Will be back on high growth trajectory: Mercedes-Benz India MD

Today, I head an organisation which is held in high esteem among our customers in the Indian market. Mercedes-Benz's production facility is one of the best in the world. Our product line-up is also very exciting and holds tremendous potential.

New generation cars from Mercedes have huge potential to push growth in the long term. Our strong fundamentals are poised for a profitable growth in India.

To corner the growing competition in the Indian market, we also plan to launch our small SUV and A-Class models soon.

Our new growth model aims to counter cost escalation while maintaining profitability. Going by the new strategy, we plan to hike the prices of all Mercedes-Benz variants from January 2013.

The company has made investment to the tune of Rs 850 crore in the production facility at Chakan, near Pune. Another Rs 480 crore has been invested to increase the dealer network in the country.

The company has also launched its long-term growth vision under the 'MBC 2020 strategy' to increase the customer base.

Mercedes-Benz India recently announced a fresh investment of Rs 300 crore for setting up of a new assembly line, paint shop and foray of Mercedes-Benz into premium compact cars and create new entry-level cars.

We have already launched the 'B class' cars in India and plan to launch the 'A class' next year to cover a wider segment of buyers and increase our market share.

The company saw a growth of 27 per cent with sales of 7,430 units in 2011 before the slowdown took its toll on the automobile sector.

We are very positive about our future in India and with the new growth strategy, I feel we will be able to put things back on track and see ourselves back on the high growth trajectory mode.

Eberhard Kern
MD, Mercedes-Benz India