Market reports – Julien Garcia: Benelli’s potential is far from being reached – Occasions BENELLI KEEWAY

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Julien Garcia: Benelli’s potential is far from being reached

Market reports - Julien Garcia: Benelli's potential is far from being reached - Occasions BENELLI KEEWAY

With 296 and 87 registrations, Keeway and Benelli posted declines of -52.4 and -2.2% on the French market. Julien Garcia, Keeway business development manager, draws up their 2010 reports for Site and reveals their 2011 objectives.

Site: What do you think of the general evolution of the French motorcycle market in 2010? ?
Julien Garcia, Marketing and Network Development Manager Keeway France – Benelli : In an economic and political context encouraging prudence and a shift in spending priorities (cf. the car scrapping premium), we could fear a general drop. The lack of resources of market players and consumer mistrust have certainly amplified the phenomenon. With more balanced policy support and a stronger global offer, we could have raised the bar.

MNC: What is your assessment of your year for your two brands? ?
J. G. : Although Benelli sales are still confidential, sales volumes are similar to 2009, which reflects a certain stability of our network and our customers. But of course, we cannot draw a real conclusion because the potential of our brand is far from being reached and our deployment has only just begun. For Keeway, we show a 50% drop in our sales in 125, which is explained by a range not renewed in 2010. The heart of our products being the 50 cc and our limited 125 range, we were unable to develop this segment. However, the situation will be very different in 2011, since we are introducing no less than three new 125 models (six in total) !

MNC: Immates are not everything … How would you qualify your balance sheet? ?
J. G. : The Keeway France subsidiary is in perfect health because it is supported by a group dynamic that is thriving internationally. Even if the profitability objective was not reached in 2010, which is the case for a good number of players in the sector in Europe, the objective is for the longer term and we remain at this level in phase with our forecasts.

MNC: Are you fully satisfied with the results of your best-selling Superlight 125? ?
J. G. : With 150 units sold, we are very far from the potential offered by this excellent machine. As the 125 range was not systematically represented in our network last year, we lost the opportunity to introduce this magnificent custom which has also been available since the end of 2010 in a superb matt black version for less than 2000 euros (at instead of € 2199). The success of the Superlight with some distributors is already very encouraging and bodes well for excellent results. With a network of more than 300 distributors and a range which will be made up of three 125 scooters (including one new) and three 125 motorcycles (including two new ones), we plan to really develop our 125 range in 2011.

MNC: Which models have you been disappointed with in sales and what was the cause ?
J. G. : At Keeway, the Superlight Dark which therefore deserves a better representation. And at Benelli, the TRE-K 899 (barely 10 motorcycles distributed): this sporty trail, still little known, nevertheless has exceptional motor and dynamic qualities..

"The TRE-K 899, still little known, nevertheless has exceptional motor and dynamic qualities"

MNC: In your opinion, have your new products for 2010 passed their first year? ?
J. G. : The latest version of the TNT 1130, the R 160, arrived late (in October), but it immediately met with success with fans of radical roadsters. We have sold around 30 copies.

MNC: What was the good surprise 2010 ?
J. G. : For Keeway, this is the launch of a quad line, with the introduction of the GTX 300 which has been very well received. A 650 cc will appear soon.

MNC: What was the worst ?
J. G. : The postponed launch of certain models at Keeway and Benelli which could have relaunched the machine.

MNC: In your opinion, what was the highlight of 2010 in the world of two-wheelers? ?
J. G. : The terrible weather at the end of the year ?

MNC: Are you going to offer something new in 2011? ?
J. G. : At Keeway in 125, we are going to offer a GT Silverblade scooter with electronic injection, a Trail Supermotard TX 125 and a brand new RKV 125 roadster. The Benelli brand is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2011! As such, we plan to introduce a special Century Racer 899 series at an exceptional price … and exclusively for the French market! Professionals can discover it at JPMS.

MNC: In 2011, what will be your objectives ?
J. G. : Benefiting for 2011 from a comprehensive and attractive offer, we will obviously seek to strongly develop our sales. We are going to continue our network development, in particular by integrating more seriously the 125 and quads segments. We will retain our current customers by optimizing our quality of service (sales, after-sales service), in particular by providing them with new management tools (extranet, internet) to facilitate and make our daily activities profitable and in the long term. To achieve these objectives, we have planned to deploy an appropriate communication strategy for our two brands. With in anticipation of general public promotional actions, an accentuated advertising campaign (web and print, television) and "co-branding" partnerships.

"A special Benelli Century Racer 899 series to discover at the JPMS"

MNC: What will be your major events this year ?
J. G. : To start our season, we will be present at the JPMS. To develop our Parisian clientele on the scooter part, we plan to participate in the Salon (s) du Scooter. We will also be present for both brands at the Mondial du 2 Roues at Porte de Versailles. Our competition program is not yet defined, but it could include road rallying. We will continue our partnerships with Keeway and Benelli Assurance and plan to develop others. In terms of events, we finally plan to organize with Benelli testing and discovery days on the circuit with, among other things, participation in the Alès Show Test.

MNC: In conclusion, which maxim would best illustrate your 2010 results? ?
J. G. : There should be no regrets for the past, no remorse for the present and unwavering confidence for the future !

Interview by Matthieu BRETILLE

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