Toyota Kirloskar to step up play in smaller towns

Toyota Motor Corp’s Indian subsidiary is embarking on the most aggressive sales expansion plan in its more than 25-year-old presence in the country. This will see the maker of Fortuner and Innova Hycross models establish a footprint in India’s smaller cities with select re-badged versions of comparatively affordable car models from Maruti Suzuki (India) as part of its strategy to tap a wider array of customers.

Toyota Kirloskar Motor, the Indian unit, has been selling Maruti cars under its own badge since 2022 as part of a global alliance between Suzuki Motor Corp and Toyota Motor Corp. The move has helped Toyota save on development costs and expand the model line-up.

Enthused by strong customer response to its own models and those sourced from Maruti, Toyota is looking to double sales in the domestic market to 325,000 vehicles this calendar year compared to 2022, said people privy to its plans. Sales are expected to surge nearly 47% from 2023, the people said.

Most of the sales growth will come from Maruti’s re-badged models costing ₹8-13 lakh, as its own comparatively pricier product portfolio comprising models such as the Innova Crysta, Innova Hycross, Fortuner and Camry have limited headroom for sales growth with a price range of ₹19 lakh to ₹50 lakh.

To attract buyers, Toyota plans to have a sales outlet every 50-100 km in line with the broader strategy to make deeper inroads in the world’s third largest auto market where it has had a fringe presence so far.The aggressive annual sales target comes as its factories work overtime to meet a robust order book and re-badged models from Suzuki add further heft to the overall volumes. Toyota is also planning to introduce the new Fortuner – which also has a mild hybrid version – this Diwali. Also in the works is a re-badged model based on Maruti’s Brezza compact sport-utility vehicle.TKM executives declined to give any sales guidance or an insight into the network expansion plan.

“Globally, as Toyota Motor Corp, we are not very focused on volumes. We are more concerned about the customer’s happiness,” Tadashi Asazuma, deputy managing director – sales, service, used car TKM & Lexus, told ET on the sidelines of the launch of the Toyota Taisor (rebadged Suzuki Fronx) in Mumbai last week.

With a starting price of ₹7.74 lakh, reaching up to ₹13 lakh, the Taisor is positioned as the entry-level SUV in Toyota’s portfolio and the company’s first affordable model since the 2020 phase out of the Liva hatchback and Etios sedan.

“Through this model, we want to get new customers who have never owned a Toyota vehicle into their fold,” said Asazuma.

To achieve the lofty target, Toyota has started executing a plan to double its sales network by December-end. The company currently has 647 dealers in the country.