Kawasaki is currently working on increasing localization on products and they have already appointed several engineers from Japan to start the project
Kawasaki is following the footsteps of other manufacturers as the company is planning to make India an export hub for markets like Africa and Latin America. Most of the them prefer India, as cost of making products is less compared to manufacturing them in developed countries.
The Japanese manufacturer came back to India with Bajaj as partner but things didn’t go according to plan and they had to end the long-term partnership. Then, Kawasaki had to start everything from scratch with new dealerships and manufacturing facilities. They have finished the first phase and now they are going to expand India operations.
Kawasaki is currently working on increasing localization on products and they have already appointed several engineers from Japan. The Japanese manufacturer has set target of producing 10,000 units per annum but the company hasn’t set time frame for it and they want to increase annual sales in India to reach 5,000 units by 2020.
India is one of the fastest growing two-wheeler markets in the world, but still most of the sales are coming from entry level and premium sports bike which are priced below Rs. 1 lakh. But in recent times, customers are ready to spend money on performance bikes and products like KTM Duke 390 and TVS Apache RR 310 are selling in good numbers.
Most of the manufacturers are developing bikes specifically for India and emerging markets. Kawasaki is also looking to explore this area as Kazuo Ota, Head of Kawasaki Motorcycles and Engine Division, said that the company could develop sub 200 cc motorcycles and it will be done in India as they could price it aggressively.
The recent strategy of localizing products is paying off as the Japanese manufacturer is getting good momentum. Kawasaki commenced assembly of Ninja 300 in India and the price drop has certainly helped the performance bike to get good booking. The locally assembled Ninja ZX-10R is the most affordable litre class bike available in India.