Luxury Car Segment Like Growing Startup, Could Reach 5% Of Total Car Sales: Audi India Head

Mumbai: Luxury car segment in India, which currently accounts for 1 per cent of the overall car sales in the country, is like a growing startup and it could become decent in size only when it crosses the 5 per cent mark, Audi India head Balbir Dhillon said on Monday. He also said that the company is expecting to do better in sales performance this year after witnessing a dip in volumes in the previous year on account of supply chain issues.

Audi India on Monday launched a refreshed version of its RS Q8 performance SUV in India, priced at Rs 2.49 crore. "The luxury car industry in India is like a startup which is still growing but it's growing for sure but it is still very small. I think the (luxury car) industry will become a decent size when we cross a threshold of about 5 per cent (of the overall car market). And I do see this will happen," Dhillon said.

Stating that it was not sure how much time would it take, whether 5 years or 10 years or 20 years, to reach the 5 per level, he said it all depends on how the overall industry performs, because "from the side of demand, everything which is available right now is positive".

For example, he said, India will become the third largest economy with the GDP expected to grow to USD 6 trillion by 2030 while the population of ultra-high net worth individuals or HNIs is also growing very fast.

"We expect their numbers to almost double in the next 3-4 years to 1.65 million. Also, demographically 65 per cent of the population is less than 35 years of age. So, we are a highly aspirational society. We also see a lot of customers buying pre-owned luxury cars. So, there is a lot. As far as demand goes, it is growing. It's only that the cars are expensive," he said.

The overall car industry in India clocked 4.2 million units of sales in 2024, he said, adding, "we anticipate that we will also continue to grow this year at around 4.3 million cars".

"When it comes to luxury car space, 51,000 cars were sold last year and I think this year, we do anticipate the industry to continue to grow to reach about 55,000 units," he said. "Audi India sales stood at 5,816 units in last year, 26.7 per cent lower compared to 7,931 units retailed in 2023", he added.

"Audi India came out with a very strong performance in 2022 and 2023 but last year our sales did take a hit primarily because in the first two quarters, there was inadequate supply of the cars for us for some reason, which kind of let us down in the first two quarters, but I think we picked it up very fast and last quarter of 2024 was a very strong performance and I believe going forward this year as well," he said.

Dhillon said the launch of the RS Q8 model is primarily focussed on building Audi brand and is a brand shaper, top of the line product.

"This is the strongest SUV Audi has ever built. So, this is not a volume car but this is a niche car, which will help us in higher sales (as well)," he said.

"The overwhelming response to our RS models in India has encouraged us to continue expanding our performance car portfolio, especially for our younger customers who make up nearly half of our Audi RS Q8 clientele," he said.