CAR India got into an easy conversation with Mr Ryo Mizuhara, President, Kenwood Asia Headquarters. Excerpts:
CI: How does Kenwood view the Indian passenger car market?RM: We offer in-car entertainment products. We look forward to launching navigation systems for OEMs and the after-market in the coming months.I expect that the sales during the ongoing financial year (2010-11) are going to be double those during the last financial year (2009-10). The period from January to July during the current calendar year has been very promising for us and I expect even better sales during the second half.
CI: What, according to you, has been your flagship product in the Indian passenger car market?
RM: The Indian car marker is very price-conscious. We cannot single out one product. It’s a combination of all products, because in India we are witnessing a growing middle class. Those getting their new cars are buying our cost-effective and basic models. I must say that India is a very crucial market for Kenwood across all categories of cars. We provide superior technology and value for money. When our consumers buy the basic Kenwood model, we look at offering the best sound, the best technology and greater convenience.
CI: In the wake of India becoming a small car hub globally, what is your focus and strategy?
RM: This year Kenwood has innovated the world’s smallest five-channel amplifier. This is basically focused on the small cars and especially in India. Normally, there is a separate amplifier for a sub-woofer, but in this special model launched earlier this year we can have four speakers connected to the amplifier along with a sub-woofer. For the past three years our R&D men have been making efforts to reduce the size of our products. Usually amplifiers are big and require enormous power, but our amplifiers come in smaller sizes. It’s an improvement in terms of design and engineering.
CI: How has Kenwood dealt with the global slowdown in the sales of cars?
RM: Honestly, our sales were also hit during 2008. Since then, however, we have been recovering our losses and I expect the recovery to be complete
this year.
CI: Please compare Kenwood’s global performance with that in India.
RM: We cannot deny the relevance of sales in India. During the slowdown, when our sales were decreasing globally, Indian volumes helped us survive. There has been a proportional growth in the demand coming from Asian countries. The share of sales has significantly increased in India. Consequently, we have increased our sales targets and India stands as one of the bigger markets in Asia.
CI: What is your strategy in respect of your competitors?
RM: Our direct competitors are Pioneer and Sony. We compete with our value-added features. Our products offer greater features and provide a better platform for interaction, choice and ease of use. We offer better LCD screens with improved display, short wave tuners, touchscreen functions such as scroll and drag and other features that ensure ease of operation while driving. If Kenwood charges more, it gives value for money as well.
CI: What is the lookout in the after-sales arena?
RM: Nippon take care of the after-market. They have a wide network across the country. We don’t plan to set up our own network, because we have our distributors out there. We take officials from Nippon for training to our headquarters, where we train them in product- and service-related issues. We also organise seminars and other events for them.
CI: Are there India-specific audio systems from Kenwood? What is the R&D in Indian requirements?
RM: We don’t have India-specific models, but we do have models according to Asian requirements. Asia is a vital zone for us, including big markets like Iran, the UAE, India, Indonesia and others. We have four kinds of models: the American type, European type, Asian type and Japanese type. Therefore, we do not focus only on one country, but the region as a whole.
