Two wheelers such as scooters and motorcycles continue to be the most popular personal transportation mode in India as the country’s large and young population fuel the demand for two-wheeler vehicles.
According to GfK point of sales tracking, replacement tyres for these two vehicles have been registering robust sales since the beginning of 2016; with latest third quarter combined sales volume reporting a substantial 16% when compared to the first quarter.
GfK tracks sales of two wheeler (2W) tyre in the replacement market across 63 cities in India. According to the latest findings, sales volume in the first three quarters of the year showed consecutive increases, achieving a total of over 5.5 million in combined sales in January to September 2016. This growth was largely contributed by the heightened demand seen in the scooter tyre segment, where sales spiked by almost 40% in third quarter over first quarter this year.
According to Anant Jain, Senior Director, GfK India, one of the major contributing factor to the growth of the sector could be India’s young population, with more than half of it being people aged 25 years and below. “In addition, the increasing take up of two wheelers can also be attributed to other market conditions such as the positive local economy, active promotions by manufacturers, and the favourable monsoons the country has been experiencing this year,” Jain said.
According to GfK reports, Delhi is the largest market for two wheeler tyres, along with other metropolitan cities like Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai and Surat. The sales breakdown between motorcycle and scooter tyres varies significantly due to the existing vehicle park which differs across these big cities, and also the replacement cycles of the two vehicles.
For instance, scooter tyres account for more than one-third of all two wheeler tyre sales in cities like Chennai and Hyderabad, whereas it is less than a quarter in Delhi, Pune and Bangalore.
Jain explained that the diverse sales mix between the two types of vehicles and the tyre types are led by consumer behavior and buying patterns that vary in every city. “Since scooters offer the advantage of unisex usage appeal, cities in South where there is a higher ratio of working female population shows the greatest demand and also steeper growth rate for this tyre segment,” he added.
There are close to 9,000 retailers selling two wheeler tyres across the 63 cities GfK currently tracks. GfK’s study of two wheeler tyre retailers revealed a 7% surge in such store numbers in third quarter over first quarter this year. In particular, the increase is more prominent for retailers who have added scooter tyres to their shop offering—a surge of 30% in such retailers was registered during this same period.
“The scooter and motorcycle tyre market is expected to continue on its upswing into the near future, and the significant prospects of the two-wheel tyre sector have been attracting new players into the market this year,” said Jain.