Ford India, a completely owned subsidiary of the Ford Motor Company, is planning to expand its base further in India. In order to accomplish this goal, Ford India will launch 45 new dealerships in one day, on 16th February 2012.
As per an official, the plan to open more dealerships in India is an attempt to strengthen Ford’s presence in the domestic market. About two years ago, Ford India carried out a similar strategy by opening 28 new dealership stores across the country in a single day. This step was taken to launch the Ford Figo in the Indian automobile market.
It is not clear if Ford’s new strategy of opening 45 dealerships is aimed at attaining a similar objective, although company officials state otherwise. The plan will only be clear when the stores open on Thursday. It appears that Ford India has understood the importance of having competent service centres for its customers. Opening 45 dealership stores in a single day is definitely not an easy task. Most automobile manufacturers have less than 50 dealerships across the country.
Many believe that the opening of so many dealerships is for the promotion of 2012 Ford EcoSport Crossover. Ford’s latest model EcoSport is expected to be as popular in the SUV segment as Figo was in the small car segment and for this reason the company requires more stores to connect with customers. Time will only tell if Ford EcoSport will be able to attain the same success as that of Ford Figo. Price will play a major role in determining the popularity of Ford EcoSport in the Indian market.
