Piaggio will soon take a call on launching new scooter range in India

Time of India

29-05-2025

HighlightsPiaggio will evaluate plans in June 2025 to enter India's mass scooter segment, moving beyond its premium Vespa brand. India could become an export hub, with new scooters also targeted for the African market. Piaggio is cautious on electric two- and three-wheelers in India due to low margins, despite having products ready. Global markets show mixed trends, with optimism in Vietnam but continued challenges in China and other parts of Asia.
Piaggio
will begin evaluating the results of its studies on launching a new scooter range for
India
in June this year.
This was revealed by
Michele Colaninno
, Chief Executive Officer, in a recent Q&A session with analysts in Italy following the company's first quarter results for January-March. The company believes it is high time to enter the mass scooter segment in India 'as we see that we can match the competition now given that the GDP per capita is growing and we think we are now able to compete with other brands'.
Colaninno
had already indicated in recent times that Piaggio had a great opportunity to be part of the growing scooter segment in India which meant that it had to think beyond the niche premium positioning of
Vespa
. The feedback in June will show if the Italian automaker is confident of offering a competitively priced scooter range that can strike a chord with Indian customers.
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Passage to Africa
If things do go according to plan, the new two-wheeler range produced in India will also be shipped out to Africa as part of a larger global strategy for Piaggio. 'As far as other markets are concerned, let's say we are thinking about going into Africa, as you know from India. And I confirm to you that strategically, in the medium to long term, it is a good opportunity for us. And I think that Africa could be the next India for our business,' said Colaninno.
It was sometime in July last year when he first spoke of Piaggio's intent to look at a larger part of the Indian scooter pie. 'The mistake we have done in the past is more on the scooter side, where we have not been able to face the competition of low-cost vehicles. We have put in place a new team that will start from now, especially to target those kinds of vehicles,' said Colaninno.
While the company would continue to be in the high/premium end with Vespa and Aprilia models, he added that this perhaps was not enough in terms of the overall scooter strategy. 'But at the same time, I think we have to be ready and able, more able than ready to fill the gap, let's say, with the competition that we have on scooters,' he said.
If you take the Honda Activa, if you take TVS, they produce millions and millions of vehicles.Michele Colaninno
There was a specific reference to competitors who have had a good run in the mass scooter space where numbers continue to grow at a brisk pace. 'If you take the Honda Activa, if you take
TVS
, they produce millions and millions of vehicles,' Colaninno pointed out.
The
Piaggio CEO
was, however quick to add that such a comparison would not be apt. 'You cannot compare us with Honda, obviously, which has been there in the two-wheeler market for years in India. But we have…I think that we will take the right decisions to be ready and to enter the big volume market there. Not with the Vespa, not with the bike.'
Upbeat about India
The recent analyst session clearly reaffirmed the CEO's optimism about the Indian market and why he believed that it was imperative for his company to play a bigger role here. 'I am positive on India, I think it is a good place to be in. It is an enormous opportunity to be there…we will launch electric vehicles in the next (few) years and will continue to launch also thermic (internal combustion engine) vehicles in India in the next years,' he elaborated.
The generous feedback for India continued with Colaninno insisting that it was a place where Piaggio was growing at an earnings level and that it was 'happy' about being there. 'We will introduce totally new vehicles in India because it is a different market. But for Europe and the US, I don't see the necessity to introduce totally 100% new vehicles,' said Colaninno
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As far as electric mobility options for India was concerned, the company preferred to adopt a wait-and-watch attitude even while the transition was happening quite rapidly. 'The market is still going well. Electric mobility in India in the three-wheeled and two-wheeled business is low-margin. We have the vehicles, but we are not pushing, just waiting to see better purchasing power and reducing costs in the country,' he said.
More specifically on electric three-wheelers, a segment that is growing quite fast, Colaninno pointed out that Piaggio was familiar with this business in India. 'We have 2,000 people there in a big factory. The three-wheeled electric vehicle market is subsidised and the state is putting money for this. We have the vehicles, no problem,' he added.
Low margins inevitable
In his view, the margins are 'lower for everybody' and it was not as if Piaggio was at a disadvantage compared to competition. The company plans to push mostly in big Indian cities and not for rural areas where the electric market is 'zero'.
'Given that we have done investments and we have the vehicle, we will be on the market. Obviously we are happy about the thermic engines that are more rural in India and we are gaining some market share over there in the specific segment,' said Colaninno.
Asia is down, the consumer market is not recovering, especially in the premium market, even though we saw Vietnam in the last quarter that has shown, let's say, a plus. Even if it is a small plus, it is a plus compared to previous quarters.Michele Colaninno
While there was ample cause for cheer when it came to India, the scenario for Piaggio was not all hunky-dory elsewhere. 'Asia is down, the consumer market is not recovering, especially in the premium market, even though we saw Vietnam in the last quarter that has shown, let's say, a plus. Even if it is a small plus, it is a plus compared to previous quarters,' said Colaninno.
And Vietnam, according to him, was 'very important for us, because it is a good market, it is a rich market and it is a high margin market'. Piaggio would now wait to see a 'rebirth' of the Asian markets. 'There is some slightly positive event in Vietnam. Thailand and Indonesia are still interesting for us,' he said.
China strategy
China, likewise, was 'still suffering' with the automotive market showing low numbers. Piaggio has a production facility in the country that is in the midst of restructuring and will be ready by the end of 2026.
'We are thinking of launching dedicated products for China market with our brands,' said the CEO. However, given that it is home to one of the biggest electric mobility businesses in the world, 'we will invest in those kind of vehicles' for the Chinese market.
'For the time being, it is not for exports, because outside of China, that business is still very, very low. We are investing, we will continue to invest in all the technologies — thermic engines, safety, electric engines — because we think the market will evolve, it will take time, but we will be ready to fulfill the needs of the customers, whether it is thermic or whether it is electric,' reiterated Colaninno.