Renault to enter used car biz in India; 2 new models in 2015

French auto major Renault plans to enter new verticals, including used car business in India next year, besides launching two new models, to make its presence felt in the market which it sees as "the biggest challenge".

The company, which is targeting a market share of over 5 per cent in India, is also leveraging on its 4,500 strong R&D Centre in Chennai to come up with products which are "right for the country".

"India is the biggest challenge for Renault in the next two years...we have high ambitions from the Indian market. It is very important for us," Renault Chairman of AMI (Africa, Middle East and India) Region Bernard Cambier told PTI on the sidelines of Paris Motor Show.

Spelling out the company's new business plans he said: "We have plans to develop some new services.

"I have ambition with Sumit Sawhney (Renault India Country CEO and MD) to develop the used car business and lot of things like that."

Sawhney said the entry into used car business would help the company in overall brand building.

"When a customer is coming today to buy a Renault car he already owns a car, so he is looking forward to an exchange platform where he can get right value for his existing car," Sawhney said.

He further said: "Also if a customer wants to buy a Renault car we can always give him the option to liquidate his existing Renault car to buy a new one.

So used car business is important from customer point of view and for dealers it gives them turnover."

Asked by when the company planned to operationalise the vertical, he said: "We want to start this business next year." Commenting on the preparations for the launch of a multi purpose vehicle (MPV) and sub-Rs 4 lakh car in the Indian market, Sawhney said the company is working to develop "right products at right price" as it wants to have a strong entry in the two volume segments.

"What we have seen is that a lot of companies have not brought the right product or at a right price. So at Renault what we are trying to do is to bring a right product at a right price at a right time so we are leveraging our technology centre in Chennai," he added.

Stressing that Renault doesn't want to be a marginal player in India, he said: "One point is that wherever we want to go we want to have a strong entry in that segment.

We don’t want to be a marginal player in that segment so that is a clear vision. So we are building a strong runway for Renault in coming years."

He added that the two segments would be able to push the company's market share in India to over 5 per cent in the next three years.

Renault, which currently sells five models including mid sized SUV Duster in India, had a market share tad over 2 per cent in the country last year.

The Indian passenger vehicle market stood at around 2.5 million units last fiscal. When asked about the product line up after 2016-17, Sawhney said: "For future lineup we cannot share details now but we can assure you that we will come up with products post 2016-17 also.

So it's not that we are not going to bring in new products." Terming the entry into small car segment as an "opportunity", he said, the category is poised for growth with the opening up of the economy.

"Small cars is a very big opportunity today with economy opening up and you don't have many international players in that segment and that we in Renault see as an opportunity very clearly," he said. All the products which will be introduced would have the capacity to create a sub-segment as Duster created one for itself, he added.