Replacement segment increasingly important for JK Tyre

India’s automotive sector has slowed of late and this has impacted on the original equipment tyre business. One manufacturer says it is responding to this by investing more strongly in the replacement business.

“We expect the replacement market to pick up on the back of a good monsoon and the country expecting good agricultural production,” V.A.J. Manikantan, JK Tyre’s head of sales (south and west) told The Hindu Business Line.

As vehicle manufacturers began to cut production, the tyre maker shifted its strategy to focus on the replacement market. “This change in strategy has paid off,” Manikantan told the publication. “We have gained market share. Currently, we command about 30 per cent share in (India’s) trucks and bus tyres market. The company has been gaining market share in the replacement business for over a year. Now, we are investing substantially on the services side and to strengthen it.”

These investments include the rollout of its JK Tyre Truck Wheels Centre network. “We plan to open 20 Wheels Centres. At present, we are have rolled out 12 centres and plan to operationalise nine more by end of this fiscal,” Manikantan  told the Business Line.