Zig Opinion- Can Bajaj Help Make Triumph Dealership Experience Better?

So, Triumph wants to sell small bikes. The volume game is a proven formula for profitability, especially for premium brands. KTM is a classic example. The Bajaj-KTM partnership offered perspective for others like it to consider this formula, and Triumph is now looking to recreate the magic with Bajaj. But what’s making this cat curious is what’s Triumph’s distribution strategy? With just 15 dealerships across India, that’s not large enough to push volumes. Triumph-Bajaj has already made it clear that they would be looking at expanding that number to 150 soon. How would they do this? And, we wonder,, how will the experience be for you and me?

Bajaj top boss recently confirmed that the Triumph-Bajaj Scrambler and the Roadster will debut together very soon. He also confirmed that the new platform (350cc) will spawn more models in the future. Hence, with this on the cards we see Triumph taking one of two approaches - 1. A series of standalone showrooms exclusively for its smaller bikes and 2. Share space at Bajaj’s ProBiking outlets with KTM, Husqvarna and Bajaj’s products themselves. Let’s briefly explore both avenues.

Go solo…

Needless to say, these smaller 350s will retail in Triumph’s flagship store, however, having exclusive standalone stores will offer these new bikes more focus. No customer would walk in wanting a Tiger 900 and walkout with a 350cc scrambler instead. But through Bajaj, Triumph could get access to existing ProBiking dealers, who could set up their own “smaller” Triumph showroom primarily designed to cater to the smaller Triumphs. This way Triumph gets tried and tested dealers with experience in selling sub-500cc premium bikes, and these dealers get access to another premium brand without the headache of stock keeping big and expensive premium motorcycles. Win-win! 

Co-working is cost effective!

As they say, in business, having your office is important. But, it’s also traditional. There’s a lot of money involved in setting up a new showroom from scratch. Considering this 350cc platform is a new beginning for Triumph, it could choose to save money and opt for a dedicated corner at existing Bajaj ProBiking stores across India. Hence the co-work model makes sense. Only hurdle, ProBiking already has two premium European brands present. While this setup has been super productive for KTM, historically, it hasn’t done well for Kawasaki or even Husqvarna. Granted Triumph is as popular as KTM, at least in the eyes of the enthusiasts, but the latter is unshakable from its throne. 

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Final thoughts

Our best guess, Triumph will go solo. The Brits will opt for autonomy, because the consumer’s showroom experience will be more directly in the brand’s control. Furthermore, like we discussed, with the help of Bajaj getting vetted dealers will be easier and rolling out new showrooms across the country will be a far easier task. But hey, both Bajaj and Triumph are known to throw a curveball every now and then. Hence, we never know how the new Triumph-Bajaj bikes will be made available across India. As for us, we’re hoping Triumph becomes more accessible than it is today.