[ampere]

Even if they peak, I think the onus is not on the increase, but hold what they have gained. Yes they have read the market correctly. But going ahead they still need to keep reading it correctly in times to come. As a result the product portfolio should reflect the same. I hope they still continue to deliver on that aspect; especially when Indian consumer base sees a shift in customer satisfaction requirements at the urban level.

[swiftnfurious]

I think the most volume sales happen in the sub 10L category and Maruti is undisputable in that range. I think it's just mostly the urban population who dare / bother to think of a different brand and rest still believe "Maruti is the only car which is reliable and cheap to maintain"! There is a population who wouldn't touch another product with a barge pole, come what may.

I think the opportunities for Maruti lie in the 10-20L bracket now and if they have products which suit the bracket, anyone wouldn't mind picking up one of those. I personally would love to see a better 4m+ sedan, a proper people mover (against the Xylo; Innova is moved on from this price bracket), a 7 seater SUV (against the XUV / Hexa) and probably a premium SUV against the biggies (20-30L).

And yeah, these customers are not the ones who would run around asking for the FE; so Maruti better be careful about the quality / feel of the parts, engine spec (1.3L 90 bhp wouldn't help either). Even in the 6-10L segments, I really hope they improve the engine spec, the 75 bhp is not anymore lucrative for people like me who is looking towards the competition, who otherwise still don't mind a Maruti inspite of the mediocre build & interior quality.

[speedgun]

I believe Maruti will not be able to keep this momentum going forward. People bought Maruti because it was dependable and cheap to maintain. Now even though it's highly dependable the service cost has almost reached Honda level. It seems service cost for a Honda city is well below that for a Swift / Ritz.

[deerhunter]

I think Maruti will further increase their market share. I agree that for most manufacturers, even maintaining their share is difficult. But Maruti is different and they are playing it well. Look at how they have developed. Till 10 years back, Maruti was considered by a buyer only for the entry level segments or for segments where there are no direct competitors. Then came swift which they priced it well and people flocked to buy it. Now look at Ciaz and Brezza, which are consistent best sellers. It was a gradual and conscious effort at building brand reputation and increasing premiumness. The Maruti story should be a must learn lesson in every Indian business school.

What Maruti has done well is to gain the trust of the average Indian. Even after becoming such a big corporation, they have that neighbourhood shop appearance and attitude, especially in rural areas. This trait is well regarded by Indians.

What Maruti should do is to continue this gradually increasing premiumness by introducing new vehicles at higher segments which are well priced. Improve their Nexa network without losing their neighbourhood, accessible shop image. We Indians love premium brands, but we dont love premium brands that mushroom overnight. So Maruti should not do another Kizashi, but should follow a Fabian ideology. If they do this, I am sure they can even be competitive at the Innova segment, in 10 years.

[vivee90]

I believe Maruti is dynamic enough to gain market share in a young market like India. I say young because, the market as a whole is growing and the potential is still huge to sell new cars. I was skeptical in 2011 when Toyota was launching Etios twins that Suzuki's dominant run will not be as easy as before. But I was wrong and they have been adapting very well to the market. Be it launching Nexa showrooms or launching AMTs they have been able to keep up the momentum. They are not only strongly defending their home territory of hatches but also invading higher segments. As long as they continue this, I dont see why they would falter in a growing market.

[GTO]

To answer the question in the thread title, I'd say yes. Maruti's market-share should fluctuate by a couple of points - which way (up or down), only time will tell. But one thing for sure - they are going to maintain this dominant position in the short as well as mid-term. And that is an achievement in itself. I can't think of any one big market where a single player controls half of it. It's insane.

Maruti was at its weakest in the late 90s and until the mid-2000s. Since, they have bounced back & how. Today, Maruti is launching new products at a splendid pace...a pace that its competitors cannot match in terms of bandwidth, budget or management talent. It's also remarkable that they are able to maintain the highest levels of customer satisfaction, despite the sheer volume. Think about it - how often do you see a complaint for Maruti versus a VW / Skoda (both low volume brands)?

In the early days, Hyundai - with the aggressive BVR Subbu - was always talking about being the No.1 in India. I think Hyundai has now accepted its position as a strong & profitable No.2. Imagine, even Hyundai couldn't fight with Maruti for leadership in India.

The main area of weakness I see for Maruti is R&D / new technologies. Although they are launching new tech (AMT, SHVS etc.), Suzuki is too small at the global level to invest the kind of money the big guns are putting into hybrids, hydrogen fuel cell cars and the like. Have you heard about a self-driving Suzuki yet? Of course, the recent partnership with Toyota will help in this regard (I have no doubt it was forced onto Toyota by the Japanese government).

They aren't even able to make some good big engines - example, something to match Hyundai's excellent 1.6L diesel. And not to forget, Maruti continues to milk the 1.3L MJD for all its worth. Their own 2-cylinder diesel ended up a dud.

All said & done, Maruti's current position is sheer genius. We are watching a legend play his best game. It's the kind of stuff we'll be talking to our grand kids about.

Originally Posted by invidious

One must not merely look at market share in isolation; given that the market itself is growing quite rapidly

Originally Posted by avisidhu

Less than a decade back, all the action was in the 4-6L OTR price bracket, and needless to say Maruti was the established king, specially thanks to the Swift. Now the volumes have shifted to the 7-10 OTR bracket, and guess what? Maruti quickly did some clever packaging and came up with the Ertiga, Ciaz and Brezza.

Very good points. Thanks!

Originally Posted by srishiva

I think there is still some opportunity for Maruti in the mid size SUV segment. Also in the higher than Ertiga MUV segment.

The Creta is an RBI-approved money-printing machine ; trust me, Maruti is watching that profit-heavy SUV with envy.

Originally Posted by Maverick1977

Had come across an interesting study some time back which highlighted that Hyundai actually sells more cars per showroom as compared to Maruti. However when you have more than 2.5 times the no. of showrooms compared to the no. 2 player then there is nothing to complain.

Related Thread

[Pam81]

With increase in Emission regulations and compliance, MSIL may not be able to maintain the VFM package in lower segment cars. Particularly the Diesels one will get hit the hardest due to presence of majority of after-treatment devices. With no success of Maruti or Suzuki's own Diesel engine to power their SUVs, it's seemingly tough for MSIL to garner market share in the premium SUV area because more after-treatment devices place higher power resistance on Engine and 1.3 MJD in its present form can't handle unless bumped up further for which FCA is not interested as it seems.

Like others pointed, there's a mad crowd in the market who look none other than Maruti when it comes to acquiring a car. However, with other OEMs are pushing their rural strategy, it's to be seen how the awareness changes. However, it would take really long time to build an equivalence from other OEMs. Clearly, only Hyundai and Tata Motors are thinking of going rural. With Mahindra sticking to their guns as utility leader, there's not much they are thinking to cars. Other OEMs might not be able to scale up fast with Renault being exception with that cute KWID.

Their success with NEXA is adorable. For sure this is a puzzle for other OEMs. MSIL must focus on ingenuity of it's R&D to bring out the best in power-train and vehicle build areas of mid-size & upper segment cars. Suzuki itself is under pressure for upping it's R&D muscle.

[vinit.merchant]

Originally Posted by GTO

The Creta is an RBI-approved money-printing machine ; trust me, Maruti is watching that profit-heavy SUV with envy.



Related Thread

This point sums it quite well actually from an investor POV.
Putting money in a Hyundai dealership will prove more profitable than MS, also considering that Hyundai has the second best spread of service network, after MS. Also, Hyundai cars sell at a slight premium as compared to the MS cars, and must have a healthy dealer margin too comparatively.

Now, considering this, if more dealers do line up with Hyundai, then it only grows its network stronger and additional dealerships should bring in more car sales too.

But still, I think Hyundai has made peace with the fact that position #1 is not there for the taking any time soon and that there is no point going aggressively for it by compromising margins.
Hence they now concentrate on affiliating their brand name with premium-ness (vis-a-vis MS) and premium products command a premium price.

[Highh5]

Maruti Suzuki growth have come on in leaps and bound in the last decade presumably. I remember in early 2000s, i used to think of maruti as a very lethargic company with very average products and their model refresh were kind of late when compared with the competitors.
The major reason i see today that they were not even able to keep up the pace but surpass themselves year by year is due to the introduction of new models along with the constant refresh of existing line up and addition of more features.
One would have never thought that Honda City with such great history of credibility, class with such superb iVtech engines will be hands down beaten by Ciaz let alone the thought of giving competition.
Besides that they have the courage to be a first of many be it AMT or 1.6 FIAT source engine(not at all expected from them).
Earlier they were the players of just small car segment but now they have come hard in premium car segments and compact SUV segment too which was earlier not their forte.
Such is the pity state of them in other car markets, didn't even exist in some big car markets such as US, continuous slump in sales in Japan. They can't afford to loose Indian Car market which have now grown more than their parent counterparts.
Earlier i used to have doubts but whatever would be the segment or competition, they will come down heavily not just to protect their share but to grow it even more.

[jetsetgo08]

Originally Posted by smartcat

But I think I have mentioned this before - domination by one brand is not "healthy" for both market and customers.

+1. While MSIL is enjoying the peak in terms of market share, the other manufacturers struggling for profit and sustenance is a little concerning.

IMHO, MSIL got the first movers advantage in India, when the global financial situation was rather encouraging.
Whereas in the current situation, the other manufacturers are in a catch-22 situation, in order to sustain and invest further in India they need better sales(for which they need more investment in after sales-service and locally manufactured spares).

Originally Posted by GTO

And not to forget, Maruti continues to milk the 1.3L MJD for all its worth. Their own 2-cylinder diesel ended up a dud.

I can imagine the plight of MSIL if not for the 1.3 MJD. There would be a straight drop of at least 20% in the market share. But, thanks to Maruti, Fiat India is still hanging by a thread by selling MJD's.

[i74js]

MSIL is running a healthy spread of product mix; with Gujarat facility (contract manufacturing for Suzuki) it can further flex its muscles to keep the competition at bay.

Even the new launches / facelifts scheduled until 2020 shows that the company is fully geared up for the increased market penetration.

MSIL has a target of 2000 dealerships (standard + Nexa) by 2025. Even if it is able to maintain the present market share (50% approx.), the absolute sales volume will keep their sales register ringing.

The dealership experience is also reasonable at MSIL compared to other mass market players in India. The company is working very closely with vendors for better availability of parts to ensure that there are no production constraints.

It seems that 1.3 MJD is lucky charm for the company; even after developing its own diesel engine, MSIL will not go for complete replacement of its diesel lineup with in-house engine. The way Celerio has been used as test bed, may be some other model will become the test bed for 4 pot diesel engine.

Quite impressed with the company and its ability to sense the India market

[Enobarbus]

Apart from the excellent work they do in customer retention and selecting and building the right products, I believe another important reason for Maruti's dominance is the risk averse nature of the Indian consumer.

Except for one time, Maruti had never missed a trick when it comes to protecting and expanding its turf; especially at the lower end of the market. The one trick they missed is the SUV styling for an entry level hatch and Renault latched on to it to gain a foot hold. As a result, there is a third option in the collective consciousness of the entry level consumer for the first time.

Looking at the medium term growth prospects for the Indian economy, the purchasing power and appetite for risk of the Indian consumer is bound to increase.
Also, with the rapid improvement in the access to information in rural India, consumers will be more aware of other products and their equally good reliability.
If Maruti's and Hyundai's competitor's can come up with just a few good moves, they can grab a bigger share of the consumer's mindspace and consequently a bigger share in the growing market.

Yes, I believe Maruti has reached a peak in terms of market share or at least they are very close to the peak.

[SPARKled]

I guess the goodwill earned by Maruti is deeply entrenched in the Indian mindset and I know many people who just would not even think of any other product even if I gave them proof on how Maruti is milking its customers in the name of customer service like selling unwanted accessories, unwanted expensive work during routine service, long endless waits at service centers, sub par/shoddy service work but nothing seems to sway them away from their beloved Marutis. My biggest bugbear apart from their sub standard and super expensive service is that they have the same set of engines powering almost every car above the Wagon R and another car (Ignis) is being readied to share the same set of engines. I think they have pushed that Fiat 1.3 Multijet a bit too far and even the 1.6 S-Cross was not really a revelation in the city.

I for one think that they have are near the peak and there is only one way ahead for them and it is down.

[aniketi]

With launch of Ignis i am sure short term goal for MSIL will be to achieve 55 % market share as it has that capacity. Long term goal will be targeting 60% market share. I am sure they can do it if they bring 3-4 more vehicles in the segments where they don't have presence now like competition to Innova, proper SUV to compete likes of XUV, Fortuner etc. Currently Maruti is undisputed leader and it will keep it for years to come. Actually i can see weak competition, which is one of the main reasons it has its nose well ahead of everyone.

[SRM]

Maruti has done well to keep its flag flying high over these years. While initially it was all about the Maruti reliability and mileage with cheap after sales maintenance costs, in the past couple of years it has upped the game considerably with good-looking cars and feature-loaded cars across segments (something that was never associated with a Maruti).

For Maruti, to keep the momentum up, I feel it needs to come out with better engines. Sure there is a big market for mileage conscious people, but there is also a sizeable market that wants adequately powered cars. It should not be an either or situation, a market leader can offer both types of engines for a model and thereby ensure that once a customer steps into the showroom, he/she has access to all the options and can choose whatever they want.