Maxxis Tyres has made a name for itself in the tyre industry. But the company does not plan to stop there, they want to grow further and be counted among the top tyre manufacturers in the world. Since 200, the entire world has been battling the effects of Covid-19 and Maxxis Tyres is no different. We recently spoke to Brian Yen- AVP, Maxxis Tyres to know how the company has been doing since the pandemic and what their plans are for the future.
Covid-19 impacted almost every industry in the world, but things seem to be looking up once again. Are you seeing a recovery after the initial hit and what is the demand looking like?
The Covid pandemic created disruptions across the globe and for all industries. We have collaborated closely with our suppliers and dealers through which we have gained accelerated momentum.
Maxxis achieved the highest OE sales after the pandemic with an average sale of over 2.4 lakh tyres. The demand has been strong owing to the festive season and also primarily due to thrust towards personal mobility.
You want to become one of the top 5 tyre manufacturers in the world by 2026. What measure are you taking and what plans do you have in place to achieve this ambitious goal given the threat of Covid-19? How does India fit into those plans?
We believe that the Indian market is touted to play a vital role in achieving Maxxis’s global vision to become one of the top 5 tyres manufacturers in the world by 2026.
We are aggressively building on diversifying our pan India footprint, we have onboarded around 800 dealers during the last fiscal year making it to 3000 dealerships pan India. In addition to this, we are further strengthening our product portfolio and introduced Maxxplore, Extramaxx – 2, M116 – Rib pattern in more than 15 sizes and in sports motorcycle segment. We have also launched a premium sports tyre Extramaxx for Honda Hornet 2.0, also more than 15+ sizes have been introduced.
Currently, what is the split between two-wheeler and four-wheeler tyre sales? Which of the two is a bigger market for you?
Currently we manufacture commuter and performance tyres for two-wheeler segment in our Sanand plant and four-wheeler tyres being imported from Taiwan.
Maxxis India bets big on the two-wheeler market as our current portfolio covers ~82% of the market’s users’ scenario and we plan to raise it to more than 90 per cent this year. We do have plans to produce four-wheeler tyres in India. We are evaluating the market condition and will firm up our plans as per situation unfolds.
Which OEMs are you currently supplying tyres to and are you in talks with any other manufacturers to partner with?
Maxxis has established a formidable strength in the OEM market where our quality and technology has proved its mettle across the leading products available in the market.
We have partnered with some of the world’s largest two-wheeler manufacturers – Hero Moto Corp, Honda Motorcycles and Scooter India Limited, Yamaha Motor India and Suzuki Motorcycles. We are also working on new alignments and partnerships with a new set of OEMs for the two-wheeler market as well as working on expanding our portfolio for the replacement market.
There is a big push for electric vehicles in India right now. Are you looking into capturing that growing portion of the market and have you developed any special tyres for EVs?
As a progressive company, we feel electric vehicles are the future of mobility and its imperative to be a part of this revolution. Maxxis has all the technical wherewithal and know-how to develop the most advanced tyres for e-vehicles.
I’m glad to say that we are one of the best EV 2W tyre manufacturers in the world as we supply tyres to Gogoro in Taiwan and Niu in China, both have been pioneers in introducing electric two wheelers globally.
In fact, last year we launched the M922F which has a special edge when it comes to tyre designs for electric two-wheelers. The new M922F tyre is built with specialized compound technology which helped us in producing lighter tyres. This lighter weight in turn reduces energy consumption by five to ten per cent, enhancing the range of an electric two-wheeler.
Also, as the electric vehicle industry in India is advancing, we are focusing on electric vehicles by introducing innovative technologies and features like Low Rolling Resistance.
What are your plans for your dealer network in the coming days and what are your strategies to reach more customers in the aftermarket segment?
Maxxis has plans of expanding its dealer network by 5-7 per cent by end of this fiscal which will give us a fillip in reaching out to our stakeholders across every nook and corner of the country. Currently, Maxxis is trying to set up at least one dealership in a village with a population of more than 30,000 which will amplify our presence and enhance consumer accessibility for our set of products.
We are focusing more on distributor profit protection by having a limited volume of distributors. This will avoid any price fighting issue across all regions.
On the other hand, we’re going to cooperate with our distributors and partners to conduct CSR activities, same as Maxxis in Thailand (slogan: no more hungry student!), to promote our branding reputation.