In Asian countries like India, where traffic is borderline unbearable in the city, and urban areas are tight and congested, scooters and small displacement commuters are the most practical way to get around. Indeed, the commuter two-wheeler segment in India vastly outnumbers the premium segment in terms of sales volumes, and nearly all manufacturers in the region rely on these mass-market models to keep their lights on.
Hero MotoCorp is one such company, and is one of the biggest motorcycle manufacturers in India by sheer volumes. The brand’s most popular models include the Splendor and HF, small-displacement workhorse commuters, as well as the Maestro 110 and 125 scooters. Of course, we can't forget about the X-Pulse dual-sport. Despite its rather strong model range, Hero MotoCorp reported a sales decline of 6.2 percent for January, 2023. For the first month of the year, Hero MotoCorp sold a total of 356,990 two-wheelers, which in reality, is quite a hefty number. However, it still isn’t as much as the sales figures of January, 2022, which stood at 380,476.
Breaking things down a little bit, Hero MotoCorp’s sales decline is mainly attributed to its motorcycle models—the likes of the Splendor and HF. In total, 333,638 motorbikes were sold in January, 2023, accounting for the biggest slice of the pie in terms of total models sold. For reference, in 2022, Hero sold 357,845 motorcycles. On the other hand, scooters were able to make up for the decline in motorcycle sales just a bit, with a total of 23,052 sold in January 2023, as against 22,631 sold in January, 2022.
According to a report published by HT Auto, Hero MotoCorp is optimistic that demand will increase towards the end of February, as the country enters the festive season. On top of that, Hero MotoCorp just recently unveiled its newest commuter scooter, the Xoom 110. From a styling perspective alone, the new Xoom provides Hero’s scooter portfolio a much-needed design refresh, while at the same time bringing impressive performance and tech to the table. Hopefully, the launch of the new Xoom will rake in additional sales for the Indian manufacturer in the months to come.
