Ola Electric expands reach in India, adds over 3,000 touchpoints in a single day

Ola Electric expands reach in India, adds over 3,000 touchpoints in a single day

by with No Comment car updates

  • Ola Electric plans to expand its presence by achieving 4,000 showrooms along with service centers by December 20.
Amid the controversy and central probe over alleged poor after-sales service, Ola Electric has made aggressive plans to add over 3,000 new showrooms and service centers on December 20. (Reuters)

Ola Electric is planning to expand aggressively across India amid allegations of poor after-sales servicing. India's largest electric two-wheeler maker has announced that it will expand its sales and service touchpoints to 4,000 centers across the country on December 20. The EV maker currently has around 800 stores selling electric scooters like Ola S1 Pro, S1 Air and S1X. among others. Some of these stores also provide servicing facilities.

Ola Electric founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal took to social media this month to reveal the EV maker's expansion plans. He said during an event that Ola will add around 3,200 showrooms across India on December 2. “The goal is to stay as close to our customers as possible. All stores are opening simultaneously across India on 20th December. Aggarwal social media platform

Also Read: Ola Electric Gig and S1 Z models launched with portable battery pack

Ola Electric's expansion move assumes significance amid the recent controversy over the EV maker's sales and service record. It is currently under investigation by consumer watchdog Central Consumer Protection Agency (CCPA) for alleged 'consumer rights violations, misleading advertising and unfair trade practices'. The EV maker is currently being investigated by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) over alleged complaints from over 10,600 customers.

Also read: Ola Electric to lay off 500 employees as part of restructuring, report says

Ola Electric plans to address customer concerns

The biggest highlight of Ola Electric's latest expansion plan is the inclusion of service networks. To help customers deal with issues with their electric scooters, Ola will provide service support across all new showrooms. “All stores also have service capabilities,” Aggarwal said, pointing to Ola's eagerness to address customer concerns over the lack of service support by the EV maker.

Also see: First glimpse of Honda Activa E electric scooter

Earlier, Ola Electric had revealed plans to improve its after-sales service and service. According to reports, it has roped in global consulting firm Ernst & Young (EY) to assist the EV maker in improving its after-sales services, streamlining processes as well as managing spare parts and inventory for the next three months. ) has been appointed. Ola Electric had also assured that it will take corrective steps to address the concerns raised by customers. The major step assured by Ola is to increase production at its facility to meet delivery deadlines. It also promised to expand its service network to 1,000 centers by December this year, almost double what it currently has. There are also plans to train over one lakh third-party mechanics to increase the number of service personnel to address customer complaints.

Check out Upcoming EV Cars in India, Upcoming EV Bikes in India.

First publication date: 02 Dec 2024, 11:38 am IST

Source link

Soon any shop will be able to sell Ola EV. Bhavish Aggarwal announces ONDC partnership

Soon any shop will be able to sell Ola EV. Bhavish Aggarwal announces ONDC partnership

by with No Comment car updates

By: HT Auto Desk
, updated on: August 30, 2024, 17:47 pm

  • Now any store will be able to sell Ola electric vehicles beyond the 800 experience centers, whose products will now be listed on the ONDC platform.
Ola Electric will sell its EV lineup as well as parts on the ONDC platform, making it easier for any shop to sell its e-scooters and for customers to get parts in a convenient manner.

Ola Electric co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal has announced that the company has partnered with the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). Ola Electric's products including spare parts and electric vehicles will be available on the ONDC network, allowing customers to get spare parts directly through the open-source platform.

Ola electric scooter now available on ONDC

Aggarwal claimed that customers will be able to get their vehicle repaired at local garages instead of the company's service stations. Any shop will be able to sell Ola electric vehicles apart from the company's 800 experience centers, as the products are now listed on the ONDC platform.

Also read: Ola Electric's EV market share drops massively, falls to one-third in August.

Announcing the partnership in a post on X (formerly Twitter), Bhavish Aggarwal wrote, “Starting next week, all @OlaElectric products will be available on ONDC. @ONDC_Official @KoshyTK ONDC is the future of commerce (smiley emoji).”

He further added in the post, “This also means that now anyone who has a store can sell @OlaElectric products (smile emoji). Till now we had more than 800 company-owned stores. Now instead of adding some more stores or “exclusive dealerships”, anyone in India will be able to sell Ola scooters.”

Starting next week, Ola Electric's scooter range which includes the S1 X, S1 Air and S1 Pro will be available on ONDC. The move will increase the brand's market reach and make it easier for customers to buy electric scooters. Moreover, the brand has lost its market share in the last month. The company's upcoming electric motorcycles should also be available on this platform in the future.

Also read: Not relevant for India? Ola Electric officially shelves electric car project

Ola Electric introduced the new Roadster series at its annual event Sankalp 2024. The company launched the Roadster X, followed by the Roadster and Roadster Pro. Prices start at Starting at ₹ 74,999 (ex-showroom). While the deliveries of the Roadster X are scheduled to take place around November this year, the deliveries of the Roadster Pro will take about a year and a half. Meanwhile, Ola Electric has postponed its plans to introduce an electric car for the Indian market.

Take a look at the upcoming EV bikes in India.

First Publication Date: 30 August 2024, 17:46 PM IST



Source link

Ola Electric slashes sales targets ahead of IPO launch, say sources

Ola Electric slashes sales targets ahead of IPO launch, say sources

by with No Comment Electric vehicles cars

India’s Ola Electric has slashed its sales goals for 2023-2025 by more than half and delayed its target of achieving profits by a year, after reduced government incentives pushed up e-scooter prices, according to a document and two sources with direct knowledge of the company’s finances.

By: Reuters
| Updated on: 06 Dec 2023, 16:42 PM

Ola Electric, India’s largest electric two-wheeler manufacturer, is planning to cut down its sales targets ahead of its IPO launch.

The scaling back of Ola’s targets comes ahead of its $700 million stock market debut plan, even though the SoftBank-backed company, which likens itself to Tesla in the West, continues to lead the small yet fast growing e-scooter market. In a surprise move in May, India’s government cut cash incentives available for e-scooter buyers without giving an explanation. Ola’s CEO Bhavish Aggarwal at the time said the reduced incentive would be a “short-term blip” for sales, and the company said the move would “have no impact on volumes”.

A document seen by Reuters with Ola’s latest financial projections shows it now expects to record 300,000 e-scooter sales in the ongoing fiscal year to March 2024, two-thirds lower than the earlier goal of 882,000 which Reuters reported in July.

The revenue target for the ongoing fiscal year period is now $591 million, versus the earlier goal of $1.55 billion – a cut of about 60%, according to the internal document.

In a statement, Ola did not acknowledge the document or comment on the cuts to internal forecasts. It said future financial targets were “yet to be verified”.

“This is completely confidential information of the company,” Ola said.

Also Read : Tesla on two wheels? Ola Electric faces after-sales service challenges as demands surge for EVs in India

The targets have been lowered because of the government’s lower subsidy, said two sources with direct knowledge of the company’s finances, who declined to be named citing confidentiality.

“The new numbers have been toned down so the company is able to meet or exceed them … that is what investors want to see,” said one of the sources.

EV Goals

While Ola is launching new scooters, parts of its nationwide network of over 400 service hubs which maintain and repair its EVs are showing signs of strain after a surge in sales, Reuters reported last month.

India e-scooters sales nearly tripled to over 700,000 during 2022-23 versus the previous year, with Ola a market leader, but the sales were still a fraction of 15 million plus two-wheelers sold in the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants 70% of all new two-wheeler sales to be electric by 2030. India now offers 15% of the price before tax as incentives for e-scooters, compared with 40% earlier, leading to higher prices.

Before the government incentive cuts, Ola, still loss-making, was expecting to record its first operating profit of $220 million in the ongoing 2023-24 fiscal year. The revised targets in the document show it will record an operating loss of $92 million this year, and a profit of $111 million next year.

Sales will also rise but at a far slower pace than earlier predicted.

Ola will sell 900,000 units in 2024-25 and 2.3 million units in 2025-26, the new document showed. Those targets are 60% and 21% lower than earlier estimates when incentives were in place.

On Saturday, Ola’s Aggarwal slashed prices of his entry-level e-scooter by about 20% to around $1,100 to boost their appeal and bring more people into the EV fold, adding that lower government incentives were not a worry.

“People had feared the e-scooter industry will be hit due to government incentive cuts. Industry has more than recovered,” Aggarwal said.

First Published Date: 06 Dec 2023, 16:42 PM IST


Source link