Jeep aims to double sales, boost exports

Pune: Jeep, the American iconic car brand, is strategizing its plans for India to double its sales over the next quarter as it makes its vehicles more aspirational and affordable.

The company also sees India as its export hub for its made-in-India vehicles.

Stellantis, the automobile giant with 14 car brands, is present in India through Jeep and Citroen brands, has invested over 1 billion euros in India till date.

“Our sales are picking up and we plan to double it to over 1,000 units every month in India over the next three months from 500 to 600 units at present,” Aditya Jairaj, Head of Jeep India Operations and Deputy Managing Director at Stellantis India, told Financial Chronicle on the sidelines of the roll out of the new Jeep Compass SUV.

Jeep offers the updated Compass in five trims – Sport, Longitude, Longitude+, Limited, and Model S in the Rs 20.49 lakh to Rs 23.99 lakh range for the top end.

“Last year, we announced that Jeep was profitable in India and it is here to stay and grow,” Jairaj said, saying the near-term strategy is to maximize the four nameplates that we have today in the next 12 to 24 months.

At present, Jeep sells Wrangler, Grand Cherokee, Compass and Meridian model vehicles manufactured in India.

“We are thinking globally and acting locally, and this will increase localization to make our vehicles affordable. Localization is the key for our upcoming products to capitalize on the huge potential of the iconic Jeep brand. We are aggressively expanding our presence in the competitive and lucrative SUV segment in the country as we will introduce new range of cars to attractive buyers,” Jairaj said.

He said the company is aiming for more than 90 per cent localization of its vehicles from 70 per cent at present over the next two to three years to offer them to buyers at competitive prices.

Jairaj also said, "It is not just localizing for India, but it is India for India and India for the world."  

He said exports will be one of the important components of the company's long-term strategy, as it not only gives the scale but also provides a competitive edge as well, in terms of cost.

At present the company exports Jeep Compass and Jeep Meridian, to Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, and South East Asia.

“We want to make India an export hub and we are ramping up production as our capacity is extremely flexible,” Jairaj said.

He said the dealership network for the company will also be expanded to 80 dealers by the end of December 2023, up from 69 in 2022.