Sumit Sawhney, MD & CEO, Renault India, shares with BT the strategy for the success of its new small car the KWID.BT: Could you give us some insights into KWID's development, which was an idea to create an aspirational small car to take on Maruti Alto, the all-time bestseller?Sawhney: With Renault KWID, we took a big step forward in our India operations. While developing the car, the endeavour was to make our customers' everyday life easier by offering a car that is robust, designed for active families and, at the same time, stylish, innovative and connected.
During the development of KWID, the mandate was clear: the car had to be stylish with a contemporary touch, offer great fuel economy and had to be roomy. Thus began the journey of Renault KWID, which is a truly international car and the organisation, cost management and delivery times to design and manufacture the KWID made use of resources and staff in India, France, Japan and Korea.
The vehicle testing took advantage of the alliance's strengths by using different establishments to put the KWID through its paces: the body and chassis were tested in Japan, body equipment was evaluated in Korea and endurance tests were carried out in France, while India was the backdrop for overall and assembly testing.
We were working hard to make the car a game-changer. At the time that we launched KWID, the segment had attractive cars, innovative cars, and affordable cars. KWID offered a combination of all three attributes in one vehicle… it was attractive, innovative and affordable. It offered a unique combination of style, comfort, and innovative features, and was launched at an affordable price!
The vehicle was developed close to market. Supplier sourcing in India was raised to 98 per cent at launch, including 60 per cent in the Chennai region. This was the first time that such a high level of localisation was offered at launch.
The project management team put in place the conditions necessary to develop the KWID, with the entire team working out of a single location so that the teams tasked with designing, developing and building the car could work together more effectively.
When we announced the launch of KWID in India, there were a lot of detractors mainly because all the existing automobile brands who have tried to enter the small car market have not managed to succeed, barring the market leader. We focused on getting the fundamentals right, in terms of the right product, right design, right features, right technology, right launch timing, right value and right strategy.
We launched the Renault KWID at over 98 per cent localisation, which was an industry first and a successful testament to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' mission. Because of the high localisation levels, we have also been successful in offering a very low cost of ownership with KWID, and stand at about 17 per cent less in cost of ownership when compared with competition. All these factors led by an innovative mindset have enabled us to launch KWID successfully in India.
BT: How many iterations did the KWID design go through? Were there learnings from the Duster SUV that helped you crack the Indian market?Sawhney: Renault KWID was developed as part of an international design competition aimed at creating an A-segment car for international markets. Several countries were involved in the design of the KWID, and the Renault India design centre worked on the project and were responsible for the SUV theme since its conceptualisation.
Designers got immersed in Indian culture to stimulate their creativity - they actually spent considerable time in India and got immersed in the culture to better understand the market, and to have a mixture of traditional techniques and culture clubbed with modern technology.
Renault KWID is inspired by the 'Explore' design strategy petal, inviting motorists to a world of adventure. It is just not a car but a thought process and a philosophy. When we were designing the KWID and were working on the specifications of the variants of KWID, we did a lot of research, trying to understand what kind of customers would be interested in KWID.
Renault KWID borrows the styling philosophy of Renault Duster with simple lines, wheels at the outer edges of the body, high ground clearance, wing extenders and versatility in use. Duster helped us establish the Renault brand in India and won the trust of customers. In the mini segment, people are looking for a tried and tested brand. The credibility and success of the Duster were important for us when we launched KWID.
BT: What's your strategy for KWID in the light of the face-lifted Alto hitting the market soon? How do you counter the anticipated good response to partner Nissan's Redi-Go hatchback, which incidentally shares the platform with your best seller?Sawhney: Renault KWID is built on the new CMF-A platform and is the first offering from this platform. Like all the Alliance platforms, CMF-A is extremely flexible and versatile. The exterior styling and the powertrain can be varied significantly in order to match the specific requirements and preferences of customers in India and also other international markets. So there is a lot that can be expected from this platform.
Specific to KWID, we have plans to bring in a 1,000-cc engine capacity variant of the KWID along with an Automated Manual Transmission (AMT) variant. This is a testimony of our clear focus on growing the Renault brand in India. The Renault KWID has seen a wide acceptance among the diverse demographics and genders. So for us, it's not only important that we want to enter segments where we're not present, but more important is to try and create sub-segments for ourselves. Both the 1-litre KWID and AMT version will be launched this year.
Renault KWID is a world car and not just developed keeping a single country in mind. After receiving a great response for the KWID in the domestic market, we are now planning to aggressively export the car to other international markets. We will start exports of the KWID to SAARC countries this year, which will be followed by Brazil. We are exploring some African markets as well.
BT: Renault being the largest European carmaker in India, how will Duster gain ground lost to Hyundai Creta and Maruti Brezza?Sawhney: Duster created a new segment and redefined the SUV segment in India. It was a game changer and firmly established the Renault brand in India, selling over 1.5 lakh units. Over a period of time, we have seen a lot of launches coming in this segment, and keeping a product fresh and contemporary is important.
The New Duster range includes India's first six-speed Easy - R AMT and also boasts more than 32 new changes along with superior engineering, styling, safety and comfort features. These new enhancements perfectly complement the New Duster, while it retains its iconic crossover style body shape that enabled Duster to create an entirely new segment in India's automotive industry.
Duster is a perfect example of Renault's core speciality of concept innovation, where we redefine an existing segment, offering something new to the customer. Success in the automotive space is led by clutter-breaking products that rewrite automotive trends and make customers' lives better. Over the years, Duster has firmly etched Renault on India's automotive map and has achieved cult status. With several technical and design enhancements offered at a compelling price, we are confident that the new Duster will lead our expansion plans in India and strengthen our position in the compact SUV segment.