Finally, a piece of good news amid the Covid-19 Lockdown! TVS Motor Company has announced the successful acquisition of Britain’s iconic Norton Motorcycles. The Hosur-based manufacturer has completed the acquisition in an all-cash deal for a consideration of GBP16 million that translates to Rs 153 crores as per the Indian currency. TVS says that it has acquired certain assets of Norton Motorcycles (U.K.) Limited (in administration) through one of its overseas subsidiaries. TVS believes that this acquisition will reflect the company’s and India’s rapidly rising prominence in the international two-wheeler space. Norton Motorcycles is one of the oldest bike brands in Britain and was founded by James Lansdowne Norton back in the year 1898 in Birmingham. Since the 20th century, Norton Motorcycles is very well known for its classic models and exciting premium motorcycles ranging from the classic styled Commando to the 200 hp, 1200cc V4 superbikes.
Commenting on the acquisition, Sudarshan Venu, Joint Managing Director, TVS Motor Company said that this is a momentous time for TVS Motor Company. Norton is celebrated across the globe and has presented TVS with an immense opportunity to scale globally. He further adds that this transaction is in line with the company’s effort to cater to the aspirations of discerning motorcycle customers. He also says that TVS Motor Company will extend its full support for Norton to regain its full glory in the international motorcycle space.
Moreover, he says that Norton will continue to retain its distinctive identity with specific business plans. The Hosur-based manufacturer will be working closely with customers and employees in building the success of the Norton Motorcycles and the company looks forward to growing together internationally in the coming years. With the latest partnership, TVS Motor Company believes that Norton Motorcycles can leverage its global reach and supply chain capabilities to expand to new markets. The history of Norton Motorcycles has been quite a painful one and a prime reason behind is the insufficient cash flow. Moreover, Norton’s previous owner Stuart Garner is reportedly under investigation for fraud. With the partnership, one can expect things to ease up for the British brand.
In the year 2018, Norton Motorcycles had taken the wraps off the Atlas Nomad and Atlas Ranger. The two bikes are built around a 650cc, parallel-twin engine platform. The said engine is good for churning out respective power and torque outputs of 84hp of power and 64Nm of torque. Norton had previously signed a deal with Kinetic Engineering in order to locally manufacture these bikes in India for the Asian markets.
Now, with TVS acquiring the British brand, it will be quite interesting to see how things pan out in the coming months in this regard. Given the fact that TVS Motor Company doesn’t have a cruiser in its product portfolio, it would certainly want to exploit the expertise of the British brand in terms of making classic bikes, a segment that is currently dominated by Chennai-based Royal Enfield. And when we say that, we believe that TVS must definitely have eyes on Norton’s 650cc platform that can spawn multiple products including a direct Interceptor 650 rival.
At the same time, the latest partnership will also benefit TVS in making an entry into the luxury bike segment. Moreover, the company’s Zeppelin cruiser that was showcased at the 2018 Auto Expo as a concept might also see some inputs from Norton while progressing to the final production model. It looks like a lot of exciting bikes are on their way and the days ahead look quite interesting, especially for the classic bike fans. So, is the TVS-Norton partnership something that Royal Enfield should be worried about? Well, the coming months should certainly have an answer.
Fingers crossed!
