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GUIDE CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Mr. Mohd. Belal , student of M.B.A (Marketing) 1st Year having Roll No. 1100122065 have completed his semester project on the topic A STUDY OF IMPACT ON SALE OF HERO MOTOCORP AFTER THE JOINT VENTURE OF HERO AND HONDA under my supervision and guidance.

The behaviour of the student during the project period was found to be highly appreciable and satisfactory. I wish him all the best for his future endeavours.

Mrs. Zeeba Kamil. LECTURER FACULTY GUIDE FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Every work constitutes great deal of assistance and guidance from the people concerned and this particular project is of no exception. A project of the nature is surely a result of tremendous support, guidance, encouragement and help. Wish to place on record my sincere gratitude to Prof. (Dr.) Zeeshan Amir and the entire faculty of our department with special reference to my project guide, Mrs Zeeba Kamil I thank them for their constructive help and encouragement throughout the project. Without their support and guidance taking this would not have been possible. Also, wish to acknowledge enthusiastic encouragement and support extended to me by my family members. At last, I would like to thank all the faculty of business management to help me completing this project. I am also thankful to my friends who provided me their constant support and assistance.

MOHD. BELAL MBA1st year Group B: Marketing Roll No.: 1100122065

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Problem Definition The project concerns studying regarding the A STUDY OF IMPACT ON SALE OF HERO MOTOCORP AFTER THE JOINT VENTURE OF HERO AND HONDA Approach To The Problem The survey was conducted on a sample of 30 Peoples in Aliganj. The people included both males and females in the age group ranging from 20-50 and above. The target group included self employed peoples & businessman at different levels of society in the village.

Type Of Research Design In order to achieve the objective of the study the research design used was Descriptive Research because the questionnaire designed describes the SAVING AND INVESTMENT PATTERN OF RURAL PEOPLE.

Source Of Data Collection Data is collected through Primary and Secondary sources. Research was carried out through Primary And Secondary Data. In Primary Data we use closed ended question which were being asked to the different people of that village. In Secondary Data we use information from the previous reports,

newspapers, information from the net. Sampling Technique For the given research we used Simple Random sampling because from all the people available in the village randomly only 30 people were selected to conduct the research due to shortage of time. RESEARCH PROCESS STAGE 1- FORMULATION OF RESEARCH OBJECTIVEThe first week I spend time on knowing about the different saving and investment pattern of rural people of Dasauli STAGE 2- EXTENSIVE LITERATURE SURVEYDifferent people of the village were approached to know their views regarding their investment and saving. STAGE 3-DESK RESEARCHThen I spend time on preparing questionnaire deciding sample and collecting information about saving and investment of the villagers. STAGE 4-FIELD WORKAfter data was collected, the next step was to approach the employees for data collection through questionnaire. I had randomly chosen 50 people for the purpose. STAGE 5 - ANALYSE THE DATAThe data collected was then classified and analyzed. Simple Statistical Tool such as Bar Graph, Pie Charts etc was used to analyze and interpret the data.

STAGE6 - INTERPRETATION OF DATA AND PREPARATION OF REPORTTo explain and summarize the findings of the study interpretation was done and finally the report was prepared.

Index wih page number

INTRODUCTION
GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY Two-Wheeler industry is one of the largest industries in the automobile sector of global Market. Being the leader in product and process technologies in the manufacturing sector, it has been recognized as one of the drivers of economic growth. During the last decade, well-directed efforts have been made to provide a new look to the automobile policy for realizing the sector's full potential for the economy. The liberalization policies have led to continuous increase in competition which has ultimately resulted in modernization in line with the global standards as well as in substantial cut in prices. Aggressive marketing by the auto finance companies have also played a significant role in boosting automobile demand, especially from the population in the middle income group. Presently many international brands like Honda, Suzuki, etc. are competing with Indian, Brands such as Hero Honda, Bajaj, and T V S, Kinetic etc. to capture Indian markets. These aggressive marketing strategies have resulted in making the consumer the major key for success in the industry. Each product offering is now designed to meet and a exceed the expectations of the consumer. But understanding consumer behavior and knowing consumers is never simple. And it is more difficult that to understand what consumer perceives about the product. Customers may say one thing but do another. They may not been touch with their deeper motivations. They may respond to influences that change their minds at the last moment. Small companies such as a corner grocery store and huge, Corporations stand to profit from understanding how and why their consumers buy.

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND OF STUDY

Market
The term market may be considered as a convenient meeting place where buyers and sellers gather together for the exchange of goods and services. Market means a group of people having unmet wants, purchasing power to make their demand effective and the will to spend their income to fulfill those wants. Today a market is equated with the total demand. The American marketing association defines a market, as the aggregate demand of Potential buyers for a product or service. Under keen competition, a marketer wants to create or capture and retain the market i.e. Customer demand through an appropriate marketing mix offered to a target market. The market offering i.e. supply must meet customer demand, which are unmet needs and desires. Marketing Marketing is a comprehensive term and it includes all resources and set of activities necessary to direct and facilitate the flow of goods and services form the producer to the consumer through the process of distribution. Businessmen regards marketing as a management function to plan promote and deliver products to the clients or customers. Human efforts, finance and management constitute the primary resources in marketing. We have twin activities, which are most significant in marketing: 1. matching the product with demand i.e. customer needs and desires or the target market. 2. The transfer of ownership and possession at every stage in the flow of goods from the primary producer to the ultimate consumer. The American marketing association defines marketing as the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives.

Marketing Research Marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording and analyzing of the data about problems connected to the marketing of goods and services i.e. problems relating to product, price, promotion and distribution of the 4ps of the marketing mix. Marketing research is concerned with all those factors, which have a direct impact upon the marketing of products and services. Marketing research has grown along with the expanded role of marketing as the focus for the business decision-making.

Need of marketing research

Marketing research is conducted for different purposes. They are: 1. To estimate the potential market for a new product. 2. To know the reactions of consumers to a product already existing in the market. 3. To find out the general marketing condition and tendencies. 4. To know the types of consumer buying and their buying motives. 5. To know the reactions of failure of a product already in the market. 6. To assess the strength and weakness of competitors. Customer A person who purchase or has the capacity to purchase the goods of service often for sale By the marketing firm in order to satisfy personal need and desires.

Perception
Perception is the sensing of stimuli external to the individual organism the act or process comprehending the world in which the individual exists. Perception has been defined by social psychologists as the Complex process by which People select organize and interpret sensory stimulation in to a meaningful and coherent Picture of the work. Major Factors Influencing Consumer Behavior Consumers buying behavior is influenced by cultural, social, personal and psychological factors.

Cultural Factors
Cultural factors exert the broadest and deepest influence on consumer behavior. The roles played by the buyers culture, subculture and social class are particularly important. Culture refers to that complex whole which includes in it knowledge, beliefs, art or anything man acquires as a member of society Subculture Each culture consists of smaller subcultures that provide more specific identification and socialization for their members. Sub cultures include nationalities, religions, racial groups and geographic regions. Social Class Virtually all-human societies exhibit social stratification. Stratification sometimes takes the form of a caste system where the members of different castes are reared for certain roles and cannot change their caste membership more frequently; stratification takes the form of social class. Reference Groups A persons reference groups consists of all the groups that have a direct or indirect Influence on the persons attitudes or behavior. of Family The family is the most important consumer buying organization in the society and it constitutes the most influential primary reference group. Roles and statuses A person participates in many groups, family, clubs, organizations etc. The persons position in each group can be defined in terms of role and status. A role consists of the activities that a person is expected to perform. Each role carries a status.

Age and stage in the life cycle People buy different goods and services over their lifetime. Taste in clothes, furniture and recreation is all age related. Consumption is shaped by the family life cycle. Marketers often choose life-cycle Groups as their target market.

Occupation and economic circumstances Occupation also influences a persons consumption pattern. Product choice is greatly affected by economic circumstances; spendable income, savings and assets, debts, borrowing power and attitude toward spending versus saving. Lifestyle People from the same subculture, social class, and occupation may lead quite different lifestyles. A lifestyle is the persons pattern of living in the world expressed in activities, interests and opinions. Lifestyle portrays the world person interacting with his or her environment. Personality and self concept Each person has a distinct personality that influences buying behavior. It is that Distinguishing psychological characteristics that lead to relatively consistent and Enduring responses to environment. Related to personality is self-concept or self image. Marketers try to develop brand images that match target markets self image. Motivations A person has many needs at a given time. A need becomes a motive when it is aroused to a sufficient level of intensity. A motive is a need that is sufficiently pressing to drive the person to act. Perception is the process by which an individual selects, organizes and interprets Information inputs to create a meaningful picture of the world. How a, motivated Person actually acts is influenced by his or her perceptions of the situation. Learning, When people act they learn. Learning involves changes in an individuals behavior arising from experience. Learning theory teaches marketers that they can build up demand for a product by associating it with strong drives, using motivating cues and positive reinforcement. Beliefs and attitudes through doing and learning, people acquire beliefs and attitudes. These in turn influence buying behavior. A belief is a descriptive thought that a person holds about something. The beliefs make up product and brand images and people act on these Images. An attitude is a person enduring favorable or unfavorable evaluations, emotion feelings and action tendencies toward some object or idea. Thus a company would be well.

Objectives of the Study 1) To analyze consumer perception towards Hero Honda motor bikes 2) To get feedback on what consumer expects from Hero Honda 3) To analyze consumer perception towards services offered by Hero Honda and Performance of the motor cycle 4) Develop skills in report writing through data collection, data analysis, and data Extraction and presentation. Scope of the study The study helps in having an awareness of customer satisfaction towards Hero Honda. As the product had a good reputation in the market, this study will help to know that how Hero Honda lost their grip in motor bike industry. It also helps us to increase our practical knowledge towards marketing of a company. Marketing is taken as the functional area as the customer satisfaction is to be taken into account. Company Profile Hero Motocorp Ltd. formerly Hero Honda is an Indian motorcycle and scooter manufacturer based in New Delhi, India. Hero Honda started in 1984 as a joint venture between Hero Cycles of India and Honda of Japan. The company is the largest two wheeler manufacturer in India. The 2006 Forbes 200 Most Respected companies list has Hero Honda Motors ranked at 108. In 2010, When Honda decided to move out of the joint venture, Hero Group bought the shares held by Honda. Subsequently, in August 2011 the company was renamed Hero MotoCorp with a new corporate identity. Hero is the brand name used by the Munjal brothers for their flagship company Hero Cycles Ltd. A joint venture between the Hero Group and Honda Motor Company was established in 1984 as the Hero Honda Motors Limited At Dharuhera India. Munjal family and Honda group both own 26% stake in the Company. In 2010, it was reported that Honda planned to sell its stake in the venture to the Munjal family. During the 1980s, the company introduced motorcycles that were popular in India for their fuel economy and low cost. A popular advertising campaign based on the slogan 'Fill it - Shut it - Forget it' that emphasised the motorcycle's fuel efficiency helped the company grow at a double-digit pace since inception. The technology in the bikes of Hero Honda for almost 26 years (19842010) has come from the Japanese counterpart Honda. Hero MotoCorp has three manufacturing facilities based at Dharuhera, Gudgeon in Haryana and at Haridwar in Uttarakhand. These

plants together are capable of churning out 3 million bikes per year. Hero MotoCorp has a large sales and service network with over 3,000 dealerships and service points across India. Hero Honda has a customer loyalty program since 2000, called the Hero Honda Passport Program. The company has a stated aim of achieving revenues of $10 billion and volumes of 10 million two-wheelers by 2016-17. This in conjunction with new countries where they can now market their two-wheelers following the disengagement from Honda, Hero MotoCorp hopes to achieve 10 per cent of their revenues from international markets, and they expected to launch sales in Nigeria by end-2011 or early-2012. In addition, to cope with the new demand over the coming half decade, the company was going to build their fourth factory in South India and their fifth factory in Western India. There is no confirmation where the factories would be built. The Brand Trust Report published by Trust Research Advisory has ranked Hero Honda in the 13th position among the brands in India. Product range Sleek Street Achiever Ambition 133, Ambition 135 CBZ, CBZ Star, CBZ Xtreme CD 100, CD 100 SS, Hero Honda Joy, CD Dawn, CD Deluxe, CD Deluxe (Self Start) Glamour, Glamour F.I Hunk Karizma, Karizma R, Karizma ZMR FI Passion, Passion Plus, Passion Pro Pleasure Splendor, Splendor+, Splendor+ (Limited Edition), Super Splendor, Splendor NXG, Splendor PRO Hero Impulse launched in 2011 after the separation of hero and Honda. Its India's first off-road and on road Bike.

RESEARCH DESIGN
Introduction
The two wheeler industry in India collectively produces 20 Lakh vehicles a year. Some players have managed to cut through consumer resistance with innovation, pricing and aggressive marketing. The competition level in the two wheeler industry is very high now. Many brands are fighting in the market for maximum share. They have to bring out a lot of differentiation among them. The major duty of the marketer is to know the reasons for preferring particular motor bike by the consumers. Review of Literature The Customer Perception Report includes questions in four key areas, Expectations, Purchase Decisions, Customer Service, and Future Purchases. So the customer should be invited to participate in the survey. Setting realistic expectations during the sales process is a vital component of making happy customers. How a company sets and meets product and service expectations plays a pivotal role in fashioning customer opinions. How a company meets or exceeds expectations is measured in three important areas: product/service, support, and price. These three areas will be used to factor a score for the Expectations category. The results of the three questions will be used to factor an overall expectations perception score. The Purchase Decision category gives us a better understanding of how the customer Perceives the purchase process. Two key areas for questions include an open ended Question on why they purchased and a ratings question on their experience. The rating Question data will be used for the analysis of Purchase Decision category. The open ended responses from the Why questions will be used for product strengths analysis. The results of the purchase experience question will be used for the overall Purchase perception analysis. Customer service is one of the most important differentiations a company can have. For this report, customers will rate a company in three key areas: customer service, timeliness for problem resolution, and expertise. These three areas will be used to factor a score for the Customer Service category.

Purpose of Literature Review Literature review is one of the prime parts of every project. The very basic purpose of the literature review is to gain insight on the theoretical background of the research problem. It helps the researcher to gain strong theoretical basis of the problem under study and also help to explore whether any one has done research on the related issue. Thats why literature review helps one to find out the path of problem solving. In this regards the very basic purpose of the literature review in this dissertation is same as mentioned.

Methodology The research will be done through survey method. The collection of data will be done through questionnaire, interview and related websites .The sample size taken for this research is 100 customers those who having Hero Honda motor bikes. The area of this survey consists of Bangalore city. The collection of data will be done with the help of a structured questionnaire. The designing of questionnaire needs precision and classification of the subject, so that the respondents can easily understand the question and can answer it sincerely and correctly. Sources of Data Primary data:Primary data consists of original information for the specific purpose at hand. It is first hand information for the direct users of respondents. The tools used to collect the data may vary and can be collected through various methods like questionnaire, personal interview. Secondary data:Secondary data is the data which is already been collected and assembled. This data is available with the companies or firms and it can be collected from newspapers, periodicals, magazines, websites etc . Sample Design Sample:-

The sample size taken for this research is 100 customers having Hero Honda motorbikes. Sampling Technique Convenient Sampling technique is used for this project. Data Collection Tool Questionnaires as the primary form of collecting data. Statistical techniques 2. Pie-Chart 1. Bar Diagrams Statistical tools 1. Statistical software like Microsoft Excel Limitations of the study:a) In this study it is not possible to collect the opinion of all the customers owing to personal constraints. So the assumptions are drawn on the basis of the information given by the respondents. b) The study needs to be completed within a specified time of one month and in certain restricted areas. So the findings cannot be generalized for the company as a whole. c) This study covers only a limited Hero Honda sector. So this study will not be applicable for those areas. CHAPTERIZATION 1. Introduction 2. Research Methodology 3. Profile of the Industry and Company 4. Analysis of the Data Collected 5. Findings, Suggestions and Conclusion Bibliography

Company profile Hero is the brand name used by the Munjal brothers for their flagship company Hero Cycles Ltd. A joint venture between the Hero Group and Honda Motor Company was established in 1984 as the Hero Honda Motors Limited at Dharuhera India. Munjal family and Honda group both own 26% stake in the Company. In 2010, it was reported that Honda planned to sell its stake in the venture to the Munjal family. During the 1980s, the company introduced motorcycles that were popular in India for their fuel economy and low cost. A popular advertising campaign based on the slogan 'Fill it - Shut it - Forget it' that emphasized the motorcycle's fuel efficiency helped the company grow at a double-digit pace since inception. The technology in the bikes of Hero Honda for almost 26 years (19842010) has come from the Japanese counterpart Honda. Hero MotoCorp has three manufacturing facilities based at Dharuhera, Gorgon in Haryana and at Hardwar in Uttarakhand. These plants together are capable of churning out 3 million bikes per year. Hero MotoCorp has a large sales and service network with over 3,000 dealerships and service points across India. Hero Honda has a customer loyalty program since 2000, called the Hero Honda Passport Program. The company has a stated aim of achieving revenues of $10 billion and volumes of 10 million two-wheelers by 2016-17. This in conjunction with new countries where they can now market their two-wheelers following the disengagement from Honda, Hero MotoCorp hopes to achieve 10 per cent of their revenues from international markets, and they expected to launch sales in Nigeria by end-2011 or early-2012. In addition, to cope with the new demand over the coming half decade.

History
Hero MotoCorp was started in 1984 as Hero Honda Motors Ltd. 1956 -- Formation of Hero Cycles in Ludhiana (majestic auto limited) 1975 -- Hero Cycles becomes largest bicycle manufacturer in India.

1983 -- Joint Collaboration Agreement with Honda Motor Co. Ltd. Japan signed Shareholders Agreement signed 1984 -- Hero Honda Motors Ltd. incorporated 1985 -- Hero Honda motorcycle CD 100 launched. 1989 -- Hero Honda motorcycle Sleek launched. 1991 -- Hero Honda motorcycle CD 100 SS launched. 1994 -- Hero Honda motorcycle Splendor launched. 1997 -- Hero Honda Motorcycle Street launched. 1999 -- Hero Honda motorcycle CBZ launched. 2001 -- Hero Honda motorcycle Passion and Hero Honda Joy launched. 2002 -- Hero Honda motorcycle Dawn and Hero Honda motorcycle Ambition launched. 2003 -- Hero Honda motorcycle CD Dawn, Hero Honda motorcycle Splendor, Hero Honda motorcycle Passion Plus and Hero Honda motorcycle Karizma launched. 2004 -- Hero Honda motorcycle Ambition 135 and Hero Honda motorcycle CBZ launched. 2005 -- Hero Honda motorcycle Super Splendor, Hero Honda motorcycle CD Deluxe, Hero Honda motorcycle Glamour, Hero Honda motorcycle Achiever and Hero Honda Scooter Pleasure. 2007 -- New Models of Hero Honda motorcycle Splendor NXG, New Models of Hero Honda motorcycle CD Deluxe, New Models of Hero Honda motorcycle Passion Plus and Hero Honda motorcycle Hunk launched. 2008 -- New Models of Hero Honda motorcycles Pleasure, CBZ Extreme, Glamour, Glamour Fi and Hero Honda motorcycle Passion pro launched. 2009 -- New Models of Hero Honda motorcycle Karizma: Karizma - ZMR and limited edition of Hero Honda motorcycle Hunk launched

2010 -- New Models of Hero Honda motorcycle Splendor Pro and New Hero Honda motorcycle Hunk and New Hero Honda Motorcycle Super Splendor launched. 2011 -- New Models of Hero Honda motorcycles Glamour, Glamour FI, CBZ Extreme, Karizma launched. New licensing arrangement signed between Hero and Honda. August-- Hero and Honda part company, thus forming Hero MotoCorp and Honda moving out of the Hero Honda joint venture. November-- Hero launched its first ever Off Road Bike Named Hero "Impulse". Termination of Honda joint venture Main article: Hero Honda split In December 2010, the Board of Directors of the Hero Honda Group have decided to terminate the joint venture between Hero Group of India and Honda of Japan in a phased manner. The Hero Group would buy out the 26% stake of the Honda in JV Hero Honda. Under the joint venture Hero Group could not export to international markets (except Sri Lanka) and the termination would mean that Hero Group can now export. Since the beginning, the Hero Group relied on their Japanese partner Honda for the technology in their bikes. So there are concerns that the Hero Group might not be able to sustain the performance of the Joint Venture alone

Hero MotoCorp
The new brand identity and logo, Hero MotoCorp, was developed by the London firm Wolff Olins. The logo was revealed on 9 August 2011 in London, the day before the third test match between England and India. Hero MotoCorp can now export to Latin America, Africa and West Asia. Hero is free to use any vendors for its components instead of just Honda-approved vendors.

Company performance
During the fiscal year 2008-09, the company sold 3.7 million bikes, a growth of 12% over last year. In the same year, the company had a market share of 57% in the Indian market. Hero Honda sells more two wheelers than the second, third and fourth placed two-wheeler companies put together. Hero Honda's bike Hero Honda Splendor sells more than one million units per year.

Recognition
Logo of Hero Honda, as the company was known till Aug. 2011 The Brand Trust Report published by Trust Research Advisory has ranked Hero Honda in the 13th position among the brands in India.

Motorcycle models
See also: Category: Hero Honda motorcycles Sleek Street Achiever Ambition 133, Ambition 135 CBZ, CBZ Star, CBZ Extreme CD 100, CD 100 SS, Hero Honda Joy, CD Dawn, CD Deluxe, CD Deluxe (Self Start) Glamour, Glamour Fi Hunk Karizma, Karizma R, Karizma ZMR FI Passion, Passion Plus, Passion Pro Pleasure

Splendor, Splendor+, Splendor+ (Limited Edition), Super Splendor, Splendor NXG, Splendor PRO.

Suppliers
It is reported Hero Honda has five joint ventures or associate companies, Munjal Showa, AG Industries, Sunbeam Auto, Rock man Industries and Satyam Auto Components that supply a majority of its components.

After premium bikes, Hero MotoCorp actively eyeing low-cost segment

NEW DELHI, MARCH 13,
A year after dissolving its joint venture with Honda, Hero MotoCorp is actively looking at the low-cost bike segment. This is expected to help the company further consolidate its strong hold in the domestic mass biking segment. Low-cost bikes are typically targeted at buyers who would like to scale up from mopeds. So, the plan is to reduce prices to the Rs 20,000 30,000 range (now it starts at Rs 34,500 for Hero's CD Dawn). We believe that there is a very large mass of customers in that segment at the bottom of the pyramid. We're working on trying to come up with something, but it's not easy with the way costs are going up. But, we will have something, Mr. Pawan Munjal, Managing Director and CEO of Hero MotoCorp. We'll be looking at prices which are much lower than where we currently are, otherwise it makes no sense. The market is for people who don't have any (personal) transport at all.

PRODUCT STRATEGY
In its recently set up R&D facility and along with new technical partners the US-based EBR, and a rumored tie-up with Austrian power train expert AVL the company is working on several new product strategies. Apart from larger engines for high-end models, downsizing engines below its current starting point of 100cc is also being looked at. Hero's increased interest in the mass segment is underlined by the fact that 88 per cent of its 4.53 million two wheeler sales (April-December 2011) came from the up to 125cc segment. As this segment represents 70 per cent of total domestic bike sales, Hero commands a 45 per cent market share overall. It's easy to make something like a moped, but does that serve your purpose. A moped is not as successful in this country since it is not rugged and sturdy as per the usage our consumers the kind of loading patterns and driving habits. We have to have a real motorcycle, Mr. Munjal said. Industry sources said Hero had been eyeing this segment for the past few years but had been constrained from developing new technologies under the terms of its 27year-old joint venture agreement with Honda. That partnership formally ended in March last year, paving the way for Hero to set up its own research and development facility and seek fresh alliances.

Hero MotoCorp, AVL pair up for engine development

Indias largest two-wheeler maker by volumes, Hero MotoCorp will now work with worlds largest privately owned engine developer, AVL Engineering, to share its technology for manufacturing Hero vehicles engines that would be developed

in-house. We have tied up with AVL to develop our in-house capabilities in technologies. A team from our R&D division is already in Austria working in close coordination with AVL ITC (Indian Technical Centre) based in Gudgeons, said Pawn Munjal, MD & CEO, Hero MotoCorp. The tie-up with AVL (Install fur ) is completely separate from its recent strategic alliance with Erik Buell Racing. Hero would also improve its existing models by putting in their learnings with the two tie-ups. AVL has earlier developed frugal workhorses for Royal Enfield and Mahindra & Mahindra. We would be developing engines of all sizes to make new products and also refurbish the existing product line, added Munjal. This will surely ramp up visibility among the 11 million strong two-wheeler consumer bases in the country. Hero also plans on working on its concept hybrid scooter showcased at the 2012 Delhi Auto Expo with the R&D imparted from the two companies. Currently, Hero has 16 two-wheelers in the country CD Dawn, CD Deluxe, Pleasure, Splendor +, Splendor NXG, Passion Pro, Super Splendor, Glamour, Splendor Pro, Glamour PGM Fi, Achiever,CBZ Extreme, Hunk, Karizma, Karizma ZMR and its latest entry, the Impulse. The two-wheeler came out as Indias first trans-roader and won accolades like the 2011 Bike of the Year award in the ET-ZigWheels Car & Bike of the Year awards.

High-end bikes from Hero MotoCorp

Hero MotoCorp Ltd (HMCL) on Wednesday said it has entered into a strategic tieup with the U.S.-based Erik Buell racing that would help the company introduce high-end bikes in India and overseas markets. We are entering into a strategic partnership with Erik Buell Racing (EBR), which currently is more into high-end and high-performance racing bikes as we are completely missing in this category of motorcycles, Hero MotoCorp Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Pawn Munjal told journalists here. HMCL will receive support in terms of cutting-edge technology and design to develop future models from EBR, the East Troy, Wisconsin-based firm.

Is Hero MotoCorp Eyeing Ducati? Updated

Just a couple of weeks ago, word got out that Ducati is looking for a buyer, possibly considering Volkswagen and BMW as potential suitors. Then a week ago, up pops Hero MotoCorp in a relationship with Erik Buell racing, showing they have intentions beyond the small displacement motorcycles they're currently known for. Now, in what has to be one of the more surprising developments in all of this, word is out that Hero MotoCorp is talking to bankers about a possible acquisition of Ducati. Wow! I guess they really are trying to expand into another market. "Weve been seen as a utility-bike maker, fuel-efficient bikes, and somebody whos at the lower level of the market, whos more small-town and rural-market focused," said Munjal. "So our ambition is to become one of the biggest global two- wheeler players and to do that, you cannot only be in one small segment" This may be very preliminary and no one is going to be talking about it outside the boardrooms where the discussions are taking place, but what is becoming clear is many more buyers may be getting into this game than everyone initially thought. Let's see, a company manufacturing motorcycles in Italy, with its largest market in the USA and owned by a company in India. Would it be any different if they were owned by a company in Germany? Does any of this even matter anymore? Hero MotoCorp certainly wouldn't be the first name to pop up when you think of a Ducati sale, but it does make you wonder who else may be interested in the Italian manufacturer. UPDATE: In an update to their previous article, Bloomberg reports Hero has cash reserves of about $1 billion, quite an accomplishment, considering their current range of motorcycles start at $763. Investors are scared about Heros plan of buying Ducati, said Umesh Karen, an analyst with Brice Securities Ltd. in Mumbai. Hero will have to take on the burden in terms of Ducatis debt so initially there may be some pain.

This is going to be an interesting process to follow as the big money starts to circle Ducati. Ducati enthusiasts probably need not worry about the company continuing with its product line, at least for the near term, since that is the value, along with the underlying technology, that's being purchased. However, if a company like Hero is trying to branch out and establish itself as a player in a much larger market and they are successful in their acquisition, sooner or later, motorcycles with Ducati's technology may begin to appear with the Hero nameplate. Hero in Moto Like I said, this could get very interesting, especially as the other potential buyers begin to see new and unexpected suitors moving in.

Hero MotoCorp unveils its new global corporate identity

The largest two wheeler producer in the country, Hero MotoCorp (formerly known as Hero Honda) has unveiled its new global corporate identity. The new avatar of the company, not only marks the end of 26 year old pact of Munjal family and Japans Honda Motor but also establishes, Hero group as the biggest sole entity in its space. The mandate for re-designing the brand identity including the brand architecture, name, logo and positioning has been accomplished by Wolff Online, a global brand & innovation specialist and a part of the Omnicom group. The new logo of the two-wheeler major shows the letter H in capital with a neat white background along with Hero written beneath in Red. The black color in the logo stands for solidity and premiumness while the Red gives a feeling of energy, passion, and confidence. To represent, Hero in 3D, the logo even has a triangle, trapezoid and a parallelogram in the first letter of its name. The sharp edge of the logo depicts the style, engineering, innovation and connection with the new brand. Regarding the companys new branding, Pawan Munjal, MD & CEO, Hero MotoCorp said, Through this we shall establish a new paradigm. The companys old logo was Red in color, with an amalgamation of Hero and Honda in it. The company has recently bought Law & Kenneth as its creative agency on board.

With this new identity, the company aims to surpass the 10m units annual sales, with a $10b turnover in five years. Hero MotoCorp to invest INR 1200cr in Gujarat plant Business Line reported that Hero MotoCorp is expected to announce plans to set up its fourth plant in Gujarat in March itself, even as talks speed up for a fifth facility likely at Karnataka. Apart from feeding growing local demand, additional capacity would help the two wheeler market leader to meet its USD 1 billion export target by 2020. Sources close to the development said that in a deal that has already been finalized with the Gujarat Government, the company is likely to invest about INR 1,200cr for a two million unit capacity plant set up over two phases. Chosen because of the proximity to ports, the location is a 300-acre plot close to General Motors' car plant in Halol, Central Gujarat. Mr. Pawn Munjal MD & CEO of Hero MotoCorp told Business Line that Within this month, I should be making the announcement for the new plant. It will get to those levels (as Hardwar plant's 2.5 million unit annual capacity), but will have modular capacities. State officials said that for the fifth plant expected to focus on the south Indian market, a 500 acre plot near TATA Motors' plant at Dharwad, Karnataka, has been offered by the Karnataka Government. This comes after months of discussions that company officials reportedly held with many States such as Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh

Hero MotoCorp in Talks with Many Bankers on Possible Ducati Acquisition

Hero MotoCorp Ltd. (HMCL), Indias biggest motorcycle maker, is in talks with bankers about buying Ducati Motor Holding Spa as it seeks technology to enhance its bikes and expand its business globally. Lots of people have been coming to us with Ducati: Not one banker but many bankers, Pawn Kant Munjal, the managing director of Hero MotoCorp, said yesterday in an interview in New Delhi. Were talking to a lot of people. Not just Ducati, whoever comes to us, we talk to them.

Hero, which in December 2010 decided to exit a 26-year partnership with Honda Motor Co. (7267), is looking to gain technology through partnerships and acquisitions after that licensing relationship ends in 2014. The company has cash reserves of about $1 billion, Munjal said. Invest industrial Spa, the Milan-based private-equity firm that owns Ducati, may hold an initial public offering of the luxury-motorcycle maker in Hong Kong this year or sell it to a rival, two people familiar with the plans said last month, declining to be identified because the plans are private. A spokesman for Invest industrial wasnt immediately available to comment late yesterday. Motorcycle makers Hero and Bajaj Auto Ltd. (BJAUT) are looking to expand their markets amid increased competition in the worlds second-biggest motorcycle market as the Indian units of Honda, Yamaha Motor Co. and Suzuki Motor Co. expand capacity in the country. Only China buys more motorcycles.

Looking Overseas
Motorcycle sales in India grew 15 percent in 2011 to 9.95 million units, according to data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. The industry body expects deliveries of two-wheelers, including motorcycles and scooters, in the year beginning April 1 will increase 11 percent to 14 percent. Hero is looking to begin sales in Africa and Latin America this year as it tries to mimic the strategy of its nearest domestic rival, Bajaj Auto. Bajaj sells more than 35 percent of its products overseas and expects to exceed its export target of 1.5 million units in the year ending March 31. Hero aims to export 1 million units annually in five or six years, Munjal said. Weve been seen as a utility-bike maker, fuel-efficient bikes, and somebody whos at the lower level of the market, whos more small-town and rural-market focused, said Munjal. So our ambition is to become one of the biggest global two- wheeler players and to do that, you cannot only be in one small segment. Ducati, whose bikes are owned by actors such as Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise, was delisted in 2008 from the Milan stock exchange.

Honda is expanding its operations in India after separating from Hero, and will spend as much as 10 billion rupees ($202 million) on its third factory near Bangalore in southern India that will be ready in 2013, the company said in August. When complete, Honda will have a capacity to build 4 million twowheelers in India annually.

Hero may export bikes

Expects to sell 1 million 2-wheelers abroad by 2016-17 and generate 10% of its total revenue from exports by 2020 Hero MotoCorp Ltd will start exporting scooters and motorcycles sometime in the April-June quarter this year, a year after it broke up with Japans Honda Motor Co. Ltd after a 27-year-long partnership that effectively prevented it from tapping overseas markets for its products. We will start exporting very soon, maybe in the first quarter of the next financial year, Heros chief executive and managing director Pawn Munjal said in an interview last week. We have identified some distributors in Latin America and Africa. Currently, Hero exports to Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and some Latin American countries, but these accounts for a very small portion of the 6.5 million vehicles it sells every year. In 2010-11, for instance, it exported 114,581 scooters and motorcycles, according to data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. According to the company, it expects to sell one million scooters and motorcycles in overseas markets by 2016-17, and generate $1 billion, or Rs. 5,060cr today, (10%) of its total revenue from exports by 2020. A senior Hero executive, on condition of anonymity, said the firm is also identifying overseas locations for assembly plants (factories that assemble vehicles from parts). Were open to set up an assembly plant if (the) volumes justify it. There are (also) some countries where import duties are on a higher side...that may require us to assemble locally, he said. Typically, import duty on a complete scooter or bike is higher than that on parts.

As part of the joint venture pact between the Hero Group and Honda in 1984, Hero was not allowed to export motorcycles to most large markets where Honda had its own assembly units. After breaking up with Honda, Hero created a separate arm focused on export markets, Hero International Business. The African market for two-wheelers is estimated to be one million units per year, according to Sagan Pala ne, senior regional leader and auto expert (South Africa) at conit can enter them due to dual-fuel usage, Jinesh Gandhi and Manish Verma, sector analysts at Motilal Oswal Securities Ltd, a Mumbai-based brokerage firm, wrote in a report. Gandhi explained that the current range of Heros engines may not perform well in countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and Chile that use ethanol-blended fuel. Brazil is Latin Americas largest two-wheeler market and saw sales of at least one million scooters and motorcycles in 2011, Gandhi said. It is also the worlds largest. producer of sugar cane. Ethanol is produced in significant quantity by the Brazilian sugar cane industry, and it is blended with petrol or diesel. Hero wont immediately make money from exports, the Motilal Oswal analysts said in their report. Going by the experience of Bajaj Auto, exports in the initial ramp-up phase could be loss-making, they wrote. In order to build its brand overseas, the firm also plans to be present at prominent motor shows, Munjal said. Last year, we were present at Milan Motor Show and this year well be going to Brazil, which is also famous for motorcycles, he said. A year ago in March, Hero Group bought Hondas 26% stake in Hero Honda, now Hero MotoCorp, at half the market value. Hero Investments Pvt. Ltd, the investment arm of Hero Group, paid Rs. 3,842cr to buy Hondas stake in Hero Honda.

Tags - Find More Articles On: Hero MotoCorp Exports Bikes Motor Cycles Auto 2-Wheeler Auto Expo 2012: Hero MotoCorp unveils indigenously developed Hybrid Scooter After launching two motorcycles and a scooter for men a couple of days ago, Hero MotoCorp on Friday unveiled India's first concept hybrid scooter at the 11th Auto Expo. The scooter is being developed in association with a foreign consultant and is first ever series hybrid scooter from India. We are showing the rest of the world that we have arrived," Hero MotoCorp Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Pawn Munjal said. The concept hybrid scooter-LEAP-indigenously developed with the help of an international consultant, he added. Talking about the launch of the scooter, Munjal said, "we will definitely product ionize it in future. We have to work a lot for launching it commercially. So it will take some time." Elaborating on the technology he said, "the hybrid scooter will have an engine that gets started on the battery power comes down." When asked about sales, Munjal said, "2012 may not be as good as 2011 but we will still see a double digit growth." In August last year, India's largest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp (formerly Hero Honda) had ended its 27 years long relationship with Honda. Hero MotoCorp partners with US-based Erik Buell Racing Hero MotoCorp formed the partnership to bring next-generation high-end bikes to India. It will further augment R&D capabilities through multiple alliances. Hero MotoCorp Ltd (HMCL), said it partnered with US-based Erik Buell Racing (EBR) for sharing technology. As part of the partnership, HMCL will receive support in terms of cutting-edge technology and design to develop future models from EBR - the East Troy, Wisconsin-based firm, which specializes in designing

and manufacturing powerful and high-speed motorcycles. Announcing this, Pawn Munjal, managing director and chief executive officer, Hero MotoCorp, said It gives me immense pleasure to welcome Erik Buell to the exciting world of Hero MotoCorp. This is in keeping with my objective of quickly scaling up our own inhouse R&D capabilities to a global two-wheeler technology power-house by leveraging a network of strategic international alliances. Erik and his team have been working closely with our engineers and designers to develop our nextgeneration range of products With cutting-edge technology and first-of-its-kind features. Erik F Buell, chairman and CTO of EBR, said EBR is delighted to partner with a company as iconic as Hero MotoCorp. Both HMCL and EBR share the common commitment to manufacturing world-class two-wheelers with technology of the future. I have personally been deeply impressed with and inspired by Pawns vision. He has given us a challenging brief, and our highly-motivated team is working towards giving shape to that dream. We look forward to designing technology solutions which are in line with contemporary global standards and also futuristic in their appeal and utility. Through this alliance, Hero MotoCorp will also, for the first time, enter the exciting world of international motorcycle racing. The company will mark its foray into the racing arena by sponsoring two teams: Team Hero and AMSOIL Hero - a first by any Indian two-wheeler company at the AMA Pro Racing National Guard Superbikes Championship. Popular young racer Danny Slick will represent Team Hero while another well-known racer Geoff May will represent team AMSOIL Hero both riding on EBR 1190RS bikes. Hero MotoCorp also showcased the EBR 1190RS bike at the press conference. The first race is scheduled at the Daytona Speedway, at Daytona beach, Florida, USA between 15 March 2012 and 17 March 2012. Hero MotoCorp is also developing the concept hybrid scooter called Leap, showcased at the recently-concluded Auto Expo, in collaboration with EBR. EBR 1190RS is the flagship bike from EBR, and an exclusive engineering marvel, as the company is producing only 100 inaugural units of these, including a handful of the carbon edition package. The EBR 1190RS is taking the American motorcycle racing world by storm with its performance, styling and handling

Insider Story: How Hero Honda became Hero MotoCorp

On November 1, Hero MotoCorp, the new avatar of Hero Honda, announced that its dealers sold a record 650,000 motorcycles and scooters in October. Farmers had harvested their crops, and salaried people had got Diwali bonuses; the company had no reason to complain. Some days before that, it had declared its financial results for the quarter ended September 2011, the first full quarter without Honda as a shareholder, which showed that sale as well as profit had hit at an all-time high. For several years, the Manuals, the promoters of the company, have been known as sharp businessmen but their success was always credited to technology and innovation from Honda. The ride without Honda was the real test of their skills. The Munjals and Honda had formed Hero Honda, a 26-26 joint venture, in the late1980s. The first sign of discord became visible over ten years ago when Honda set up a 100 per cent arm, Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India. Finally, on December 16 last year, Hero Honda informed the stock markets that the partnership was over and Honda would soon exit the company. In the days that preceded the announcement, the Munjals had formed a core team of three people to assess if life was possible without Honda. The team, which was kept under wraps from the rest of the world, could not go out for consumer research because that would have let the secret out. It had to rely on gut feel. What may have played on this team's mind was Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India's performance in the motorcycle market and Hero Honda's performance in the scooter market. Both had entered these markets in 2006; while Honda had got 7 per cent of the motorcycle market, Hero Honda had grabbed over 17 per cent of the scooter market which was dominated by the Honda Activa. Technology, the team concluded, was equal for all, and what really mattered to Indians was the total cost

of ownership - low price tags, high fuel economy, inexpensive spares and high resale value. On December 16, immediately after it had informed the stock markets that Honda will exit the company and before answering calls from anxious analysts and inquisitive journalists, Hero Honda Managing Director & CEO Pawn Munjal did a live webcast to all employees, vendors and dealers. The dealers were the real strength of the Munjals. Chairman and family patriarch Brijmohan Lall was on first-name terms with each of his 450 dealers, and he had made it a practice to interview all prospective dealers. The next day, the key hundred or so dealers were brought to Delhi, and the fatherson duo apprised them of the situation. Within ten days, each one of the 100,000 or so mechanics and salesmen of the dealerships and the 4,000-odd touch points (service centers et cetera) were given dockets on the subject, and their questions were answered by the company's employees. Close to a year later, Hero MotoCorp claims not a single dealer left it, in spite of the doomsday projections. The Munjals wanted the new company name and brand to reflect change with continuity as it would be unwise to let go off Hero Honda's brand equity. They knew it had universal appeal. Everybody likes to feel that he has it in him to reach his full potential, and thus there are better times to come. The storyboard was the achievements of ordinary people - a girl from Jharkhand who wins a medal at a gymnastics championship, a young boy who wins a dance contest et cetera. The celebrities on the company's rolls - film stars like Hrithik Roshan and cricketers like Virender Sehwag - were kept out of it, perhaps because the Munjals didn't want the message to get lost. They chose to unveil the new identity in London on August 7. This was done, of course, to signal that the company would now go global; according to Due, London

was also chosen because it is a good blend of history and modernity - just the thought that the Munjals wanted to convey about their company. In the days that followed, the campaign was put on 200 radio stations and 4,000 cinema halls in Tier 2 & 3 cities, and signages were changed in all the 4,500 consumer contact points like dealerships and service centers. Cleverly, the company had gone cold on all marketing and media spend for the last month and a half; this helped it conserve cash when this campaign broke. As a result, says Due, the advertising expenditure has stayed within the average of 22.5 per cent for the July-September quarter. The results, Due claims, have been better than expected. "Our market share in motorcycles has improved from 54.5 per cent to 55.5 per cent in the last one year, and our mindshare has gone up by four percentage points after the campaign." Spontaneous brand awareness, where people are asked to name two or three motorcycle brands, Due says, has improved from 99 per cent in the Hero Honda era to 100 per cent in the Hero MotoCorp days. These are still early days; the challenge is to sustain it in the future.

Economic Scenario
The year 2010-11 turned out to be a year of moderation, with growing trepidation across the domains of economics, environment and geopolitics. If recovery was the underlying theme for the previous year, 2010-11s summative theme was surely uncertainty, with the massive earthquake in Japan and turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) creating insecurity, along with volatility in crude and commodity prices. In the US, a slew of factors double-dipping home prices; a slow recovery inlabour markets and weak wage growth; the fiscal contraction of state and local

governments; and underlying weakness in final demand suggested that the subpar, anaemic recovery for the U.S. economy might endure for a while. Barring Germany, European recovery has almost ground to a halt. The reasons are not hard to seek: fiscal tightening in UK (a leading economy), political uncertainty in Italy, recession in some Scandinavian countries and solvency problems in peripheral EU nations (Greece and Turkey) contributed to the mess. Japan, which had just begun to limp back on apathy of recovery, plunged back into deflation as the impact of its natural disaster fully sank in. To make matters worse, the growth potential in emerging markets like China, Brazil and India, which had demonstrated so much promise in recent years, showed signs of getting impacted by monetary tightening and high interest rates. In 2010-11, India followed a deviant growth trajectory as opposed to last year: the fastest growth was notched in the first quarter, and the slowest was reserved for the last. In the previous year, India began growing at a comparatively slow pace, but ended with a strong kick. This sparked off hope that the economy would enter the nine percent growth orbit. In fact, economic performance was strong throughout the first half of the fiscal, with the manufacturing sector growing in double digits, and the service sector growing almost as fast. Yet towards the completion of the year, the growth rate dwindled to 7.8%; in the last quarter of 2010-11 it was the slowest in six quarters. Even though the manufacturing sector notched a double-digit growth during the first two quarters of the year, monetary tightening eventually took its toll in the remaining quarters: it slowed down the pace of capital formation and kept growth in the index of industrial production in single digits. Nevertheless, India eventually ended the year with 8.5% growth; this was largely on the back of a strong export demand, a resurgent agriculture sector and sustained growth in industries like hotels, real estate, retail and banking as well as core industries, such as cement and steel. Of course, the performance of the service and agriculture sector was important for different reasons: the former now makes up more than 57% of national output, while 2/3 of India depends on the farm sector for its livelihood.

Services and agriculture growth in turn, ensured strong demand for both consumer durables and automobiles. However, there is little doubt that if high interest rates persist, they will start eating into demand and private consumption expenditure in the coming fiscal. In fact, as the year progressed, there was some early evidence of this in March 2011, with consumer durable growth shrinking to 12% from 23% in the previous month. In the previous annual report, fears were expressed that inflation could stifle some of Indias growth impetus in 2010-11. That is exactly what happened during the year in review. 2010-11 began with double digit food inflation. By the time it ended, manufacturing inflation became the source of concern: it accounted for 30% of the inflation pie in the March-July period, but in the November-March period,manufacturings share of the inflation pie was up more than 55%. This forced RBI to tighten monetary policy aggressively throughout 2010-11. The process continues, even at the time of writing as headline inflation remains way above the apexbanks comfort level. While the near-term outlook for the Indian economy looks uncertain, India longterm growth prospects are stable, given the favorable demographics and increasing connectivity between India and Bharat. At one level, there is visible evidence of sustainable demand emanating from traditional rural areas. At the other, growth poles opportunities are sprouting in newly urbanized centers across the country. Even in the short term, there is a growing perception that India may soon be on top fits rate hike and inflation curves; in other words, as food inflation moderates on the back of another good monsoon and as crude prices stabilize, the RBI may loosen its tightening policy towards the end of 2011. This would have a stabilizing influence on growth towards the end of 2011-12. Industry and Segment Insight A growing number of jobs in the service sector, favorable demographics, increasingurbanisation across towns and bountiful rains ensured strong demand for two wheelers in India during the year in review. In combination, these factors offset continuously rising consumer finance rates.

The domestic two-wheeler market grew a rollicking 26%, with sales of 11.8 million units, compared to 9.4 million in the previous year. Two wheeler exports grew 35%, and crossed the 1.5 million mark for the first time. Overall, two wheelers sales grew at 27% in 2010-11, with 13.4 million units of sales as compared to 10.5 million units of sales in the previous year. Each of the three two wheeler segments clocked strong growth. Motorcycle sales expanded by 24% from 8.4 million units to 10.5 million units. Domestic sales made up the bulk of motorcycle sales. The domestic motorcycle market witnessed a growth of 23% in 2010-11, sales of 90, 18,945 units as compared to sales of 73, and 41,090 units in 2009-10. Continuing with a recent trend, scooter sales grew the fastest (42%) from 1.5 to 2.2million units. In the domestic market, scooters now make up close to 18.5% of the two-wheeler market. The revival in the mopeds segment continued as well; sales were up 23%from 5.7 lakh to over 7lakh units. Indias motorcycle market comprises three categories: entry, executive and premium. During the year, the entry segment grew at close to 14%. Nevertheless, the entrysegments overall share in the two wheeler pie declined from 18.7% to 17.3%. The deluxe segment sustained its steady performance, notching volumes of 4.8 million units, and a growth in excess of 15%. This segment accounted for over 62% of overall motorcycle sales. The show-stealer in the motorcycle category was the premium segment. More than 1.85million units were sold during the year, a growth of 66%. The strong showing ensured that the premium share in the overall motorcycle pie went up from 15.3% to 20.6%. In fact in the domestic industry the premium segment outsold the entry segment for the first time ever.

New Product Launches

The Company has consistently relied on innovation, technology and design to sustain excitement amongst customers.

This year saw the introduction of several new product launches and refreshes. The new products launches and refreshes were supported throughout the year by impactful, clutter-breaking and engaging communication. The products which were launched are Glamour, Glamour FI, New Hunk, Super Splendor, Splendor Pro, New Karizma .

Accelerated Performance
Despite its significantly higher base vise-a-vise competitors, Companys twowheeler sales improved by 17%; from 4.6 to 5.4 million units during the year to garner over 40%two wheeler market shares. In the domestic two wheeler market, it had a share of 44.5%, with sales of 5.2 million. In the motorcycle segment, the Company sold over five million units. In the domestic market, the Company sold over 4.9 million motorcycles at a growth of 15%, thereby capturing 54.6% domestic motorcycle market share. In the scooter segment Pleasure, grew a whopping 65% during the year, with sales of3.42 lakh units. This single scooter brand now accounts for over 16% market share. Across various motorcycle segments, the Company bested industry growth in the entry segment by growing in excess of 17%, and selling more than 1.5 million units. In the deluxe segment, the Company captured 68.9% share. With sales of 3.8 million units, the Company registered growth in excess of 12%.

Financial Scorecard
Sales The Companys sales grew by 17.44%. It ended the year with a domestic market share of around 45%. The Company clocked a sales volume of 5,402,444 units in 2010-11, compared to 4,600,130 units in 2009-10. In value terms total sales (net of excise duty) increased by 22.1% to Rs. 19,245 crores from Rs. 15,758 crores in 2009-10. Profitability

The Companys earnings before interest depreciation and taxes (EBITDA) margins decreased from 17.45% in 2009-10 to 13.49% in 2010-11 and the Operating Profit (PBT before other income) decreased from Rs. 2,575.48 crores in 2009-10 to Rs. 2,214.61 crores in2010-11. The margin fell despite healthy growth in the sales volume on account of higher prices of raw materials and components and additional cost of meeting emission norms Other Income, including non-operating income Other income increased by 24.7% from Rs. 341 crores in 2009-10 to Rs. 425 crores in2010-11. Cash flows The free cash flow from operations during the year stood at Rs. 2,288.11 crores(previous year 2,686.64 crores). The same have been deployed in capital assets, investments and paid out as dividends during the year. Capital expenditure During the year, the Company incurred a capital expenditure of Rs. 364.12 crores. The funds went into capacity expansion and replacements.

Raw material costs Hardening of metal prices particularly steel, copper, aluminums and nickel during the year results in escalation in material costs. Raw material costs as a proportion of total cost increased 68.1% to 73.3% and adversely impacted EBITDA margins. Current asset turnover This ratio, which shows sales as a proportion of average current assets, decreased from17.2 to 15.5 times, on account of higher average inventory and loans and advances.

Debt structure Hero Honda has been a debt free company for the last 10 years. The unsecured loan of Rs. 32.71 crores from the state government of Haryana on account of sales tax deferment, is interest free and has no holding costs. Net interest payment by the Company has been negative during the last few years.

Dividend policy Over the years, the Company has consistently followed a policy of paying high dividends, keeping in mind the cash-generating capacities; the expected capital needs other business and strategic considerations. For 2010-11, the Board has recommended a dividend of 1750% higher than 1500% declared in previous year, and has maintained a payout ratio of 42.1% vise-a-vise 31.3% in the previous year. Further, it has also declared 3500%interim dividend (previous year 4000%). Working capital management The Company has always sought to efficiently use the various components of working capital cycle. It has been able to effectively control the receivable and inventories, enabling it to continue to operation negative working capital.

ANALYSIS OF DATA COLLECTED

Consumer Perception towards HERO MOTOCORP Motor Bikes in Bangalore City Statement of Problem:Stepping down of Hero Hondas position form a market leader to an ordinary market survivor has posed and alarming condition before the company. The present study would like to have an insight of consumers perception about the criteria of selecting the bikes. Especially to figure out whether it is brand driven or quality driven, Before five years Hero Honda was the market leader in motor bike industry in India. But in now a day they are losing their grip in motor bike industry, none of their bike except Splendor became a success. And the competitors like Bajaj and TVS has taken advantage of this. There is no doubt that the companys market share is falling down. So this study will help to understand and identify what the consumer feels or perceives about Hero Honda motor bikes. This will help the marketer to identify which all are the factors that a consumer looks in to when he selects a particular bike. And also explains how a consumer selects and interprets the qualities of bike that Hero Honda offers. Objectives of the Study 1. To analyze consumer perception towards Hero Honda motor bikes 2. To get feedback on what consumer expects from Hero Honda 3. To analyze consumer perception towards services offered by Hero Honda and Performance of the motor cycle Methodology The research will be done through survey method. The collection of data will be done through questionnaire, interview and related websites The sample size for this research is 100 customers those who having Hero Honda motor bikes. The area of this survey consists of Bangalore city .The collection of data will be done with the help of a structured questionnaire. The designing of questionnaire needs precision and classification of the subject, so that the respondents can easily understand the question and can answer it sincerely and correctly.

Sources of Data
Primary data:Primary data consists of original information for the specific purpose at hand. It is first hand information for the direct users of respondents. The tools used to collect the data may vary depend can be collected through various methods like questionnaire, direct personal interview, Secondary data:Secondary data is the data which is already been collected and assembled. This data is available with the companies or firms and it can be collected from newspapers, periodicals, magazines, websites etc. Analysis of the Data Collected Gender of the Respondents Table No:-1 Source: survey data Interpretation: The above table showing the sex of the respondents those who participated in the survey GENDER NO OF RESPONDENTS % OF RESPONDENTS MALE 96 96% FEMALE 4 4% TOTAL 100 100% Chart No Analysis:Above 90% of respondents of the survey were male customers and there were only a few female respondents. Gender of Respondents Male Female

Age of the respondents Analysis: Above 40% of the participants of the survey were between18-25 of age and second most participants were between25-40. There were only 5 participants responded above 55 age group Occupation of the Respondents
Table No :Occupation No of Respondents % of Respondents Business 18 18% Professional 14 14% Employee 20 20% Student 38 38% Others 10 10% Total 100 100% Source: survey data

Interpretation: The above table showing the occupation of the Hero Honda owners those who participated in the survey and their percentage wise analysis Analysis: The majority of the Hero Honda customers participated in the survey were students. There were 38% and the 20% employees who are Hero Honda owners. And the Professionals and Businessmen constitute only 32%. SOURCES OF AWARENESS OF HERO HONDA Table No:SOURCE NO. OF RESPONDENTS % OF RESPONDENTS ADVERTISEMENT 38 38% FRIENDS 24 24% RELATIVE 10 10% OTHERS 28 28% TOTAL 100 100%

Source: survey data INTERPRETATION: The above table tells about which of the source is more effective in spreading the awareness about Hero Honda bikes Chart No:SOURCES OF AWARENESS OF HERO 38% HONDA 24% 10% 28% 0.00% 5.00% 10.00% 15.00% 20.00% 25.00% 30.00% 35.00% 40.00% ADVERTISEMENT FRIENDS RELATIVES OTHERS Status % of Respondents Analysis: This statistic reveals that greater part of respondents have got the information from T.V and advertisement other than friends & relatives which plays an important role in influencing them to opt for Hero Honda. This reveals that Hero Honda is able to influence its consumer base to tell other about their product.