When Tata had first talked of the car, rivals were blase about it. "We'll see once it is actually there," used to be the stock answer.
It was only when Tata drove the car to the podium at the 9th Auto Expo in New Delhi on January 10, 2008 that they admitted the threat was real. Small car makers scurried to the drawing board. (Did you miss the new Maruti Alto campaign that coincided with the Nano launch?)
In fact, the idea behind the affordable pricing is to create a whole new customer base and many believe Tata Motors will succeed. Says Abdul Majeed, who tracks the automobile space at PricewaterhouseCoopers: "This is a brand new price point and a brand new segment that Tata Motors is reaching out to and it could well succeed."
As Jagdish Khattar, former Maruti Suzuki managing director and now the promoter of Carnation, a multi-brand car dealership venture, observed recently, the Nano could create its own niche market and it may include other than those driving top-end bikes, the very group of people Tata Motors is hoping will aspire for more comfort and safety.
Rajiv Dubey, president (passenger cars), Tata Motors, confirms his company is looking to sell to more people than just those upgrading from a two-wheeler. "We are of course targeting two-wheeler owners, but our pricing strategy should net us many more customers across socio-economic segments."
Image: Tata Group Chairman Ratan Tata steps out from the Nano. | Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters
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