On 30th November, I was reading the newspaper and on the business section I saw the heading ?HYUNDAI BECOMES THE DEBT FREE COMPANY?. This prompted me to write a review on the best Automobile Company in India.
So, this review is about the company, which in it 8 years of existence has transformed the Indian Automobile scene. It has emerged as the leading exporter of its products. I really admire its President Mr. BVR Subramanium; I had the pleasure of meeting him at this years Auto Expo in Delhi. He is a true professional and a hard working entrepreneur.
In the 8 years of its existence Hyundai Motor India, has shown tremendous growth and has emerged as a major player in the Indian Automobile Market. In fact it is giving Maruti the largest car manufacturer in India a stiff competition.
HISTORY:
Hyundai Motor India Ltd. was established in 1996, Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company, S. Korea. It is the second largest and the fastest growing car manufacturer in India. HMIL presently has over 18 variants of passenger cars across four segments. They are:
· Santro in the B segment,
· Accent in the C segment
· Sonata in the E segment and
· Terracan in the SUV segment.
The company recorded combined sales of 150, 741 units during calendar year 2003 with both Accent & Santro emerging leaders in their respective segments.
As a matter of fact HMIL has sold over 700, 000 cars in a record time of just over 8 years since commencement of commercial production in September 1998 and is all set to emerge as one of the largest exporters of passenger cars and components out of India. The company’s export income has been boosted both by an increase in the number of units sold as well as higher realization from the export markets, mainly Europe. And to top it all, HMIL was recently awarded the benchmark ISO 14001 certification for its sustainable environment management practices.
Recently, in fact on Tuesday (30the November 2004) HMIIL, wiped out its entire accumulated debt and has become a debt-free company. It had a peak debt of around $414 million. And wiping it out in a period of 8 years is by no means a small achievement.
It would have achieved higher sales in the year 2004 had it not been restricted due to the loss of production due to revamp of its manufacturing unit near Chennai earlier this year. The company lost around 14, 000 customers to its main rival Maruti during the three months when the revamp was going at its manufacturing unit. But as we all know it will soon make up for this loss.
SOME INFORMATION ABOUT ITS FLAGSHIP MODEL
The Hyundai Santro has been designed and developed in India at the integrated auto-manufacturing unit at Irrungattukatoi near Chennai. The Santro is steadily capturing the Indian market, and giving a strong competition to its rivals in the same segment and is a market leader in the B-Segment. Its success story is an example of a profitable Indian - Korean partnership where Indian skills and workmanship combine with Korean design and technology to produce one of the best cars.
The Company has set up more than 70 dealer workshops that are equipped with the latest technology, machinery, and international quality press, body and paint shops, across the country, thereby providing a one-stop shop for a Hyundai customer. Hyundai also has a fleet of 78 emergency road service cars - specially equipped Santro that can provide emergency service to all its customers anytime, anywhere.
In the end, I must say that HMIL is an example for all the future carmakers that are trying to enter the Indian Automobile Market. I hope that HMIL will break more ground and achieve more success.