Mercedes-Benz S500 Maybach, BMW Z4, Porsche Cayenne are some of the dozen-odd luxury cars that a Delhi-based car dealer sold in April despite the country being under a complete lockdown.
Big Boy Toyz (BBT), a dealer in used luxury cars and premium bikes, sold around 12 cars last month worth a total of Rs 12-13 crore to buyers who did not mind transacting the amount online.
This is better than India's top auto companies, which for the first time in the history of auto industry, reported zero sales in April.
Buyers from Chennai, Delhi and Gurugram bought the cars from BBT which also sells cars of brands including Ferrari, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Bentley, Maserati and Rolls Royce.
Jatin Ahuja, founder and managing director, Big Boy Toyz (BBT) said, “A significant part of our business happens online. People who have developed trust in us don’t physically come to the showroom. They check the car online, make the payment through RTGS and the vehicle is dispatched. We did business of Rs 12-13 crore during the lockdown selling 10-12 cars”.
Besides used cars, there are brand new units of the three-seater Volvo XC90 Excellence Lounge Hybrid, the most expensive Volvo on sale in India, also on offer. While a new unit, if bought from a regular Volvo dealership, would cost Rs 1.65 crore (on-road) BBT is selling it for Rs 1.23 crore. These zero kilometer XC90s were bought directly from the Swedish auto brand.
BBT, whose clientele includes cricketers Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma as well as industrialists, clocked a turnover of Rs 100 crore last year selling cars online. “We sell about 35-40 cars in a month generating an annual turnover of Rs 250 crore,” added Ahuja.
Buyers who made the purchases online in April have started receiving the cars. Ahuja said these buyers are repeat customers who "have stayed with BBT for many years".
“They are aware of the quality and condition of the vehicle and though they do not physically see the car they make payments online because of the trust we have generated over the years,” added Ahuja.
The trend of online sales has generated interest from almost all automakers in India especially after the scare of COVID-19 contamination. From Maruti Suzuki to Mercedes-Benz, manufacturers have worked to bring the virtual showroom right inside the living room of the prospective buyer. The companies have taken the entire sales procedure online promising a doorstep delivery of the vehicle.
But the coronavirus-induced lockdown has impacted the business of BBT too. “Business is down by 75 percent and we are expecting to end the year with a turnover of Rs 225-230 crore as against Rs 300 crore targeted earlier,” added Ahuja.
BBT has three operational dealerships covering one region each. While the Gurugram showroom takes care of demand from the north, an outlet in Mumbai caters to the west and another in Hyderabad is responsible for sales in the south. The slowdown notwithstanding, BBT is set to launch its fourth outlet in the east in two months.
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