BAJAJ CHETAK

GROUP MEMBERS:
NIPUL AGARWAL
NIPUN CHAWLA
PAYAL MARWAHA
PRANOTI PANDEY
PIYUSH MISHRA
 BAJAJ GROUP
• The Bajaj group was founded in 1926 by Jamnalal
Bajaj.

• In 1945, Kamalnayan Bajaj, Jamnalal's son, set up

Bachraj Trading Corporation Ltd. (BTCL), a trading
company, to import and sell two- and three-
wheelers. This business continued till 1959.

• In 1959, the company secured a license from the

Government of India (GoI) to manufacture two- and
three-wheelers.

• In 1960, BTCL was renamed Bajaj Auto Ltd. (BAL) and

the company went public. The same year, it entered
into a technical collaboration with Piaggio for the
manufacture of scooters.

• In the mid-1940s, BAL started as an importer of two-

and three-wheelers.
• With its collaboration with Piaggio coming to an end
in the early 1970s, BAL started manufacturing
scooters under the Bajaj brand.

• In the early 1960s, BAL, in collaboration with

Piaggio, started manufacturing Vespa brand
scooters at its plant near Pune, Maharashtra.
SEGMENTS IN TWO WHEELER MARKET:
LATE 90’s

SCOOTER
MOTOR CYCLES
MOPED
 BAJAJ CHETAK: A BRIEF
INTRODUCTION
• BAJAJ CHETAK was a popular Indian made motor
scooter produced by the Bajaj auto company.

•Originally based on Italian Vespa, Chetak was the

only choice for millions of Indian families as an
affordable way of transport for decades.

•The Chetak, a geared scooter, had reigned over the

Indian two-wheeler market in the late 1970s to early
1990s and had come to occupy a near-iconic status.

•The Chetak, BAL's first scooter model under the

Bajaj brand, was introduced in 1972.
• In the 1970s and 1980s, scooters dominated the
Indian two-wheeler market.

• Most middle-class Indians preferred scooters

because of their durability, low maintenance costs,
and versatility, and the Bajaj Chetak name became
synonymous with scooters.

• At that time, the motorcycles available in India were

heavier and not as fuel efficient as scooters. They
were also costlier.

• The brand which was named after the legendary

stallion of the Rajput king Maharana Pratap, was
known for the reliability and sturdiness.
• The brand thrived during the license raj with
virtually no competition.

• Bajaj Chetak had a huge brand equity . The brand

had the persona of a " work horse". With reasonable
price and the low maintenance cost made this
product a huge hit among the middle class Indians.
 DECLINE IN BAJAJ MARKET
• In the late 1990s, the Indian two-wheeler market
witnessed a shift in consumer preferences.

• The popularity of geared scooters began to wane

while that of motorcycles soared.

• There were various reasons for the shift:

1. India was undergoing a demographic change, with

the proportion of younger people in the population
growing significantly.

2. The economy was growing, which increased the

disposable incomes of the middle class.

3. Many newer models of motorcycles, with improved

designs and modern technology had become
available in the market.
 While these changes were taking place in the
market, the features of scooters, especially those of
the Bajaj Chetak, remained essentially unchanged.

• The brand thrived during the license raj with

virtually no competition.

• It was during 1990-91 that the brand began the

journey to the end.

• Promoted along the base line " Hamara Bajaj", this

was the Indian Family vehicle - a position now owned
by Maruti 800.

• In January 2006, BAL announced that it had stopped

production of the Chetak.
• The " Tilting the Chetak to the side for starting " was
a common joke.

• Scooters were BAL's main products, and when

market preferences shifted to motorcycles, the
company was faced with declining sales and
revenues.
 REASONS FOR DECLINE

• The primary reason is that the Brand forgot the

customers.

• Another case of Marketing Myopia. The company

failed to understand the changing perception of the
customers towards scooters.

• Rather than looking at the customers, the company

focused on influencing Government to block the
opening up of economy.

• Bajaj never did anything with the product. For 40

years Chetak had the same look, same quality and
style.

• Bajaj never was serious about product development.

The R&D spent for a long time was a miniscule 1%.
• The average cycle time for the new product
development was 4-5 years compared to 2-3 years of
Japanese competitors.

• There was nothing wrong with the Promotion. "

Hamara Bajaj " and " No one can beat a Bajaj " were
famous base lines.

• There was nothing wrong with distribution and the

pricing was very reasonable. The major problem was
in the first P : Product.

• Bajaj never seriously looked at customer perception

about Chetak. The product had serious problems like
starting trouble and riding comfort.
• It was believed that the dramatic shift happened
because players like BAL did not pay sufficient
attention to design, R&D, and customer satisfaction.

• The decline was directly related to neglect of this

segment over mileage, contemporary technology,
and non-stop excitement of launch of newer and
newer models offered on the motorcycles platform.

• The biggest drawback of Bajaj Chetak was its

handling during heavy breaking.
• Shares of two wheeler manufacturers in industry
sales from 2000- 2005.
 COMPETITORS
• The players like Vespa did not had much of success
in this segment.

• Kinetic Honda managed to carve a niche with its

gearless scooters.

• Another segment which was growing was the

scooterette segment which was dominated by TVS
scooty.

• Consequently, by the early 2000s, motorcycle sales

surpassed that of scooters and BAL lost its title of
India's largest two-wheeler company to Hero Honda.

• With the introduction and subsequent popularity of

Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) scooters,
especially the Activa, a gearless scooter, BAL lost its
dominance over the Indian scooter market.
KINETIC ZOOM
1. 2 stroke- scooter.
2. maximum speed of 73 km/ hr.
3. fuel capacity of 7 litres.
4. works on electric start mechanism.

HONDA ACTIVA
1. 4 stroke- scooter.
2. maximum speed of 80 km/ hr.
3. fuel capacity of 6 litres.
4. works on electric start mechanism.

BAJAJ CHETAK:
1. 2 stroke- scooter.
2. maximum speed of 50 km/ hr.
3. fuel capacity of 6.5 litres.
4. works on kick start mechanism.
 BAJAJ MARKETING MIX
• PRICE

1. Bajaj Chetek's price was affordable. But the new

motor cycles entering the two wheeler segment
offered better technology & fuel efficiency than Bajaj
Chetak at almost same price.

PRODUCT
1. The company should look upon its R&D and
improve the overall looks of Bajaj Chetak.

2. It should make efforts to change the quality &

style of the scooter to suit the tastes & preferences
of its customers.

3. The product had serious problems like starting

trouble & riding comfort, which need to be
eliminated.
• PROMOTION
Bajaj Chetak should come out with various schemes
& incentives.
Thank you