BYD India aims to sell 15,000 EVs next year, 53 outlets planned by end of 2023
Chinese auto giant BYD forayed in the Indian passenger car market last year and the automaker is looking to capture a sizeable chunk of the premium electric passenger vehicle segment in the country. The brand recently introduced the Atto 3 electric SUV in India, and the model, along with the e6 electric MPV will be the automaker's growth drivers. Speaking to HT Auto recently, Sanjay Gopalakrishnan, Senior Vice President - BYD India, said that the company's focus will be on achieving a sales target of 15,000 units in 2023.
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Sanjay Gopalakrishnan said, “The response has been very good since the launch in October [2022]. We feel that next year our plans are to sell - both the Atto 3 and e6 - close to 15,000 units in India which will give us a fairly stable presence in the EV industry in the premium segment."
BYD India is betting on the two modes to push its sales momentum and will also be expanding its dealership network across the country to improve sales. The automaker plans to close the 2022 calendar year with about 24 dealerships across 21 cities, while the next year will see the automaker take the count to 53 outlets.
Elaborating on the same, Gopalakrishnan said, “The key to successful passenger vehicle business in India is a stable network that includes sales and after-sales. Carrying forward that we will be closing around 24 outlets by the end of this year touching around 21 cities. Next year, looking at the volumes of around 15,000, it will expand close to 53 outlets across various cities. It could be current dealers opening multiple outlets. It could be new territories, new dealers. We are also making sure that they also open workshops because EVs do not need so much service but customer confidence is very important. So they will have workshops with adequate spare parts so customers do not face any problem."
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BYD India’s sales strategy includes educating customers about its technology and products, while the brand is relying on a strong word of mouth and after-sales experience to bring in more walk-ins to its showrooms.
“A good after-sales strategy will bring you more sales. It will bring you referrals, more people are happy and more customers come into the showroom. So we are asking our network partners to open workshops. At Chennai, we are opening a warehouse where we will stock adequate parts for the e6 and Atto 3 so the dealers get consistent supply. We are also training our dealer technicians which is very important, especially in the electric vehicle technology. We are training them at our headquarters from our global team and our after-sales team in India. So that they are competent and qualified to service the cars."
BYD India began operations in the Indian passenger car market with the e6 MPV in 2021 but sales were restricted only for commercial users. The automaker began sales for private buyers in August this year, in line with its rapid expansion of dealerships. The carmaker is looking to make a dent in the premium EV segment, which has limited competition at the moment with the exception of Hyundai and Kia. It also has the hybrid tech to compete with available at similar price points.
The BYD e6 is priced at ₹29.15 lakh, while the recently launched Atto 3 is priced at ₹33.99 lakh (all prices are ex-showroom India). The company has so far garnered 1,500 bookings for the Atto 3 since its launc in October.
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