So far, Toyota and Honda have more or less shared honours in their Internecine Battle in India. Will The Brio and The Liva change that?They have competed fiercely with each other in every market they entered, but for their fatherland, it would be sacrilege to choose between the two! After all, both Toyota and Honda have been symbols of Japan’s iconic rise as an industrial superpower post World War II, and are also key to the country’s bid for an economic recovery in this century. Besides these similarities, they have been celebrated case studies for their successful forays into multiple global markets, and have also been viewed quite negatively for the ‘recall’ wave they unleashed some time back.
While Civic and Corolla appeal to a similar TG, both these models have been able to carve their respective spaces in US, Japan and even in the domestic circuit. The same is the scenario with Camry and Accord. At the end of February 2011, Camry and Corolla stood at the 3rd and 4th position respectively in the list of the top selling vehicles in the US market, while Accord and Civic booked the 6th and 8th positions, respectively. However, they are markedly different when it comes to strategic approach. Toyota is one of the more aggressive players, while Honda has a slow and steady approach. “Honda first studies the market and then launches a product,” said a consultant on condition of anonymity.
As far as the Indian market goes, both Honda & Toyota have been equally cautious and have avoided taking the expressway too early. The duo entered the second fastest growing automobile market in the world during the mid-90s and they have been building their consumer base in a slow and steady manner. The playing field has been restricted to a couple of sedans and SUVs so far. In the segments where they have competed, they are more or less even. In the executive segment, Toyota Corolla posted sales of 8,769 units in the April 2010 to January 2011 period as compared to Honda Civic’s sales of 4,121 units in the same period. In the premium segment, Toyota posted sales of 330 units with the Camry & Prius combined, compared to 1,988 units for the Honda Accord in the same period. In the mid-size segment, Honda is the leader with 40,190 unit sales in the period, but Toyota is making waves with over 2,000 units of the Etios sold within two months of launch. In the MUV segment, Innova alone sold over 50,000 units in the period, while CR-V managed only 435 units.
The launch of Toyota Etios Liva and Honda Brio will catapult these companies into the high volume fetching hatchback segment, and this is where the battle will get very interesting. The question is – who looks more par for the course?
“The buzz around Etios started from the Auto Expo that took place in the capital in January last year,” says Sandeep Singh, Deputy Managing Director – Marketing, Toyota Kirloskar Motors. Undoubtedly, a lot of research and synergy has gone into the development of the Brio and the Liva and both Japanese giants would not like to gamble with the success equation for these models in particular. For both companies, Liva and Brio will surely bring new customers under the Toyota and Honda umbrella, but an overwhelming buying experience will build loyalty with these consumers as they upgrade over time. “There is a lot of anticipation for Honda Brio in the market and we are confident that the car will be appreciated by the Indian customers,” says Jnaneswar Sen, Vice President - Marketing, Honda SIEL Cars India.
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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).
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