Recently launched midsize SUV leads the charge for the Czech carmaker even as the brand expands its dealer network to 100 cities across India
01 Aug 2021 | 13697 Views | By Autocar Professional Bureau
Skoda Auto India, which launched the new Kushaq SUV on June 28, has announced a 234% year-on-year increase in its July 2021 sales. The Czech carmaker sold a total of 3,080 cars across its model range in July, compared to 922 units in July 2020. Sales in June 2021 ...
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Skoda Auto India, which launched the new Kushaq SUV on June 28, has announced a 234% year-on-year increase in its July 2021 sales. The Czech carmaker sold a total of 3,080 cars across its model range in July, compared to 922 units in July 2020. Sales in June 2021 were 734 units.
The surge in sales is fuelled by the Kushaq, which will be one of the important growth drivers of the brand going forward. Skoda says it has, within a month of the Kushaq’s launch, received over 6,000 bookings. Customer deliveries of the 1.0-litre Kushaq began on July 12. The 1.5L variant will arrive in dealerships in August, followed by customer deliveries. There is also an increased rise in volumes across the complete range including the Superb, Octavia and Rapid.
Following the launch of the Kushaq, the first product from Volkswagen Group’s India 2.0 project, priced between Rs 10.49 lakh for the base 1.0 TSI Active variant and Rs 17.59 lakh (ex-showroom) for the top-spec 1.5 TSI AT Style variant, Skoda Auto India has increased its dealer network by almost 15 percent.
This month onwards, the brand will be present in more than 100 cities across India, its largest coverage in India since it entered this market in 2001. With this, Skoda Auto India will have more than 170 customer touch-points including sales and after-sales facilities.
According to Zac Hollis, Brand Director – Skoda Auto India, “Kushaq was launched with the vision of substantially growing our volumes in India, and it is very encouraging to see our plan taking shape. Despite a challenging environment, we have managed to have a really successful launch, which is in line with our strategic focus and volume expectations. Moreover, the new launch has enabled us to build a strong momentum across the value chain."
Hollis added, "We are seeing a surge in dealership footfalls and customer enquiries. There is also a multi-fold increase in the requests for new dealerships from the dealer fraternity across India. We are pursuing an aggressive strategy of taking the Skoda brand to new and emerging markets across the country, with partners that share our vision of excellence and customer-centricity.”
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