By Indranil Sarkar and AB Jose Koilparambil

BENGALURU (Reuters) – American big bike maker Harley-Davidson (NYSE: ) and British rival Triumph have revived India’s premium motorcycle market with aggressively priced models that analysts say could damage more than half a century of local champion Royal Enfield’s dominance.

The duo surprised the industry this month by introducing their cheapest models globally in the biggest motorbike market by sales, where their costlier imports have long struggled for market share. This time, they are making the bikes in India with domestic partners to bring down the prices below Rs 233,000 ($2,841).

“These are aspirational brands,” said Rishi Vora, auto analyst at Kotak Securities. “For people who were earlier thinking of buying a Harley or a Triumph, the price points were not accessible. Now, they are available.”

The similar, near-simultaneous shift in approach by the industry’s two best-known brands represents one of the biggest challenges to Royal Enfield’s virtual monopoly in high-end motorcycles, coming at a time of rising spending in the premium segment across categories such as mobile phones and cars in India.

Such is the threat, the back-to-back launches pushed the share price of Royal Enfield maker Eicher Motors down as much as 12.5% ​​and prompted brokerages to mark earnings at risk for at least two more years — even though sales of Harley-Davidson and Triumph are currently lower than those of Royal Enfield.

Kotak said the price and brand cachet of the Harley-Davidson X440 and Triumph Speed ​​400 could reduce Royal Enfield’s share in India’s 250cc-plus segment from 90% to 75%. The closest model to Royal Enfield is the Classic 350 with prices starting at Rs 193,000.

Eicher declined to comment ahead of its quarterly earnings announcement. Harley-Davidson did not respond to a request for comment. Triumph said it will expand its dealer network to around 100 dealers over the next 12 months.

royal challenge

The new models mark Harley-Davidson’s return to India and a big step forward for Triumph, but they go up against Royal Enfield’s large number of showrooms, strong after-sales service network and strong fan base for the over 100-year-old brand.

“Is there going to be a challenge for Royal Enfield? Yes. Is it going to be a big challenge? It may not happen immediately,” said Shubhabrat Marmar, co-founder of automotive content platform MotorInc.

“Royal Enfield has built the community, and is trying to make its showrooms more classy places, with an international, retro, cool, chic brand feel.”

Rival heritage brands have made little headway against Royal Enfield, such as Mahindra & Mahindra’s Yezdi and Jawa or BMW’s eponymous brand, which the German automaker makes with local partner TVS Motor.

Varun Painter, editor of motorcycle content at PowerDrift, said, “Once you buy a vehicle, everything else disappears. Price and showrooms disappear. It’s you, your motorcycle and trips to the service center.”

Harley-Davidson spent a decade importing its ultra-premium motorcycles before exiting the market and shutting down most of its dealer network in 2020. It sold less than 30,000 motorcycles – less than the number of bikes sold by Royal Enfield every month.

It then partnered with Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer, to develop and sell a range of Harley-Davidson branded bikes in India, starting with the X440.

Triumph was selling around 1,200 motorcycles annually in India when, in 2020, it tied up with Bajaj Auto to manufacture mid-capacity bikes, with Bajaj handling distribution.

Triumph said it has received orders for over 14,000 Speed ​​400 bikes, which is more than its total sales in India for the last decade.

along for the ride

The premium segment accounts for less than 10% of sales in a country where most people opt for cheaper modes of transport to cope with heavy traffic and avoid rising fuel prices. Still, the frenzy over the new models is reflected in a rise in Google (NASDAQ: ) searches about Harley-Davidson and Triumph in India.

Satish Rao, a software professional and a member of a motorcycle club, said, “The reviews and the amazing price prompted me to take a quick decision to book the Triumph.”

Better financing options are also encouraging low-income buyers to consider premium bikes, said HDFC Securities analyst Aniket Mhatre.

Motorcycle content creator Priyanka Kochhar, who has ridden both the new bikes, said, “Our starter bikes are usually 100cc to 200cc max. I think that is going to change now. I think people are going straight towards 400cc.”

($1 = 82.0073 Indian Rupees)