Lamborghini bets big on Indian market

CEO of Lamborghini talks about India as an emerging market and the road ahead for the company.

December 17, 2014 11:22 pm | Updated 11:22 pm IST

President &  CEO of Automobili Lamborghini Stephan Winkelmann poses with a car during the inauguration of the company's showroom in Bengaluru.

President & CEO of Automobili Lamborghini Stephan Winkelmann poses with a car during the inauguration of the company's showroom in Bengaluru.

Automobili Lamborghini, which recently opened its third showroom in the country is betting big on the India market. Despite several challenges, the Italian sports car major believes that the growing number of high net worth Individuals in India will boost its sales numbers. The auto company feels that when a lead gets converted to a sale it is also conversion of a long pending dream into a reality.

In an interaction with The Hindu , Stephan Winkelmann, CEO of Lamborghini talks about India as an emerging market and the road ahead for the company:

Lamborghini is expanding presence in India, what are you plans for India?

India is a good market for us. In India we are working on two main drivers. Firstly, we are working on the brand awareness and creating an image for Lamborghini. Secondly, we want good distribution channel and good partners to create that brand image. Now, with presence in Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi we have at least the minimum coverage. We are providing a partner closer to our customer who is interested in buying a Lamborghini. For creating awareness, we are doing different kinds of events. We want our customers to understand not only the quality and technology but also provide the excitement of the cars in the best possible way

When you are saying you want to be closer to the customers, how do you ensure that?

We selected Bengaluru because of the geographical reach it can give. Bengaluru is the centre location from where we can address the entire southern region. When we look at a city we look at the high networth individuals and also the kind of cars that are registered in each and every region. You will automatically get a list of choice which is easy to work on. Another most important thing is finding the right partners. For us a partner is very important, if you do everything right and the partner which is not in the line of operation of Lamborghini we don’t want that.

What are the challenges you face in India for the growth of your business?

Taxation is one of the main blockers for the growth of cars which are in this category. Due to the high rate of tax the cars becomes more expensive. But we are doing everything with our partners to increase the sales. The infrastructure is another reason which can restrict the sale of sports car. Given the size of this country, still there are lot of opportunity.

Do you have plans to introduce sports utility vehicle (SUV) in India soon?

We are working on the SUV, but we don't have the official release of that. We will try to bring the car as soon as to the customers once we start the production. Our strategy for every market worldwide, if we go for SUV will be the same. I cannot say for certain, but, say in the next four years, by 2018 or so, we might have an SUV here.

You are a European company, what do you think about the market there?

We are doing well in markets like the UK and Germany. In Europe we have uncertainty and financial crisis in the market. Also, there are certain taxation issues in Europe. So you will never have a positive side worldwide always.

How are you doing in Middle-East and China?

Middle East is doing well for us; it is the third biggest market for us. China is our second largest market, we sell around 250-260 cars a year.

Do you think India can surpass China in sales of Lamborghini?

I think in the next few years India cannot defeat China in the sales number. But given the size of the market in India and the economy condition we believe we will get a good business in India.

Other super cars and sports car are looking at India as an opportunity. Will it intensify competition?

I am happy that others are also looking at the market as an opportunity. As a managerial person, I welcome competition and happier that there is competition. It is always good for the customers as it will give him/her a choice.

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