Chandigarh, with the uppermost per capita income in the country and nearly 6 lakh vehicles (average 3 vehicles per household), has emerged as a number one market for auto companies in the past few years.
The City Beautiful denizens seem to be on a buying carefree, when it comes to luxury cars as their market is spreading at about 20 to 25% per annum in Punjab and the surrounding areas of Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana.
A German brand-Mercedes has established a target of 30% growth in sales for the current financial year. Sarabjit Singh Sodhi-Deputy Manager, sales, Mercedes says, “Punjab and Chandigarh together hold around 20% of the total market share in the country. The E-class (Rs 35 lakh), is the most popular model and there has been a tremendous increase in sales of completely built units (CBUs). We have sold nearly 40 CBUs till now. On an average we sell 7 to 8 cars a month. The reason why the market is expanding is because many international companies are also investing into this business.”
European brand Skoda, with cars priced between Rs 12 lakh and Rs 22.36 lakh sells nearly 65 to 70 units a month. Bhupinderjit Matharu, sales-person, Skoda says, “Chandigarh has a 10% edge over Ludhiana in sales, probably due to rising property rates in the region. We are getting a lot of customers who are builders, property dealers and farmers.”
Honda also perceives more growth potential in this Union Territory than other northern regions. The Japanese manufacturer of automobiles, trucks, motorcycles, and scooters, sells nearly 80 to 100 cars a month in Ludhiana.
Hyundai of South Korea has 30% market share in Punjab and Chandigarh.