month’s sales. But, when the sales statics of October month came it was clear that Splendor is not going to be on No.2 position for this time. As we reported recently, Hero MotoCorp retailed over 5 lakh units domestically in month of October, which includes 1/3 contribution of Splendor alone, accounting for over 1.8 lakh of those. Where Bajaj Auto sold some 2.62 lakh bikes in October, of which over 1.52 lakh were Discover. That makes Splendor, the largest selling bike once again. While Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) stayed at No. 3, selling 2.36 lakh two-wheelers last month. 

Anil Dua, senior vice-president, marketing & sales at Hero MotoCorp, said: "Our 15-day sales figures post the shraddh period (which ended on October 15) are more than the full-month figures of most two-wheeler makers in the country." Hero MotoCorp's pullback in October has helped it get significantly ahead of its competition with sales of 3.41 million in the first seven months of fiscal 2013; some 1.4 million on of these were Splendors, said a senior Hero Moto executive who did not want to be named. In contrast, HMSI did sales of 1.52 million units and Bajaj Auto sold 1.48 million bikes in the April to October period, according to industry estimates. A Hero MotoCorp spokesperson said: "The cumulative domestic sales of Hero MotoCorp at 3.4 million in the April to October period are more than the combined domestic sales of the No. 2 and No. 3 players.

K Srinivas, president, motorcycle business, Bajaj Auto said the company is not privy to the numbers, but asserted: "We expect the race to be very close. What is important to note is that Discover's sales in the October of 2011 were a fourth of Splendor; that gap has narrowed significantly at present. We still have lots of headroom to grow considering we still haven't started exporting the Discover 125 ST." He adds that the trend is in Bajaj's favour. "It is upward for Discover and downward for Hero Honda Splendor."

Hero MotoCorp has frequently getting its lose ground. And as we all know that the ongoing festive season is the peak time for two-wheeler industry, it is evident that Hero, the hot favourite will perform even better in November. And Hero Passion XPro launch will also help the bike-maker to attract more buyers.

Source: ET