Bridgestone India, part of the Japanese tyre-major Bridgestone Group, is aiming 25% market share in the passenger vehicle aftermarket segment, Hiroshi Yoshizane, the new managing director of the company, told FE.
“We are the biggest player in the PV aftermarket segment – also called the replacement market – with almost 20% share,” he said. “We now want to further increase our presence – and are aiming at a market share of 25%. We will be aggressive in launching new tyres as well as expanding capacity towards meeting that goal.”
Yoshizane, however, didn’t give a timeline towards meeting that goal. “It should happen in a few years, depending on market conditions,” he said.
The PV tyre market is made up of two segments – OEM (tyre companies directly supplying to carmakers) and the aftermarket (replacement market). The size of the OEM segment is almost 20 million tyres per years (4 million new cars, each with five tyres), and that of the aftermarket is 25 million units.
“The aftermarket is a bigger opportunity because the number of cars entering the market is more than the number of cars getting out of the market,” he said. “And it will keep growing.”
There are 10 major players in the PV tyre aftermarket – Bridgestone leads in terms of both value and volume. Others are MRF, Apollo, JK Tyres, Ceat, Michelin, Continental, Yokohama, and Goodyear and its subsidiary Kelly.
“Our new tyre – the Turanza 6i – is targeted at the aftermarket, to begin with,” Yoshizane said.
Launched on Wednesday, the Turanza 6i is a premium range catering to SUVs, CUVs, sedans and hatchbacks. It’s available in 36 ‘variants’ with size ranging from 14 inches to 20 inches.
“It has been specifically developed for Indian roads, makes the drive really comfortable, and leads to better fuel efficiency,” Yoshizane said. “It will be available at all our 4,000-odd dealers, including about 750 Bridgestone Select outlets that offer personalised service to our customers.”
The Turanza 6i, whose price will be announced on Thursday, is manufactured using the company’s Enliten tyre technology. “It’s an innovative lightweight tyre technology that leads to reduced rolling resistance, and therefore there will be lower carbon dioxide emissions from a vehicle fitted with these tyres. This technology benefits car manufacturers, drivers and the environment, as well as safety as the Enliten technology improves the vehicle’s handling.”
Bridgestone currently produces 30,000 tyres per day (19,500 at its Kheda plant near Indore, and 10,500 at its Chakan plant near Pune), and aims to take it to 40,000 per day in a couple of years.
