Cycle shifts from being poor man’s vehicle to plaything of rich
L. B. Suresh Kumar of Pro-Bikers at the SRP Tools junction on OMR sold a cycle for Rs 1 lakh to a cycling enthusiast.
Chennai: With the city corporation keen on promoting non-motorable transport as a policy to combat traffic congestion and inadequate space for parking of vehicles, the most eco-friendly mode of commute – the bicycle – seems to have gone out of reach of the common man.Once a reliable and economic means of commuting for the middle- and lower-middle class, the bicycle appears to have almost faded into oblivion, at least in the urban areas. Bicycles are now more of a ‘style’ statement or a symbol of exercise or sporting event and are totally out of the reach of the common man.
It has becoming outdated, even in films. Remember postman Rajesh Khanna and his hit song glorifying the postman, pedaling his way to deliver letters? Back home in Tamil Nadu, whether it was racing, romancing or rushing to hospital, the cycle played a prominent role in films. In fact, superstar Rajinikanth, whose popular hit, Vandenda paalkaren in Annamalai, riding on his cycle, became the party symbol of the Tamil Maanila Congress floated by late Congress leader G.K. Moopanar in 1996. The party had extensively used the image of Rajinikanth riding a bicycle from the film in the Assembly election then.
But now, the courierwalla or the EB linesman hardly use cycles, as they can afford bikes. The mention of a cycle now conjures up the image of an attractive gift for children while it is ‘exer’ cycle for others. The pressure to get an attractive bicycle for children by parents or grandparents and by those with a fad for fitness appears to make the manufacturing segment go towards producing stylish cycles for children and health buffs.
The Indian market is increasingly flooded with foreign brands and this has become unstoppable as there are people willing to shell out more to purchase this costly commodity. “Yesterday, I sold a cycle for Rs1 lakh to a cycling enthusiast. Last week, a doctor was here to purchase a cycle for exercising and I sold it to him for Rs6 lakh,” says Mr L. B. Suresh Kumar of Pro-Bikers at the SRP Tools junction on OMR.
This dealer of 12 imported cycle brands, claims there are cycles which are even priced Rs7 lakh a piece. Cannondale, Montra and Bianchi, Schwinn, Scott, Firefox... name them and there are many who are willing to buy though financial institutions do not extend loans, as they do for cars and motorbikes, to purchase cycles. Hitherto, cycles were simplistically segmented as gents, ladies, kids and high-end. But now, lifestyle bikes are being segmented in line with the global trend that is based on their use and there are road bikes, mountain bikes, tourers and hybrids, to name a few.
The mass-market segment is experiencing sluggish growth of between 4-6 per cent annually while the premium and lifestyle segment is growing at a CAGR of over 30 per cent. The market size for lifestyle cycles is estimated at over 0.25 million units annually. The market for expensive high-end bicycles, called ‘bikes,’ is on an exponential growth, as the premium bicycles for leisure, health, adventure and environmental reasons, draw ‘bike’ freaks in droves. Though exact data on their total sales is not available, the market size of such bicycles in 2013 was estimated to be about 25,000 units, according to industry players. The figure is likely to go up to 30,000-32,000 units in 2014.
At present, 12 international brands are active in the Indian market. Metros, including Chennai, Pune, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Mumbai, are the major markets for these high-end bicycles. In Tamil Nadu, as per the estimates of a dealer on OMR, about 500 bikes are sold every month on an average. While the adult segment has been phased out, the children’s segment accounts for 40 per cent, school students’ segment constitutes another 40 per cent and 20 per cent sales are oriented towards women, he says.
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